Matjoa Korean BBQ moves from Clearwater to North Tampa

Matjoa is heading across the Bay to join a hub of Asian food in North Tampa. The restaurant’s last day at 3580 Ulmerton Rd. in Clearwater was June 8. A reopening date has not been announced for its new location 25 minutes away at 8568 Gunn Hwy. in Odessa.

The spot opened in February of 2020, pivoting soon after from its traditional community-forward grill tables to takeout. Even without the in-house flair, Matjoa’s food was good enough to survive COVID lockdowns.

Matjoa will add Korean to Citrus Park’s Asian food scene of mostly Japanese sushi and ramen. Citrus Park’s only other Korean BBQ restaurant is Perry’s in Citrus Park Town Center.

The menu at Matjoa includes appetizers like jumbo Korean style corn dog, KFC (that’s “Korean fried chicken”) wings and kimchi pancakes. Its most popular entrees are beef bulgogi, spicy pork, tteokbokki and short ribs.

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This article appears in Jun 5-11, 2025.