Kotu Korean BBQ

I say this as nice as possible because the staff were very accommodating. This was probably the worst kbbq spot I have ever been to. And I've been to a lot. I was a bit excited to try this. However, I understand now why it's the "best of Tucson". It's because it's literally the ONLY kbbq spot in Tucson. So extremely low bar. I have no idea how this place has so many positive reviews. I was not impressed for the amount of money. 40$/person is insane. I don't understand the menu at all. Why is it 40 for standard but if you want the good meet it jumps 10$ per person? I have never been to a kbbq like that. Let's start the review. -jap Chae was overcooked and way too much sesame oil -fish cakes were too sweet -kimchi was too bitter -corn cheese had too much cream or something. It tastes like a paste. -Ssamjang is extremely weird. It was liquidy. Ssamjang is not supposed to be liquid like since it is a fermented soy PASTE. It was not the right color and did not taste like Ssamjang. Ssamjang is usually a deeper color like a burnt sienna than whatever orange thing they gave me. -grill temp was all over the place -portion sizes were not good The japchae had too much sesame oil. If I can distinctly taste the sesame oil there's way too much. The fish cakes had too much sugar. The portion sizes I thought were small for kbbq. Maybe get two servings out of one order. Also when the grill was initially turned on, it was so hot that our first round of meat pretty much instantly burned due to temperature and the meats were thin. Thank goodness the staff didn't charge us for the left over burnt meat. I'm serious it was CRUNCHY. Also personal take here. At this restaurant I didn't see any Asians on the staff. At kbbq usually you see Asians or Koreans working. I saw no Asians working. So I thought to myself if a Korean speaking person came here the would be in trouble unless the knew English very well. I'm a little concerned about if the owner is even Korean? You might not think it matters but it does. They know how Korean food is supposed to be. Some good things. The galbi wasn't bad. It was the short rib with bone which isn't my preferred form of galbi but it was still good and not too sweet. The pop corn chicken was so good. They give a chunk of beef fat to grease the grill in the beginning which I appreciated. Strip loin was good. Although it was basically a chunk of meat you toss on the grill and cut yourself with scissors. The spicy pickled cucumbers weren't bad and tasted normal. That's about it though. I would never come back here due to the price absolutely not equating to the quality. The staff very nice. But not nice enough to save the food. This place I would expect more 20-25$/person than anything. Not 40$! If the kbbq place absolutely was redone different story.