RFK Cuisine · Korean · Sydney
Best Korean Restaurants in Sydney 2026
Korean · Sydney · 7 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published June 27, 2026 · Updated June 27, 2026
Sydney has two Koreatowns, and neither is where most tourists eat. One runs along Pitt Street in the CBD, a dense strip of barbecue houses and fried-chicken shops that fills with smoke and soju until two in the morning. The other is in Strathfield, twenty minutes west by train, where the city's Korean community is concentrated and the grills run on charcoal and premium wagyu. Above both sits a small modern wave — Soul Dining the best of it — putting an Australian spin on Korean cooking. Australia has no Michelin guide, so nothing here carries a star, but the food is among the best Korean outside Seoul. Ranked below are the seven worth crossing the city for, with the room, the dish to order and the price at each.
1.Soul Dining
Sydney's most ambitious modern Korean — book it for a contemporary set built on a ssamjang pork cutlet you won't find at the BBQ houses.
Soul Dining is the room that proved Korean cooking in Sydney could be more than barbecue. Run by the husband-and-wife team Illa Kim and Daero Lee, it was one of the first kitchens in the city to give Korean food a contemporary, Australian-inflected spin, and at the end of 2023 it moved from Surry Hills to a larger room near Wynyard in the CBD. The cooking is elaborate and veers fine-dining — a ssamjang-slathered pork cutlet served with hunks of rice-wine-fermented bread is the signature — but the vibe stays relaxed, built for sharing across a table. There is a sister deli, Soul Deli, for the casual version. Book ahead for dinner. Come for the city's most creative Korean kitchen, where the cooking is the event rather than the grill.
Reserve ahead; the ssamjang pork cutlet with fermented bread, the modern banchan, the seasonal set, a soju or makgeolli pairing.
2.Sydney Madang
The busiest barbecue house in the CBD Koreatown — go late for marinated galbi and a seafood pancake, and expect to queue.
Sydney Madang, down a narrow lane off Pitt Street at 371A, is the most reputed and reliably packed Korean barbecue in the city centre. It has anchored the CBD Koreatown for years, grilling marinated short rib and pork belly over tabletop burners alongside a deep menu of stews, the haemul pajeon seafood pancake and a generous spread of banchan refilled on request. The room is cramped, loud and run at speed, open until 2am for the after-work and post-club crowd. There are no bookings — you put your name down and wait, often out on the lane. Go early or very late to beat the queue. Come for the definitive CBD barbecue night, smoke, soju and all.
No booking — queue on the lane; the marinated galbi, the pork belly, the haemul pajeon, a kimchi stew and a bottle of soju.
3.Jang Ta Bal
Strathfield's original charcoal barbecue, going since 2011 — make the trip west for premium wagyu grilled over real coals.
Jang Ta Bal, on The Boulevarde in Strathfield, is the barbecue house that was packed long before Korean grills became a Sydney obsession. Open since 2011, it built its name on a rare combination — genuinely high-grade meat and a good-time room — and it remains the benchmark of the suburban Koreatown. The draw is real charcoal rather than gas burners, and premium wagyu cuts sliced and grilled at the table, smoke rising over the banchan. It runs dinner only, from 5pm, and the room buzzes nightly with Korean families and groups out west for the real thing. No reservations; arrive early on weekends. Come for the best charcoal wagyu barbecue in Sydney, at the centre of Strathfield's Korean strip.
No booking — arrive early; the charcoal wagyu, the marinated galbi, the soybean stew (doenjang jjigae), a round of soju.
4.O Bal Tan
The late-night CBD grill built for groups — go for the Combination C set that feeds three across beef, pork, chicken and seafood.
O Bal Tan, down a laneway off Pitt Street in the CBD Koreatown, is the barbecue house Sydney heads to when the night is already underway. Its calling card is the combination set: the Combination C, around A$80, piles beef, pork, chicken and seafood onto one order and feeds two to three people comfortably, which makes it the default for groups who want to grill without studying a menu. The room is functional and the kitchen runs late, part of the cluster of after-hours spots that keep the CBD Koreatown alive past midnight. No frills, no fuss — just meat, banchan and soju. Walk in; later is easier than peak dinner. Come for the group barbecue that does the ordering for you, well into the small hours.
