Yangju dakgalbi restaurant with garaetteok rice cakes: Seorak Makguksu

Why charcoal dakgalbi made the family lunch menu

Standing over a grill in the midday heat can wear you out before the meal even starts, haha. Looking for somewhere easy to have lunch with family, I went to a Yangju dakgalbi spot where the staff grills the meat for you.

This time I visited Seorak Makguksu Chuncheon Dakgalbi Yangju Branch, about a 10-minute drive from Okjeong-dong, so it was easy to get to. Since you can have charcoal-grilled meat and self-made makguksu (buckwheat noodles) in one place, it made a good pick for a Yangju family outing.

Seorak Makguksu Chuncheon Dakgalbi Yangju Branch: hours and parking

The address is 211 Mansong-ro, 1st floor, Yangju-si, Gyeonggi-do. Heading from Okjeong New Town toward Goeup District, I spotted the big sign along Mansong-ro without much trouble. It's also close to Goeup Library and the Haedong Village Hanyang Sujain apartments, so it's handy if you're looking for a place to eat near Goeup Library or Haedong Village. Being near Lakewood CC, it's also well positioned as a restaurant for a meal before or after a round of golf.

Hours are 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM, Wednesday through Monday. Break time runs from 3:00 to 4:00 PM, last order is at 8:20 PM, and it's closed every Tuesday.

• Opens. 11:00 AM
• Break time. 3:00–4:00 PM
• Closes. 9:00 PM
• Closed. Every Tuesday

It's also a good stop near Yangju Nari Park, and it's closer than you'd think from Uijeongbu, Pocheon, and Dongducheon. Yangju's Cheonilhong Flower Festival kicks off in September too, so you could pair flower viewing with a meal here. There's a parking lot right in front, making it a convenient spot near Lakewood CC.

Inside the dining hall and the separate group room

The exterior was easy to spot thanks to the large sign, and the inside was bright and cool. There was a dining hall with 4-person tables and a spacious, privately separated group room.

Each table had its own individual hood, and the seating didn't feel cramped. It stood out as a good lunch spot for a family or a golf club group in Yangju.

If you're bringing a group to a Lakewood CC-area restaurant, it might be worth checking about the group room in advance.

What do dakgalbi and makguksu cost here?

The dakgalbi menu here has gochujang charcoal dakgalbi and soy dakgalbi, each ₩16,000. Both use 100% domestic refrigerated Harim chicken thigh, and you can order one serving of each flavor. So there's no need to agonize between spicy and mild — just pick one of each. A nice ordering setup for anyone who wants to compare both flavors of Yangju charcoal dakgalbi.

Mul makguksu and bibim makguksu are each ₩10,000, and a bibim makguksu after the meal is ₩6,000. Buckwheat pheasant mandu, buckwheat kimchi mandu, and buckwheat pancake are each ₩9,000, so the side dish options were pretty solid. True to its name, it's a Yangju makguksu spot that makes and pulls its own noodles.

The cool banchan spread that comes first

The banchan (side dishes) included cabbage pickled in mustard sauce, seasoned radish, yeolmu kimchi, lettuce wraps, garlic, and ssamjang (dipping sauce). An icy dongchimi (watery radish kimchi) came out too, cooling down the table even with the charcoal grill going.

While waiting for the dakgalbi to cook, I took a bite of dongchimi first, and it cleared my palate. You could grab more of any banchan from the self-serve bar without feeling awkward about it.

Gochujang and soy dakgalbi, grilled by the staff

The dakgalbi came out pre-cooked, and the staff cut it into bite-size pieces and finished grilling it right on the plate. They moved things around so nothing burned, so we could just talk and wait, which was easy.

The soy dakgalbi wasn't overly sweet and the seasoning wasn't heavy, so the softness of the chicken thigh really came through.

The gochujang charcoal dakgalbi was pleasantly spicy — even a spice wimp could handle it — and the aftertaste wasn't heavy.

Maybe it's because I'm getting older, but I've come to like flavors that aren't greasy, and I like the light, clean taste more these days — this Yangju dakgalbi spot grills over charcoal, so it felt healthy as well as tasty. Not having to grill the meat yourself made it a great fit for an easy family meal in Yangju.

The gochujang dakgalbi tasted even better with garaetteok (rice cake sticks) grilled alongside it, adding a chewy texture. After wrapping some meat and radish salad in lettuce, moving on to the bibim makguksu for dessert felt like perfect timing.

House-made bibim makguksu to finish

The incredible-value bibim makguksu I ordered as a dessert-slash-meal comes with noodles kneaded and pulled fresh after ordering, topped with a sweet-and-tangy sauce made from domestic red pepper powder.

You can add mustard, vinegar, sauce, and sugar to taste — better to add a little at a time and taste as you go rather than pouring in a lot at once.

The noodles are great on their own, but adding a bite of the charcoal-scented meat really brings out the reason people come to this Yangju dakgalbi and makguksu spot.

Chewy, mild buckwheat pheasant mandu

Feeling like I'd regret it if I left without trying it, I also ordered the buckwheat pheasant mandu (dumplings). The filling, a mix of pheasant and pork, felt familiar, similar to the meat mandu we usually eat.

The buckwheat mandu skin was chewy, and the filling wasn't heavily seasoned, so it would suit anyone who likes milder dishes.

Alternating with the tangy bibim makguksu sauce, I ended up clearing even this side dish completely.

A family meal you can also take home

Seorak Makguksu Chuncheon Dakgalbi Yangju Branch, in Yangju's Mansong-dong, lets you take home pre-grilled dakgalbi starting from 2 servings. That could be handy for a weekend meal out, picking some up on the way home from work, or bringing it along to a nearby campsite or pension.

It's not far from nearby Okjeong-dong and Uijeongbu, making it a good Yangju family outing spot to visit on a day when you're also stopping by Yangju Nari Park. Worth remembering if you want a restaurant near Lakewood CC where staff grill everything after a round, or if you're simply after a filling plate of Yangju dakgalbi. So which one appeals more to you — the not-too-sweet soy dakgalbi or the pleasantly spicy charcoal dakgalbi?