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Updated: October 2026

The best Korean restaurant in Motor City is Kyochon at First Avenue Mall, and it is also the only one. It is a fried chicken house, not a grill, and two big listing sites wrongly mark it as permanently closed. For a full Korean dinner or a table grill you drive: 11 to 13 km to Barsha Heights or Al Barsha, or 17.8 km to JBR for unlimited halal Korean BBQ.

TL;DR
– In Motor City itself: Kyochon, ground floor of First Avenue Mall. Korean fried chicken from AED 32, open until 1 AM
– Nearest full Korean menu: Koreana in Al Barsha 1, 12.9 km away. Stews AED 50, bibimbap AED 55
– Unlimited halal table grill: Mukbang Shows JBR, 17.8 km away. From AED 79 before 6 PM, AED 99 after
– Coming, not open yet: Hey Tiger at Motor City Club House, announced with tabletop Korean barbecue grills

Is there a Korean restaurant in Motor City?

Yes, one. Kyochon sits on the ground floor of First Avenue Mall, near Dubai Autodrome. It is a branch of one of South Korea’s biggest fried chicken chains, and it was the only Korean kitchen we could verify as open in Motor City on 2 October 2026.

We checked the usual suspects around it. Zomato’s Korean filter for Motor City returns a single local venue, Orientale, which is a pan-Asian restaurant rather than a Korean one. A Google Maps search for Korean restaurants in neighbouring Arjan returns the same Kyochon. Nothing else in the neighbourhood cooks a Korean menu.

So the honest answer has two halves. If you want Korean fried chicken, rice cakes or a kimchi rice bowl, you can eat in Motor City tonight. If you want a table grill, a stone-pot stew with side dishes or a long sit-down dinner, the nearest options are a 21 to 25 minute drive away. The rest of this guide covers both, with real prices.

Is Kyochon Motor City open or permanently closed?

It is open. This matters because two of the sites people check first say the opposite.

On 2 October 2026, Zomato’s page for Kyochon at First Avenue Mall carried a “Permanently Closed” label, and RestaurantGuru showed the same status. If you stopped there, you would conclude that Motor City has no Korean food at all.

Google Maps shows the reverse. The same unit is listed as open, closing at 1 AM, with a 4.8 rating from 1,125 reviews. The owner replied to a review about four weeks ago, and diners were posting photos within the past month. Deliveroo also runs a live ordering page for “Kyochon – Motor City”, rated 4.6 from more than 500 ratings, with a full priced menu.

The address explains some of the confusion. Zomato files it under “Ground Floor, First Avenue Mall, near Dubai Autodrome”. Google files it under “Ground Floor, West Arcade”. It is the same shop. One more wrinkle: Kyochon’s Middle East website showed only a “coming soon” holding page when we looked, so the brand’s own site will not settle it for you. Call 050 292 5251 if you want certainty before you set out.

What is the best Korean restaurant in Motor City?

Kyochon, by default and on merit. Below it we rank the places a Motor City resident would realistically drive to. We run Mukbang Shows, so weigh the second entry accordingly.

1. Kyochon, First Avenue Mall: the only Korean kitchen in Motor City

Kyochon does one thing, Korean fried chicken, and prices it for a weeknight. On its Deliveroo menu, five wings with one side cost AED 33. So do four mixed drumsticks and wings, or seven boneless bites. A half chicken with one side is AED 32, in plain “real fried” or sweet-spicy yangnyum.

Sharing sizes step up evenly. Ten wings or 14 boneless bites with two sides are AED 63. A whole chicken, 20 wings or 28 boneless bites with three sides are AED 115. Flavours include soy garlic, honey, yangnyum and a spicy red glaze.

The Korean dishes beyond chicken are small and cheap. Tteokbokki, japchae and a chicken kimchi soup are AED 22 each. Kimchi fried rice is AED 18 and a chicken rice bowl AED 20. These sit under “Specials & Sides”, so expect side portions rather than a full plate.

