The Tree Stone
The Tree Stone Kitchen is not your average place. The concept is very unique with you handpicking each of your meats from Tree Stone Butchers to be taken next door to the restaurant right next door to cook yourself on a Korean BBQ grill. It was planned for months prior, with a phone call to reserve a table a day beforehand. The women on the receiving end had broken English and almost got the time of booking and my phone number wrong.
Location
New Malden is the hottest destination for authentic Korean food. I’ve ventured to a few of them already, Han Karaoke, Palace, and Jin Go Gae. Located along the high street, The Tree Stone can be easily found with it directly being the opposite of Seoul Place supermarket. Visiting on a Sunday most of the shops, restaurants were closed as most Koreans go to Church.
Entering the door for the restaurant side, you notice the rustic wood and industrial materials used for the interior. There were only two people waiting, and we found the service slow, needing to grab them for missing plates, drinks and changing the grill. As we ate our meal the restaurant became full of people on a Sunday.
Starters
Waiting for the full party to arrive, we picked a few dishes from the menu to go with our Korean BBQ. Jap Chae glass noodles, Par-Jeon seafood pancakes, Korean fried chicken, and chilli chicken bites. Banchan is free at Tree Stone, unlike some places where it charges money for it.
The butchers
Three of us wandered off next door to the butchers to pick our meats. A fridge with succulent marinated meats is sold by the weight. As pictured there is marinated pork collar, spicy chicken thigh, spiced pork belly, L.A. beef rib, and beef ribs. Picking up a clear box we began filling the containers with meats that can feed six adults and a toddler. The other counter had plenty of different meats and cuts packed and priced in the trays. When there’s wagyu beef it will appear in the counter. Note that the butcher’s side of Tree Stone Kitchen, they only accept debit card payments and cash. The kitchen next door accepts credit and debit cards. We paid a total of £40 for our meats and carried it back to the restaurant.
Korean BBQ
Our other dishes from the menu started to come out, and we had to grab staff to turn on the grill. A piece of fat is used as an oil to cook the meats. My favourite of the meats are the beef, we picked pieces with great marbling. The way I eat my Korean BBQ meat is by getting a lettuce leaf, with some gochujang paste and grilled garlic.
Bill and total
In total, the bill was £150 including the £40 meats we paid upfront at the butchers. Split between 5 people, there is also the £7 charge per person to use the grill. Besides a let-down with the lack of service, we enjoyed our meals and felt it was well worth the money for the amount of meat and dishes from the menu. The Tree Stone Kitchen is a cool concept with the butchers and kitchen being next door to each other. It’s great to pick your own cuts, the marinated meats were slightly under seasoned.
Opening hours and more information
For more information please visit The Tree Stone website.
73 High St, New Malden KT3 4BT
Retail: +44 20 8942 5756
