Muukata6395

We never say no to an FGD (Fun Group Dinner). Mainly because we’re freaks who are soothed by the cacophony of outside voices, and love getting tipsy off one drink too many with diners who are doing the same. Some of the best FGDs are House Of Prime Rib, R&G Lounge, Farmhouse Kitchen, and now Muukata6395 when we’re in the Richmond. Dinner at this DIY Thai charcoal barbecue spot (the only one in the city) also involves enough meat to fill a school bus. 

Rally up an entourage and gather around a table—you’ll need as many hands on deck for the eye-buggingly large platters of meat (mostly pork), vegetables, and noodles. Glowing red embers light up your domed charcoal grill, encircled by a ring of bubbling pork broth that sends a fragrant haze up to the ceiling. A server will set you up by neatly tucking away cabbage, fish balls, and bok choy into the soup like it’s vegetable bedtime. And, what’s that? Meaty juices from the grill drip down like a waterfall into that soup moat, which increases in saltiness and umami as the broth boils down throughout the night. 

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

While you’re here for the muukata, this place also does steamy pots of jimjoom (Thai hot pot) and a la carte Thai classics, like BBQ pork rice plates, papaya salad, and larb. The portions are gargantuan, so no need to politely offer the last bit of garlic rice to your friend’s boyfriend’s roommate who’s sitting across from you. There’s plenty to go around. 

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

Since this isn’t just a GD—it’s an FGD, let’s call out the fun. The best kind of chaos is on full display. The dim dining room is filled with smoke that occasionally makes the smoke alarm ring out. Once everyone in the room has had a sufficient giggle (and perhaps wondered why a barbecue restaurant failed to over-consider ventilation), someone on staff will climb up a chair and turn it off. Friendly servers make it their personal Odyssean quest to constantly refill your moat with fresh broth. Singhas are clinked and swigged from all angles. And your group’s table Tetris skills are front and center as tongs, ladles, and tamarind- and thai-chili-spiked dipping sauces are passed around. 

Muukata6395 is where to unofficially compete for the title of Grillmaster, or spend a couple of hours forgetting about the rest of your week in a room so smoky you can barely see across it. And to eat your body weight in meat and soup.

Food Rundown

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

Muukata

A wise woman once said, “Baby, this is what you came for.” It was Rihanna, and you should order this. If it’s grillable, it’s probably on the platter—pork belly, bacon, liver, shrimp, ribeye. All the meat juices run down the sloped grill like a water slide and become one with the pork broth. Noodles and vegetables ride shotgun, making this BBQ a balanced meal.

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

JimJoom

This will get you out of the deep existential hole you’ll find yourself in if it’s misting outside, or anytime really. The broth isn’t as flavorful as the muukata, but it’s still a solid option.

photo credit: Carly Hackbarth

Papaya Salad

The sauciness dial is turned up to the max here, and we’re not complaining. Tamarind and lime juice dressing completely soaks the crunchy papaya, plump tomatoes, chilis, and toasted peanuts.