The honest caveats: the rest of the menu is sandwiches, wraps, fries and coleslaw, so this is closer to a chicken shop than a Korean dining room. There is no grill, no stew in an earthenware pot and no banchan spread. Delivery prices can differ from dine-in. Google’s diners report spending AED 50 to 100 per person.

2. Mukbang Shows JBR: unlimited halal Korean BBQ, 17.8 km away

This is our own restaurant, and it is not in Motor City. It is on The Walk at JBR, Plaza Level, Bahar 7. Google Maps put the drive from First Avenue Mall at 17.8 km and 25 minutes on a Friday late morning, using Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road.

It is on this list because it does what Kyochon does not. The BBQ is grilled at your table, and it is unlimited. At JBR the Gangnam set is AED 79 between 1 PM and 6 PM. After 6 PM the entry point is Daegu at AED 99, which adds Korean fried chicken. Jeju at AED 109 adds a seafood boil, and Bukchon Hanok is AED 129.

Each set includes seven kinds of halal BBQ, eight refilled banchan, soup and rice. The kitchen is 100 percent halal, beef and chicken only, and no alcohol is served. Phone +971-54-523-1898. Branch details are on the Mukbang Shows JBR page.

The limitation is real. It is a 25-minute drive each way, the unlimited sets need at least two people, there is an AED 60 charge for food left on the table, and prices exclude 5 percent VAT. If all you want is fried chicken, Kyochon is cheaper and already on your doorstep.

3. Koreana, Al Barsha 1: the nearest full Korean menu

Koreana is the place for everything Kyochon does not cook. It is in Barsha Palace Building, opposite Al Zahra Hospital, 12.9 km and 21 minutes from First Avenue Mall via Hessa Street. Google rates it 4.4 from 535 reviews.

The menu is long and traditional. On Deliveroo, sundubu, kimchi and doenjang stews are AED 50 each with rice. Bibimbap is AED 55, black bean noodles AED 55, japchae AED 45, tteokbokki AED 45 and gimbap AED 35. A bulgogi set with lettuce wraps is AED 75, and all-day dosirak combo boxes run AED 49 to 64.

Two details are worth knowing. Its own page says banchan comes free with every main dish when you eat in, while on delivery a five-dish banchan tray is a AED 15 add-on. It also has private dining rooms. Phone +971-4-392-9918. Confirm halal status directly with the restaurant.

4. The Sky 2, Barsha Heights: the closest table grill by distance

The Sky 2 Korean Restaurant is on the first floor of the Golden Tulip Media Hotel on Hessa Street. At 11.2 km it is the shortest drive of the open Korean restaurants we checked, though traffic makes it the same 21 minutes as Koreana. Google classes it as a Korean barbecue restaurant and rates it 4.2 from 248 reviews.

It is the pricier option. Zomato estimates AED 200 for two without drinks, and Google’s diners report anywhere from AED 50 to 250 per person. Zomato also lists a full bar, so this is a licensed venue where alcohol is served. If halal sourcing matters to you, ask before you book. Phone 04 448 9818.

Korean restaurant prices near Motor City compared

Kyochon wins on price for chicken and on distance for everything. The table uses each venue’s published prices as checked on 2 October 2026. The JLT figures are from our August 2026 check.

Dish by dish, the gap is clear. Tteokbokki is AED 22 at Kyochon as a side, AED 45 at Koreana and AED 55 on our JBR menu. A half fried chicken is AED 32 with a side at Kyochon and AED 48 at Mukbang. Koreana’s AED 55 bibimbap undercuts our AED 59 beef bibimbap.

Unlimited BBQ is a different sum, because it is priced per head rather than per plate. We break that down in our guide to Korean BBQ prices in Dubai.

What is Hey Tiger, and is Motor City getting Korean BBQ?

Possibly, and soon, but not yet. Hey Tiger is a new restaurant from the team behind Brass Monkey, planned for the upper floor of Motor City Club House. Time Out Dubai describes it as a modern Asian social house with a menu covering robata grill, sushi, dim sum, wok dishes and Korean barbecue, cooked on tabletop grills.