Walk in late; the Combination C set for the table, extra pork belly, a seafood pancake, soju and a soft-tofu stew to finish.
5.STRA BBQ
A Strathfield charcoal grill for premium cuts — go for the wagyu and pork belly when Jang Ta Bal has a queue out the door.
STRA BBQ, in the thick of the Strathfield Koreatown, is the newer-generation charcoal house and the obvious second move when the older institutions are full. It leans on the same formula that makes the suburb worth the train ride: charcoal grilling rather than gas, premium wagyu beef and thick-cut pork belly, and a banchan spread that keeps coming. The room is brighter and a touch more polished than the veterans down the road, which makes it a good entry point if it's your first Strathfield barbecue. It fills with locals and students from the nearby colleges. No bookings; turnover is quick. Come for premium charcoal barbecue in Strathfield without the longest wait on the strip.
Walk in; the charcoal wagyu, the thick-cut pork belly, the marinated short rib, a kimchi pancake and refills of banchan.
6.Red Pepper Bistro
Strathfield's fried-chicken specialist — go for a half-and-half of soy-garlic and spicy yangnyeom with a cold Korean beer.
Red Pepper Bistro, in Strathfield, is the spot to settle the most important question in Korean fried chicken: soy-garlic or spicy. The answer is both, in a half-and-half order — shatteringly crisp double-fried chicken glazed two ways, the sweet-savoury ganjang and the chilli-sticky yangnyeom. It is the dish Sydney's Korean community treats as a staple rather than a novelty, and Red Pepper does it with the lacquered crunch and clean fry the chains can't match. The room is casual and quick, built for sharing a bucket over beer or soju. No ceremony required. Walk in. Come for the best Korean fried chicken in Strathfield, ordered the only correct way — half soy-garlic, half spicy.
Walk in; the half-and-half fried chicken (soy-garlic and yangnyeom), pickled radish, a tteokbokki side, a cold Korean lager.
7.Daejangkum
The CBD barbecue for first-timers — book online for well-priced combo sets and an easier intro than the no-reservations crush.
Daejangkum, in the CBD, is the Korean barbecue to send someone to for their first time. Where the lane-side institutions run on queues and elbows, Daejangkum takes online reservations and builds its menu around clear, well-priced combination sets, which removes the guesswork from a first Korean barbecue. The cooking is solid and the room comfortable enough to linger, with the full supporting cast — banchan, stews, pancakes — done properly. It is not the most hardcore barbecue in the city, and that is the point: it is the welcoming one. Book a table online to skip the wait. Come for an approachable, bookable Korean barbecue in the CBD, with none of the queue anxiety.
Book online; a combination BBQ set, the bulgogi, a soft-tofu stew, a seafood pancake, soju or a Korean beer.
How Sydney eats Korean
Sydney's Korean food lives in two places. The CBD Koreatown runs along Pitt Street between roughly Liverpool and Goulburn Streets — a tight grid of barbecue houses, fried-chicken shops, dessert cafés and late bars packed into the laneways, busiest after dark and open far later than most of the city. The bigger, more residential Koreatown is in Strathfield, twenty minutes west by train, where the Korean community is concentrated and the barbecue is cheaper, more generous and often cooked over charcoal rather than gas. Eastwood holds a smaller third cluster. For a night out, the CBD; for the deepest spread and the best meat, Strathfield.
A few mechanics. Most barbecue houses take no reservations and run on queues — go early or late, and expect to wait at the CBD institutions like Sydney Madang. Tipping is not part of Australian dining, so there is nothing to add. Banchan (the small side dishes) and the lettuce for ssam wraps are free and refilled on request; the staff grill or help with the meat at most places. The CBD runs late — many kitchens go past midnight, some to 2am — while Strathfield winds down earlier. Australia has no Michelin guide, so judge by the crowd: the rooms full of Korean families are the ones to trust. The wider map is in the Sydney dining guide.
