Cheonho group dinner Korean BBQ: 550g Special 2 set at Gim Sukseong

I went to Gim Sukseong Seongnae Branch, one of the Korean BBQ spots near Cheonho Station where you can get a great-value pork neck and pork belly set — and staff grill everything for you!

It's a retro-feeling BBQ spot, but the quality Korean pork belly and pork neck get grilled for you, so all you have to do is sit back and enjoy it ☀️

What Gim Sukseong Seongnae Branch looks like: old-school room and open-air tables

Inside, Gim Sukseong Seongnae Branch feels like a retro pojangmacha (street tent bar), but outside there are also tables with an outdoor-market feel. On a cool evening like this, it's a great mood for eating pork belly in the breeze.

It has that old-school retro feel, but you can still taste properly aged meat here — a real Cheonho Station BBQ restaurant find! It's just the right relaxed atmosphere for a work dinner or gathering with Cheonho office workers.

Special 1 or Special 2: which set to order at Gim Sukseong

At Gim Sukseong, ordering a set is the way to go for both value and composition. The Special 1 set includes pork neck plus aged specialty cuts, so it's recommended for those who love specialty cuts, while the Special 2 set — pork neck, pork belly, and the like — suits more standard tastes! Pork neck + gabrisal + pork belly is the ultimate combo, a set almost no one could dislike.

Besides the meat, the side menu is varied too, with a good lineup of noodles and stews to go along with it. The side dishes are all reasonably priced too, which makes it easy to try a bit of everything.

Banchan at Gim Sukseong, including yangnyeom gejang

The basic banchan (side dishes) include a personal plate, salt, and ssamjang for each person, plus scallion kimchi, wild garlic leaves, and yangnyeom gejang (soy-marinated seasoned crab). Yangnyeom gejang as a standard side dish?! It's such a sweet-and-spicy side that you could finish a bowl of rice on it alone.

It's basically an all-star lineup of side dishes perfect for eating with meat, so whoever put this banchan spread together clearly knows what they're doing.

Inside the 550g Special 2 set: enough for three

The Special 2 set at Gim Sukseong is 550g, good for around three servings. The thick pork neck looked so fresh and glossy that I was already excited!! Pork neck + gabrisal + pork belly filled the whole grill.

And when you order the Special 2 set, kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew) comes free! I always need a stew when eating meat, so this was perfect. The kimchi jjigae wasn't overly sour or salty either — just right to eat alongside the meat.

Staff grilling: the Gim Sukseong team cooks every cut for you

One great thing about Gim Sukseong, this BBQ spot near Cheonho Station, is that staff grill all the meat, so you can just relax and chat while eating. Even though they seem casual about it, they're actually total pros — the meat comes out juicy and perfectly cooked. And you get to enjoy it right at the peak moment!!

How the gabrisal, pork belly and pork neck taste

First up was the gabrisal, grilled just right — nicely chewy. The pork belly was also tender and full of flavor, with the savory fat popping in every bite. The pork neck was thick too, but never dry — tender and delicious! Gim Sukseong uses domestic Korean pork, so the quality was definitely there 💛

With sizzling stir-fried kimchi and minari (water dropwort) grilled alongside, one plate of meat felt truly abundant 💛 With so many good side dishes and extras to go with the quality meat, it was a really enjoyable, varied meal. As you'd expect from pork belly and pork neck — Korea's soul food combo — it was all so good!!!

In particular, the pork neck from the Special 2 set was my favorite — tender yet with a satisfying thick bite. It went great with fragrant minari, and it was delicious even just dipped in salt.

Finishing with icy cold noodles at Gim Sukseong

To finish, I had cold noodles, which properly washed away the meat's fattiness. The broth had a slushy, icy texture that felt refreshing, like a hangover cure! It's like eating janchi guksu (banquet noodles) as an ice-cold dish ☀️

For anyone who loves a retro pojangmacha-style BBQ spot, or is looking for a reasonably priced, well-composed set for a work dinner or gathering in Cheonho, Gim Sukseong is the Cheonho Station BBQ restaurant I'd recommend 🙂