Here is what is confirmed. Brass Monkey itself, the bowling and arcade venue on the ground floor, opened on 7 September 2026, and What’s On lists it among October’s new openings. Hey Tiger was described at that launch as opening soon. The kitchen is to be led by Prabin Tamang, whose past kitchens include Mimi Kakushi and OKKU.

Here is what is not. As of 2 October 2026 we could find no confirmed opening date, no published menu and no prices. We will not guess at any of them.

Two things to keep in mind when it does open. Korean barbecue is one section of a pan-Asian menu, not the whole restaurant. And the bar is central to the concept, so expect a licensed venue and ask about halal sourcing directly. For Motor City it would still be a first: a table grill you can walk to.

Where is the nearest Korean BBQ to Motor City?

By distance, The Sky 2 in Barsha Heights at 11.2 km. For unlimited halal Korean BBQ with no alcohol in the room, Mukbang Shows JBR at 17.8 km.

One name will come up if you search: Hoe Lee Kow in Dubai Hills Business Park, a modern Korean barbecue restaurant that is closer than either. Google Maps listed it as temporarily closed on 2 October 2026. Check its status before you drive.

The two open options suit different nights. The Sky 2 is a hotel restaurant with a bar and à la carte pricing. Mukbang JBR is a fixed price per person with refills, which works when the table is hungry and wants to know the bill in advance. With fewer than two people, or a small appetite, à la carte usually costs less.

What about Mall of the Emirates and Koryo?

Mall of the Emirates used to be the easy answer for Motor City, since it is 14.5 km away. It is not any more, at least for Korean food.

Google Maps now lists the Kyochon in the mall’s food court as permanently closed. Koryo Korean BBQ, the food-court brand many people search for alongside Motor City, lists only two locations on its own website: BurJuman, and the Tunisia food court at Ibn Battuta Mall. There is no Koryo in Motor City.

If a mall food court is what you want, those are Koryo’s two addresses. For Motor City residents, though, Kyochon at First Avenue Mall is far closer than either.

What should you order at Kyochon Motor City?

Start with the chicken, because that is the point of the place. Korean fried chicken is fried for a thin, crackly crust and then brushed with sauce rather than drowned in it.

• First visit, one person: the half chicken with one side at AED 32, in soy garlic or yangnyum
• Two people: ten wings or 14 boneless bites with two sides at AED 63
• A family: 28 boneless bites or a whole chicken with three sides at AED 115
• Something Korean beyond chicken: tteokbokki or japchae at AED 22, with kimchi fried rice at AED 18
• Children: kids’ meals with a side and a drink at AED 25

Ask for pickled radish. It is the standard Korean partner for fried chicken, and its sharpness is what lets you keep eating. For the wider picture, see our guide to the Korean fried chicken worth ordering in Dubai.

Is Korean food in Motor City halal?

Kyochon’s published menu is chicken only, with no pork and no alcohol listed. That is a good sign, but it is not a certificate. We have not seen its certification, so confirm directly if you need it.

For the drive-to options, the picture varies. The Sky 2 is a licensed venue where alcohol is served. Koreana’s halal status is one to confirm with the restaurant. Hey Tiger is planned around its bar.

Mukbang Shows is the one we can state without hedging, because it is ours. Every branch is 100 percent halal, the BBQ is beef and chicken only, and there is no alcohol anywhere on the menu.

A practical tip: in the UAE, ask about sourcing rather than looking for a framed certificate. Many kitchens buy halal meat without certifying the restaurant itself.

How far is Motor City from each Korean restaurant?

All of these are Google Maps driving figures from First Avenue Mall, taken late on a Friday morning. Evening traffic can add to them.

