Restaurant review: Spring Grill House

Korean barbeque has become a popular dining option, so I decided to try Spring Grill House on Upper James Street to see what the fuss is all about.

Spring Grill House is the sister restaurant to Spring Sushi, also on Upper James. Spring Grill House is an all-you-can-eat restaurant where you use an iPad to order. I have found that this technique has become very popular with all-you-can-eat restaurants, because it makes the process faster and more efficient.

I chose to go for dinner because they offer a larger menu. The staff was friendly and gave me a brief explanation about how Korean barbecue works, the main point being you do some of the cooking yourself at your table. The menu had different sections for pre-made options and uncooked protein such as chicken and fish. With the use of the iPad I was able to see all the options, while each had a little description.

Due to the fact that this restaurant is all you-can-eat, my three companions and I ordered so much food that we barely had any room left on our table. We started with the pre-cooked items and my personal favourite item on the menu was the general tso chicken. This chicken was not too spicy and it was not hard to eat. Other pre-cooked items that we ordered were edamame, rice and breaded shrimp. Each item was cooked well and was enjoyable to eat.

Moving on to the raw protein, this was a little intimidating at first but our server reassured us we would be fine cooking for ourselves. This process takes a little longer than just waiting for the pre-cooked meals. We ordered steak, chicken, shrimp, and calamari.

Each table or booth in the restaurant has its own cooking station. The servers turn on the grill and when you get the protein, vegetables, etc., you place it on the burner while it cooks. Personally, I feared it would be a safety hazard due to over-cooking food, resulting in smoke. Fortunately, all of Spring Grill House’s burners are smoke-free making it bearable to sit around.

Once we were ready to start cooking, we placed our chicken on one grill and our steak and seafood on the other. I enjoyed this form of dining because it gets everyone talking and interested in what is happening around you. Everyone had their own set of tongs to help flip the food and take it off the grill when ready. Personally, I found the chicken to be nothing special, even with the provided teriyaki sauce. The steak, on the other hand, was a table favourite. Being able to personally cook the steak to your preference made the experience that much better and the variety of sauces helped bring the items to life.

With great food comes great responsibility and for me that’s having a great-looking restaurant. The Spring Grill House is huge and spacious. With many tables and booths this restaurant is ready for huge crowds daily. The decorations were shining and caught your eye in a great way. The only negative I would say about the experience is that I would never sit at a table in this restaurant. I was lucky enough to have been seated at a booth, but looking at those who weren’t as fortunate made me cringe. The chairs looked nice and went with the colour scheme, but were awkwardly angled. If I, or anyone, were to want to lean back, it would look like you were lying down.

Being a huge sushi fan, Spring Sushi has always been my second home. I would go there for lunch or dinner at least once a week. But after trying Spring Grill House, I might have just found another favourite to add to my list. The food was delicious and the experience was amazing. I would consider this restaurant a play place for adults who love to eat and cook great-quality food. Some might shy away from the fact that it is all-you-can-eat, and be worried the quality would suffer, but this restaurant definitely made a lasting impression on me. Per person the all-you-can-eat dinner is only $17.99. You get more than enough food for what you pay.

If I were to rate Spring Grill House out of 10 I would give it a 9.5. If I continue to have the same quality of service and food as I did on my first experience it could possibly become one of my favourite restaurants. To those who ask, “why should I go to a restaurant and cook my own food?” The answer is simple. It is a great way to interact with those around you while eating delicious food. It is a great place to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and more. I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a fun, new experience.

I am not surprised that Korean barbeque has become the latest trend in the restaurant industry, and thanks to Spring Grill House I can’t wait to have it again!