Northern BBQ

5595 Kingsway, Burnaby, BC V5H 2G3, Canada
+1 604-559-7658
$$$ Chinese restaurant , Barbecue restaurant , Pub
(375 Reviews)

Northern BBQ sits along Kingsway in Burnaby, offering a blend of Chinese BBQ, spicy hot pots, and casual pub vibes. This spot feels like a versatile hangout where diners come for laid-back meals that can span from quick snacks to fuller dinner outings with friends or family.

The atmosphere is comfortably informal with a mix of neon lighting that gives the interior a slightly vibrant, modern edge without feeling overly flashy. It draws a diverse crowd — from families with toddlers enjoying a meal together to groups sharing skewers and drinks. The seating arrangement supports small groups well, making it a good choice for casual gatherings.

On the menu, expect a range of sharable options centered around barbecue skewers and spicy hot pots. The restaurant is known for its grilled fish selections, such as Haddock or Tilapia, alongside appetizer plates like marinated cucumbers and chili with century eggs. The skewers, particularly chicken gizzards and beef, tend to be a highlight with well-balanced seasoning and tender cooking. Hot pot offerings include spicy varieties featuring ingredients like beef tripe and enoki mushrooms, presenting a warming choice for those who appreciate a bit of heat.

Service can be relaxed but sometimes slow, which matches the unhurried vibe of the place. Pricing leans toward the moderate to high side, especially at dinner where skewers are sold individually rather than in an all-you-can-eat format. The lunch buffet option, available at a set price, offers a different experience with rotating dishes including pork belly, crab, and lamb neck, along with standard sides like dumplings and steamed buns.

This spot works best for those who enjoy sampling a variety of small plates with a spicy edge, either paired with friends over drinks or as a family-friendly casual meal option. Lunchtime is ideal for trying the buffet experience, while evenings cater more to skewer fans and those craving grilled fish or hot pot. The neon-lit, casual pub setting complements both quick bites and longer, relaxed dinners.

Overall, Northern BBQ feels like a multifaceted neighborhood restaurant/pub where the draw is more about communal dining, variety, and a touch of spice rather than fast service or fine dining polish.

Popular for
Popular for lunch
Popular for dinner
Good for solo dining
What they serve
Serves alcohol
Serves beer
Serves cocktails
Serves hard liquor
Serves late-night food
Serves small plates
Serves wine
Best for
Serves breakfast
Serves brunch
Serves lunch
Serves dinner
Serves dessert
Accessibility
Has wheelchair accessible entrance
Has wheelchair accessible parking lot
Has wheelchair accessible seating
Parking
Free parking lot
Free street parking
Usually plenty of parking

Openings Hours

Checking

Monday

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM

,

05:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Tuesday

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM

,

05:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Wednesday

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM

,

05:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Thursday

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM

,

05:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Friday

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM

,

05:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Saturday

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM

,

05:00 PM - 12:00 AM

Sunday

11:00 AM - 02:00 PM

,

05:00 PM - 12:00 AM

375 Reviews
Stephanie Maccc

23 Dec 2025

My first time experiencing this type of BBQ! Really good, lots of dishes to experience, I was satisfied with my meal even with my current diet. We had a reservation, party of 3; very casual atmosphere, comfortable, with a good blend of customers. I have seen a family of 3 with a toddler, a group of 6 who were having a round of drinks and food, and plenty of friends sharing a meal. Only one star lost for a fruit fly found twice in the large rocket of beer(had to exchange the rocket of beer twice). Each time though, it was exchanged promptly and with no fuss. I managed to taste: beef, chicken, chicken wings, squid, shrimp, scallops, eggplant, and a chive pastry. All were great- reasonable prices(although my brother said typically this type of BBQ is not cheap), but the flavour is just so good! I usually ask for a dip, but with each meat marinated and seasoned specifically for each dish, I was never bored and in need of dipping sauces. Now it's not my typical restaurant choice- so I had help with the ordering from my brother and his roommate. There is no rush to finish all the food, there is a mini BBQ at your table to keep food warm. The bathrooms were fine(functioning toilet and sink), the service was decently fast- about 15 mins for Skewers to arrive, and that was on a busy (tables were full) Saturday night. And with the service, they are good- very straight-forward. Highlights: Exciting eating concept New flavours I hadn't tried Seafood was delicious Plates were promptly removed when empty To note: Decent parking (in a strip mall) Wheelchair accessible Kids allowed Reservations are allowed Plenty of menu items to try!