Where not to look for it
Skip these mismatches
The CBD barbecue houses, for a quiet, lingering dinner. Sydney Madang and the Pitt Street grills are loud, smoky, fast and often queued — a great night out, a poor choice for conversation. For a calmer, sit-down Korean meal, book Soul Dining in the CBD or an online-reservation room like Daejangkum instead.
Soul Dining, if you came for all-you-can-eat charcoal barbecue. It is a modern, set-led kitchen, not a grill-your-own meat house, and there is no tabletop barbecue. For that, head to Strathfield — Jang Ta Bal and STRA BBQ are the charcoal-and-wagyu rooms, and they do not pretend to be anything else.
Frequently asked
What is the best Korean restaurant in Sydney?
For modern, contemporary Korean cooking, Soul Dining — run by Illa Kim and Daero Lee, now in the CBD near Wynyard — is the most ambitious in the city. For Korean barbecue, Sydney Madang on Pitt Street is the long-standing CBD favourite, while Jang Ta Bal in Strathfield is the wagyu-charcoal benchmark in the suburban Koreatown. For Korean fried chicken, Red Pepper Bistro in Strathfield is the pick. Australia has no Michelin guide, so none of these carry a star, but the quality and authenticity are high.
Where is Sydney's Koreatown?
Sydney has two. The CBD Koreatown runs along Pitt Street between Liverpool and Goulburn Streets, a dense cluster of barbecue houses, fried-chicken shops and late-night bars in and off the laneways. The larger residential Koreatown is in Strathfield, about twenty minutes west by train, where the Korean community is concentrated and the barbecue restaurants, bakeries and grocers line The Boulevarde and Albert Road. Eastwood, further north, has a third smaller cluster. The CBD is best for a night out; Strathfield for the deepest, most authentic spread.
How much does Korean barbecue cost in Sydney?
A Korean barbecue dinner in Sydney runs roughly A$45–70 a head once you factor in meat, banchan and drinks, more if you order premium wagyu cuts. Combination sets are the value play — O Bal Tan's Combination C is around A$80 and feeds two to three people across beef, pork, chicken and seafood. Strathfield tends to be a little cheaper and more generous than the CBD. Banchan (the small side dishes) and the lettuce for ssam wraps are free and usually refilled on request.
Does Sydney have a Michelin-starred Korean restaurant?
No — Australia does not have a Michelin guide, so no Sydney restaurant of any cuisine holds a Michelin star. The Korean scene is judged instead on local recognition: Soul Dining has been a critics' favourite for its modern cooking, and the Strathfield and Pitt Street barbecue houses are ranked by local guides like Time Out and the Urban List. The absence of stars says nothing about quality here — Sydney's Korean food is among the best outside Korea, especially for barbecue and fried chicken.
What should I order at a Korean restaurant in Sydney?
At a barbecue house, order a mix of marinated galbi (short rib) and unmarinated samgyeopsal (pork belly) or a wagyu cut, and wrap the grilled meat in lettuce with ssamjang and garlic. Add a seafood pancake (haemul pajeon) and a stew — kimchi jjigae or sundubu (soft tofu) — to round it out. At a fried-chicken spot like Red Pepper, get a half-and-half of soy-garlic and spicy yangnyeom. At Soul Dining, trust the modern set menu. Wash it down with soju or makgeolli.
More Korean & Sydney
More from RFK
Browse the full Sydney dining guide, compare the global picks in the best Korean restaurants worldwide, read the best Korean in Seoul and the New York Korean ranking, or open the full RFK cuisine index.
Restaurants for Kings is reader-supported. Some reservation links are affiliate links with OpenTable, Resy or Tock; we earn a small commission at no cost to you, and a link never buys a place on a ranking. Editorial scores and ranking order are independent of any commercial relationship. See our ranking methodology.