Best barbecue restaurants in KL

The very classy Yakiniku Toraji at Isetan the Japan Store is the place to go when you’re looking for more atas Japanese barbecue; think top shelf Australian beef in Toraji’s signature diamond cut – which helps the meat cook better and faster. Toraji first started in a small back street at Ebisu, a district in Tokyo’s Shibuya area, and has since expanded to over 70 outlets around the world. 

On the menu is a choice of two meal sets: the Standard course, which features beef tongue, boneless ribs and sirloin sushi; and the Premium course, which has thicker and better cuts of beef. The cuts range from rib eye to tenderloin, with flavour profiles which are further enhanced with the restaurant’s well-guarded secret house-made marinade and sauce. Good to know: Toraji uses a proprietary grill and ventilation system that eliminates any excessive smokiness, so you won’t be getting comments like ‘I know what you had for dinner just now!’.

Standard course, RM200; Premium course, RM280.

Tucked away in the quiet neighborhood mall of Tropicana Avenue, Beard Brothers’ BBQ has established a strong fanbase, particularly among those who crave for the Texas-style barbecue that’s often seen on the Food Network. 

Their meats are smoked for about 14 hours with firewood, guaranteeing that their brisket and ribs come out dark and charred on the outside, but juicy and fork-tender the moment you cut into it. If you dig the char, have a serving of their burnt ends (when they have it) which are glazed with a house-made spicy sauce. Coming in a big group of three or more? Order up the Behemoth, which consists of 300g of brisket, 300g of pulled lamb, one beef rib and four side dishes. Prices here are a little steep, but it’s worth the splurge.

Single meal sets from RM27; Behemoth from RM200-RM300.

In the mood for Pakistani barbecue instead? Located in the heart of KL City, BBQ Nights are known for dishing up consistently good food at reasonable prices. Your options here are aplenty with dishes such as charcoal-grilled lamb chop masala, fish tikka (grilled cubes of spice-marinated fish), grilled prawns and more.

You can also order from their selection of barbecue platters, which you can share with your buddies. The mixed grilled platter comes with a combination of your choice of charcoal-grilled proteins such as mutton, chicken, beef and fish, while the seafood platter is a mixture of grilled fish and prawns. If you don’t mind splurging a bit, the lamb ribs platter is a solid meal of barbecued mutton marinated with special spices.

Mixed grill platter, RM70; seafood platter, RM75; lamb ribs platter, RM90.

SOULed Out Hartamas is where you can have a classic weekend barbecue with friends alongside beers and footie on the big screen. The outdoor barbecue kitchen specialises in grilling up thick cuts of grass- or grain-fed sirloin (360g), rib eye (300g) and tenderloin (200g) to medium-rare perfection, and are served with a choice of house-made dips and sauces like cepes jus, apple muscatel and sauce Vierge.

Don’t fancy beef? Not a problem: order their chicken skewers or wood-fired oven pizzas like the Asiana (anchovies, nuts, and coriander), Roasted Duck (tamarind glaze, pineapple, crispy shallots, coriander) and Lamb Kalabi (spiced lamb keema style, mozzarella).

Prices from RM69 for grain-fed and RM99 for grass-fed beef cuts.

In a city glutted with unabashedly porky yakiniku, options for Japanese barbecue without the oink-factor are hard to come by. This gives Momotalo Yakiniku in Hartamas a prominent spot in the scene with its pork-free menu that sports Kobe beef, ox tongue, lamb short ribs, chicken wings, abalone, shishamo, oysters, prawns and plenty more. There’s also no fear about the usual sweating over a charcoal fire; the casual Momotalo is blissfully air-conditioned, making for meals where only the meat sizzles.

Prices here are a little high; meat starts from RM20 for ox tongue, with Kobe beef soaring at RM165 and abalone taking the cake with a RM380 price tag. But since you’re already here, get grilling on the Supreme Ox Tongue (a marbled, tender, flavourful bovine cut; RM28) as well as the salmon (RM28). For the salmon, you place the dish whole on the grill – as the salmon will arrive in cubes, submerged in a tray of water and topped with a slice of butter – and what you’ll get is steamed salmon in butter sauce once done.