Karen W

05 Dec 2025

Expected ayce but that is only at lunch. Dinner is regular menu service. Ordered a bunch of skewers. Favorite was the chicken gizzards and the beef. Chicken and the frog tasted the same. Dumplings were very filling. Noodle was good. Service was alright. It can be pricey. Each skewer is over $2. And there are set minimum numbers of each variety.

Kate Choi

25 Nov 2025

--edit aug 2024--- Went for their lunch ayce buffet. It used to be 16.88 but now they upped it to 18.88 The first time I went there was crab and braised pork belly. The second time there were clams and lamb neck? The things that were the same: tomato egg, dumplings, steamed baos, chineze fried donut, and cold dishes like bean sprouts, smashed cucumbers, tea egg, tofu dessert. They also have hot soy milk for drinks. Their deep fried chinese donut has got to be the best I've ever had in my life. With the price of a pair of fried donut being over $6 these days, I get my fix here. Other things are standard, good but not outstanding. I really like having soy milk to drink instead of water. $18.88 is getting a little steep for a limited choice buffet with not too many meat choices. The crab/clam are a nice addition but if there are days without it, it wouldn't be worth. I would rate the food from this place higher than the similar chinese lunch box style place in richmond, K squared mansion. --may 2024-- Tried their too good to go. The portion for 6.99 is great! You just never know what leftovers they have so it's a gamble if youre picky. I got 2 boxes, both had egg/tomato, mapo tofu, and chicken and bell pepper. One box had eggplant and fried dough. The other box had a fried fish head.

Penny Rusty Sophie

19 Oct 2025

We originally planned to come here to try out their bbq (I mean, their name has "bbq" in it) ... Unfortunately, we came during the day when they have a smaller "breakfast" menu and no bbq items. Inside, the interior is filled with neon lights. Quite different than the last restaurant that used to occupy this location. Food was actually pretty good but also slow to come out. The beef rolls were good and the sauce wasn't too sweet. I liked the steamed dumplings - they were quite large and plump. Overall, would have liked to try their bbq. Update: Came back for a revisit during dinner and the skewers turned out great. Especially liked the appy platter where you can choose up to 4 different appys and their dumplings. Update: Feb 2024 - We revisited in mid Feb and had some skewers but we noticed that they are now offering ayce options where they have a buffet area with different offerings. The ayce options differ between lunch and dinner (think it is only available on certain days so check beforehand). I think they have someone that dishes out the items from the buffet that you pick. Will have to try it sometime. Update April 2024: We finally tried their AYCE offering. It was $18.88 for lunch on a Sunday. They man the buffet station and you just tell them what you want to eat. While they had crab, it was quite dry and I honestly wouldn't come here for this kind of crab. I thought the clams were pretty good and we definitely ate a lot. The big issue is most of the food isn't really hot as it's sitting in those trays and they wind up being luke warm at best. The flavors also aren't as good as the things we've had made fresh. Honestly, I'd probably skip the buffet and stick with the bbq skewer items.

James Huang

18 Oct 2025

Nice atmosphere and a very good variety of food where all of them tastes great! A great spot for people to dine or snack while grabbing a few drinks. Would highly recommend the skewers as they were all seasoned very well and cooked perfectly. Even the beef and pork are super tender! The only thing I wouldn’t recommend as the Angus Black Truffle rice as it is a bit blend.

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