Honey Pig

The experience doesn’t begin at the table. It starts at the door, where in addition to being greeted by the abrupt sound of “hey” in Korean, you’re instantly bombarded by the heavy aroma of pork frying on a grill.

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Becky Stein/Special

Giant, drum-sized lids of iron rice-cooking pots are inverted, then fashioned into a grill.

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Becky Stein/Special

Chef and co-owner John Lee uses scissors to cut kimchi tableside.

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Becky Stein/Special

Slabs of pork belly are grilled with whole-leaf kimchi, mushrooms and onions.

Look to your left as you pass the checkout counter, and you’ll see, amid little pink pig collectibles, plastic bottles of Febreze. They are a harbinger of what’s to come — a smoke-sopped night of samgyeopsal jip — Korean pork belly barbecue. You will reek of fried smells when you leave. And it will be worth every dollar of the dry-cleaning bill.

Fashioned after the pork belly barbecue spots cropping up across Los Angeles, Honey Pig in Duluth relies on the charm of the old Seoul-style barbecue spots, where giant, drum-sized lids of iron rice-cooking pots are inverted, then fashioned into a grill; where smallish slabs of pork belly (think thick bacon) are grilled with whole-leaf kimchi (tongbaechu kimchi), mushrooms, onions and an array of other meats, including prawns and bulgogi (marinated Korean sirloin).

Here’s how it works: No matter what size your table (and bigger is best), there will be a steward button. When you press it, every server in the restaurant will yelp “hey!” (they say that a lot here) in Korean. Then a server will arrive tableside, armed with scissors and a heaping plate of pork belly, kimchi and Korean-style miso soup, which is a cold and refreshing antidote to the heat of the griddle in front of you. (Honestly, by the end of the meal it will feel as if you had a grease facial.)

Small servings of siracha and bean paste, as well as sesame oil and salt, will accompany the meat, but drag anything through them — bean sprouts, kimchee, mushrooms. Lettuce and thick rice paper are for wrapping meats in the style of Vietnamese bhan hoi, and stuffing them into your pie hole with a fork or chopsticks.

This stylish spot has been open for about nine months in a strip mall on Old Norcross Road, where a Korean catering company and Shilla Bakery (also Korean) have opened (the bakery is open late and is perfect for a little something sweet after so much meat and kimchee). The dimly lit atmosphere evokes a brooding mood, and concrete cinder blocks used as room dividers add to that dimension.

But that’s just an underlying tone — the real spirit of the place is in table after table of barbecue revelers settled in for a good time at the grill. And beyond the menu, there are other goodies to be had if you know to ask for them, like Korean egg soup (gyeran-tang), a cross between scrambled eggs and soufflé, light and airy, with just enough liquid to make it bonafide soup. Beyond bulgogi, there is prime short rib, luscious and marbled with just enough fat to make it perfect for the heat of the grill.

The waiter will cut whole-leaf kimchee and place it on the grill, along with a selection of mushrooms — enoki, portobello, cremini — if you ask for them, and bean sprouts. All this will cook for the duration of the meal, until it is caramelized and crunchy. And just as you think you might burst, he will dump rice, along with a succulent tendril of octopus, on the grill to fry for a savory finish to the banquet. (You may notice that cremini mushrooms are left upright as they cook — leave them that way; a delectable juice will stew in them.)

Beyond full and just this side of sated, Honey Pig will leave you in a food coma, dreaming of the next bite of pork belly, and searching for a bottle of Febreze.

Food: Korean barbecue
Service: Fun and able, but make sure you let them know exactly what you want.
Price range: $$
Credit cards: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover
Hours of operation: 10 a.m.-midnight Sundays-Thursdays; 10 a.m.-2 a.m. Fridays-Saturdays.
Vegetarian dishes: Kimchee, bean sprouts, mushrooms platter
Best dishes: Pork belly, bulgogi, sirloin, mushroom platter and shrimp
Children: Tons of fun for the whole family — childern will love the egg soup.
Parking: Adjacent lot
Reservations: Yes, but not on weekends
Wheelchair access: Yes
Smoking: No smoking
Noise level: Medium
Patio: No
Takeout: Yes
Web site: None yet

KEY TO RATINGS
Outstanding: Sets the standard for fine dining in the region.
Excellent: One of the best in the Atlanta area.
Very good: Merits a drive if you’re looking for this kind of dining.
Good: A worthy addition to its neighborhood, but food may be hit or miss.
Fair: The food is more miss than hit.
Restaurants that do not meet these criteria may be rated Poor.

Pricing code: $$$$$ means more than $75; $$$$ means $75 and less; $$$ means $50 and less; $$ means $25 and less; $ means $15 and less. (The price code represents a meal for one that includes appetizer, entree and dessert without including tax, tip and cocktails.)