• The Sky 2, Barsha Heights: 11.2 km, 21 minutes via Hessa Street
• Koreana, Al Barsha 1: 12.9 km, 21 minutes via Hessa Street
• Mall of the Emirates: 14.5 km, 22 minutes via Umm Suqeim Street, a toll route
• Mukbang Shows JBR: 17.8 km, 25 minutes via Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road
• Hyu, JLT Cluster O: 20.5 km, 22 minutes via Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road

Motor City is not on the Dubai Metro. The public transport option Google offered to Mall of the Emirates was the F37 bus, at about 37 minutes. For dinner, most people will drive or take a taxi.

JLT deserves a note. It is the furthest on the list but among the quickest to reach, and it has several Korean kitchens within walking distance of each other. Our guide to Korean restaurants in JLT covers them, including Hyu’s dozen soups and stews.

Why does Motor City have only one Korean kitchen?

Our reading is that it comes down to what each format needs from a building. This is an opinion, not a verified fact, but it fits what we see across Dubai.

A fried chicken shop needs fryers, a counter and a few tables. It fits a standard mall unit, and it works on delivery, because sauced chicken travels well. That is the format that reached Motor City first.

A Korean barbecue house needs a grill and an extraction duct at every table, planned before the fit-out starts. That is expensive in a small community mall and easier in a hotel or a large standalone venue. It is no accident that the nearest table grill is in a hotel, and that the one announced for Motor City is going into a clubhouse.

A full Korean kitchen, with stews, noodles and banchan made daily, needs steady volume from people who already know the food. Those restaurants cluster where that crowd lives and works: Al Barsha, Barsha Heights and JLT. Motor City is a family suburb, and the menu here reflects it.

Practical tips for Korean food near Motor City

• Do not trust a “closed” label on one site. Check Google Maps and a delivery app as well. Kyochon is the proof.
• Phone before a long drive. Hours and offers change, and one nearby Korean barbecue was temporarily closed when we checked.
• Count heads before choosing unlimited. Mukbang’s sets need two or more people, and leftovers cost AED 60.
• Go before 6 PM for the lowest JBR price. Gangnam at AED 79 is a 1 PM to 6 PM set at that branch.
• Order delivery for chicken, not for stew. Fried chicken holds up in a box. A bubbling pot does not.
• Check the whole menu first. Prices for everything we serve are on the full Mukbang menu.

FAQ

What is the best Korean restaurant in Motor City?
Kyochon at First Avenue Mall. It was the only Korean kitchen we could verify as open in Motor City on 2 October 2026. It specialises in Korean fried chicken, from AED 32 for a half chicken with a side.

Is Kyochon Motor City permanently closed?
No. Zomato and RestaurantGuru both showed it as permanently closed on 2 October 2026, but Google Maps listed it as open until 1 AM and Deliveroo was taking orders. Call 050 292 5251 to confirm.

Is there Korean BBQ in Motor City?
Not yet. Hey Tiger, announced for Motor City Club House, plans tabletop Korean barbecue grills but had no confirmed opening date when we checked. The nearest open table grill is The Sky 2 in Barsha Heights, 11.2 km away.

How far is Mukbang Shows from Motor City?
The JBR branch is 17.8 km and about 25 minutes from First Avenue Mall, according to Google Maps. Unlimited Korean BBQ there starts at AED 79 per person between 1 PM and 6 PM and AED 99 after, with a two-person minimum.

Is there a Koryo Korean BBQ in Motor City?
No. Koryo’s own website lists two Dubai locations, BurJuman and Ibn Battuta Mall.

How much does Korean food cost in Motor City?
At Kyochon, sides such as tteokbokki and japchae are AED 22, individual chicken meals are AED 32 to 33, and family sizes are AED 115. Google’s diners report AED 50 to 100 per person.

Is Kyochon Motor City halal?
Its published menu is chicken only, with no pork or alcohol listed. Certification is not independently verified, so confirm directly with the restaurant.

Motor City has one Korean kitchen, and it is a good one for what it does. Eat fried chicken at home, drive 20 minutes for a stew and banchan, and make the 25-minute trip to JBR when the whole table wants the grill.