Grill-It-Yourself Japanese Barbecue Chain Is Opening Its First Austin Restaurant

Global Japanese barbecue chain Gyu-Kaku is opening its first-ever Austin restaurant. It’ll be found at mixed-use development Plaza Saltillo in East Austin at 901 East 5th Street starting in 2020.

The restaurant chain is all about yakiniku — Japanese for “grilled meat” — where people use the charcoal grill embedded in their table to cook various meats and vegetables, and then dip them in tare, a Japanese soy sauce that is thick and sweet. Gyu-Kaku’s known for its “smokeless roaster” grills, where smoke is drawn away from the surface of the table.

Gyu-Kaku’s cook-it-yourself meats are available a la carte or as part of what the restaurant refers to as “courses.” There’s everything from 21-day-aged Angus skirt steaks, kalbi short ribs, pork belly, garlic shoyu chicken, shrimp, onions, and even an offal offering of large beef intestines, alongside marinades and toppings.

Then there are ready-made dishes like ramen, noodles, rices, soups, salads, and appetizers like tofus, dumplings, and chicken wings. As for drinks, there’s draft Japanese beers, bottled beers, sake, shochu, cocktails, wine, straight-up whiskeys, and non-alcoholic offerings.

The restaurant name Gyu-Kaku is Japanese for “horn of the bull.” It has over 700 locations across the world, as well as in Dallas and Houston. There are also plans to open additional Austin restaurants. This Plaza Saltillo location is courtesy of Matthews Real Estate Investment Services.

Neighboring restaurants and the like to be found in Plaza Saltillo include Dolce Neve, Hopdoddy Burger Bar, Whole Foods Market, Chuy’s, the Kebab Shop, and others. San Antonio Southeast Asian seafood restaurant Pinch Boil House is no longer opening in the development.

• Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ [Official]
• Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ [Facebook]
• All Coverage of Plaza Saltillo [EATX]