KPOT Brings Unique Dining Experience to Maple Grove
The “Restaurant Capital of Minnesota” now has a new dining option where people can experience the rich, culinary traditions of Korea.
KPOT officially opened its doors this month, offering a dining experience that’s unique to Maple Grove.
“I think it’s pretty exciting,” said Jesse Castro, a KPOT customer. “I mean, around the area, there’s not really much like this.”
In most restaurants, meals are prepared by staff in the kitchen.
But KPOT isn’t like most restaurants. Here, the food is cooked right at your table.
“We’re really excited to bring this kind of dining experience to Maple Grove,” said Mike Lee, KPOT’s regional manager.
His team spent a year renovating a vacant space next to Golden Corral. It’s the company’s first Minnesota location (they have more than 100 locations nationwide).
“Right now, Korean barbecue and hotpot is the thing,” said Lee.
The sauce and appetizer bar allows guests to customize their meals with a wide selection of dipping sauces.
A communal dining experience
Simply put, KPOT offers a communal dining experience where customers pay a flat fee to order hotpot, Korean barbecue or both.
For hotpot, you use a tablet to order a soup base and choose from up to 70 different items to put inside your broth.
“We got beef, we got lamb, we got some lobster balls, we got some fish fillets, and some quail eggs, which are pretty nice to cook,” said Kody Tyge, a customer.
Korean barbecue works the same way. You can choose from up to 40 items, which they’ll bring out to your table on small plates. Customers can either grill the meat and veggies themselves or have the staff members take care of it.
The sauce bar lets people season the barbecue or hotpot to their liking.
“Even though we have a hundred items on our menu, you could change the flavor profile to, I mean, it’s limitless,” said Lee. “You can combine so many different ingredients.”
It’s the sort of dining experience that’s people haven’t been able to find in Maple Grove.
“Yeah, you just grill it and you make your own food, you cook it and it’s fun,” said Castro, the customer. “It’s just like an activity, as well as eating, you know, it’s two in one.”
And for some of the folks who visited during KPOT’s opening week, it’s a welcome addition to the area.
“I would say so,” said Tyge. “There doesn’t seem to be too many hotpot places around, at least in this area.”
One piece of advice for potential customers: if you visit, bring your appetite.
“Anyone and everyone can come and enjoy us,” said Lee.
For the full hotpot and Korean barbecue experience, dinner costs $37.99 per person (4 p.m. to close, weekends and holidays). Lunch is $26.99 Monday-Friday.
KPOT is located at 13601 Grove Dr. in Maple Grove.
Related: Sōke in Brooklyn Park offers Korean BBQ, Hotpot Under One Roof
