Marufuku 丸福日本烧肉店 is a Japanese style barbecue restaurant. One that I was recently referred to by fellow foodies, this place has been a long-time favorite of theirs, a reliable restaurant they fondly refer to as “Mother F-ing Good BBQ” (sounds just like Marfuku right?)
Images of skewers over a smoky grill may come to mind, but yakitori actually refers specifically to chicken skewers and this particular type of barbecue features a wide range of different meats that you grill yourself, which may be more similar to your Korean BBQ restaurant experiences.
Marufuku currently has three branches around Beijing (see addresses below) and we went to the one on the North side of the Liangma River – straight north on Xindong Lu from the Canadian Embassy then turn left after you cross over to the north side of the river. You will see it on your right-hand side.
The smell is the first thing that hits you when you walk in their doors. Coming inside on a windy night, it’s warm and cozy inside filled with the wonderful smell of grilled meats. There are pros and cons to this – while it immediately makes your mouth water, it is also a smell that lingers on your clothing for days after so remember to leave your coats by the door and plan to throw everything else you wear into the laundry when you get home. Either that or you can just bask in the lingering smell of grilled meats on your clothes the next time you wear them.
Take in the sights and sounds – plenty of Japanese was being spoken when we went – always a good sign in my book! The owner also seems to have a single adjustable dumbell ready for if you need to do some curls mid-feast.
Food wise, we were a group of four and we ate a lot.
Start your meal off with mugs of ice-cold, refreshing draft Japanese beer to wash down all that smoky, grilled meat and they have a nice selection of tasty appetizers too. While edamame and salt-roasted gingko nuts are pretty standard, I liked the marinated quail eggs that had a nice spice kick to them.
Edamame (RMB 20)
Salt Roasted Gingko Nuts (RMB 25)
Marinated Quail Eggs (RMB 20)
Top picks for BBQ meats include the fatty beef steak and beef tongue, but the chicken was also a show-stopper. Literally, we all stopped our feasting to comment on how good that chicken was. Most of the meats are pre-marinated and all you need to agree on is what you want to BBQ first.
I was a big fan of the little aluminum foil pots of garlic slices with sesame oil (RMB 10) and mushrooms topped with chunks of butter (RMB 25). A very nice touch as we are of the mindset that there is no such thing as too much garlic and we were putting generous portions on everything. We recommend throwing in a few garlic slices into the buttery pot of mushrooms. I also loved the sweet potatoes, which mashed up nicely and was a great compliment to the meat feast.
If you’re adventurous, the intestines are tasty and much less scary than it looks when it first comes out raw on the plate. But for people who like to avoid foods with chewy texture, then this won’t be for you.
Beef Tenderloin with Mashed Garlic (RMB 79)
Streaky Pork 五花肉 (RMB 49)
Beef Tongue (RMB 69)
Beef Large Intestine and Tripe Mix (RMB 39)
Mushrooms with Butter (RMB 25)
Squid (RMB 35)
Beef Kalbi – Short Ribs (RMB 79)
Chicken Leg (RMB 39)
Beef Tenderloin with Mashed Garlic (RMB 79)
Roast Assorted Vegetables (RMB 25)
The Garlic Slices in Sesame Oil (RMB 10) are a Great Touch!
Mango Ice Dessert
Overall, the only thing that we weren’t raving about were the vegetables that we saved for the end of the meal. This was most likely due to the fact that we were already stuffed by that point and – but let’s be honest you’re here for the meat. Rather than get the assorted veg platter, I would recommend another round of buttery mushrooms and either sweet potato (RMB 20) or potato with butter (RMB 20).
If you are a Korean BBQ fiend, or just love interactive food, then this is another arrow to add to your quiver. Quality meats, a lively atmosphere and prompt service all make for an interactive and satisfying dinner experience!
Marufuku 丸福烤肉 Contact Details:
Three Branch Addresses:
- 1. Xin Yuan Li (by Dongzhimen)
- 朝阳区新源西里东街6号院1号101室(近渔阳饭店)
- Tel: 18610161456，010-64602580
- 2. Mai Zi Dian Branch
- Address：朝阳区麦子店街4号楼1层南侧(永安宾馆十字路口往北50米)
- Tel：01064602580
- 3. Xian Dai Cheng Branch
- 建国路88号(近1号线大望路站现代城出口)
- Tel： 010-85896221
- Open Daily from 11:30-14:00 and 17:00-22:30
About Kristen
Kristen Lum has an accomplished background in PR, communications and events in China. Born and raised in California, Kristen has been based in Beijing since 2006 and is founder of the lifestyle blog called LumDimSum, covering mostly restaurant news and reviews alongside upcoming events around town that relate to Beijing’s muti-faceted, quickly-developing creative industries like art, music, film, health and fitness, fashion, nightlife, charity events, and travel tips.
