Fafu is a Korean barbecue restaurant in Jing’an. If you’re looking for good KBBQ downtown that’s just as good as the ones in K-town, this is it. Opens till late.
[ Update August 2025: Fafu now has locations on Dagu Lu and at INS. ]
Located on the corner of Yuyao Lu near Tacolicious, Fafu is bustling restaurant that specializes in Korean barbecue. The queue for dinner starts forming when it opens at 5pm—numbers are doled out and guests usually wait about on the ground floor.
They don’t take reservations. Though, I’m not saying it’s impossible—you can try calling.
You could aim for a later seating, after 8:30pm. The wait time will be greatly reduced or you’ll have no wait at all. You could just take a number and grab a drink around the corner (Tacolicious or Glory) in the meantime. Also, Korean owner-operator Jacob is at Fafu every night to ensure things go off without a hitch. Though, he’ll mostly be busy running service.
The main dining area is on the second floor. Each table has a dedicated grill. Seating is mostly for groups of four or six. There’s also a private room for 10, or 12 at a squeeze.
The Food
It’s inexpensive, extremely good Korean barbecue—Iberico pork, high quality beef, attentive service. As some of my dining companions and regulars of Fafu say, it is almost as good as the ones in K-town but located in Jing’an. Also, unlike most KBBQ restaurants in K-town, Fafu is open until late.
The menu is pretty straight-forward. A range of cuts for beef and pork, plus side dishes, a couple noodle dishes, some stews, and a ton of sojus. If you haven’t had Korean barbecue (this is unlikely), just order 70% meats and 30% sides, and pair that with crisp beer and/or soju.
Here’s what you should order:
Meat. Lots of it.
They have all cuts of beef, the best parts made for grilling, and some are marinated in their house sauces. The Beef Platter features four cuts, including ribs, lateral ribs, brisket, and top blade. Great for sussing out which cuts you like best so you can top up later on.
And don’t worry about cooking it yourself. Fafu has plenty of servers who will take care of you. If you’re impatient, they won’t feel offended if you take over.
Beef is great — but the Pork Belly is also worth ordering. A whole slab of Iberico pork belly is cooked until golden brown and crispy. The best part about the Pork Belly is that it is best paired with their tacos.
Hear me out.
The tacos come with roasted cheese, both cooked over the grill, then topped with thinly sliced pickled daikon. It’s pretty fantastic.
As for side dishes, they have all the usual suspects. The Stir-Fried Squid (¥68) features tender squid fried in a mix of gochujiang and spices. It’s mild to medium-spicy for me. And who can resist the Seafood Leek Pancake (¥58), served with a garlic-chili soya sauce.
Simple, satisfying, and most certainly visually appealing is the steamed egg. A piping hot bowl of fluffy egg, best enjoyed with all the banchan at the table.
For cool weather days, there’s the Kimchi Stew. It’s not unlike an Army Stew, and delivers that desirable heat and comfort.
For noodle options, there are two kinds: dry and soupy. The dry noodles, Beef Jjapaguri (¥45), sees chewy egg-based noodles tossed in a rich soy sauce and topped with shredded toasted seaweed.
And on the other side of the spectrum, there’s Korean Ice Noodles (¥45). These stringy, chewy, sweet potato noodles in icy beef soup with egg and shredded vegetables. The broth is a clean and delicate one. I’ve written about this dish here.
As for drinks, there’s a dozen sojus, traditional and flavored, Korean sake, fruit wines, beer (¥30/Cass beer), and soft drinks. There are also Soju Slushies (¥42), bottles that have placed in the freezer to ice up, and are traditionally hammered (on the base) to “loosen” them. Soju Slushies are available in six flavors, watermelon, peach, green grape, grapefruit, raspberry, and calamansi. The price of a non-slushie soju is the same.
Come March, Fafu has plans to expand with a second downtown location on Dagu Lu.
There you have it, the answer to: “What’s a good Korean barbecue in (downtown) Shanghai?”
Fafu 发福韩家
Click here for the Yuyao Road listing.
Click here for the INS listing.
Click here for the Dagu Road listing.
