Late-night Korean BBQ in Jongno, no wait at 10 PM: Cham Dwaejitgan

I finally made it to Cham Dwaejitgan near Jongno 3-ga Station, the Korean BBQ place famous for its waits! The black pork belly was great, but what I remember most from this day is eating it wrapped in potato. Truly the best combo 👍🏻

I went at 10 PM on a Thursday and, luckily, got in with no wait. So here's my honest review of Cham Dwaejitgan, the Jongno 3-ga spot known for its waiting lines.

Cham Dwaejitgan Jongno Main Branch: location, hours and parking

Cham Dwaejitgan Jongno Main Branch (참돼짓간 종로본점) is at 1-89 Piccadilly CGV 1F, 1 Donhwamun-ro 5ga-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, and it's open daily 12:00–23:00. It's about a 1-minute walk from Exit 2-1 of Jongno 3-ga Station.

It's on the outer side of the CGV building's first floor, so you can find it quickly once you come out of the station. 🚗 I hear parking isn't available. The station is so close that I'd take public transport anyway.

Is there a wait at Cham Dwaejitgan at 10 PM on a Thursday?

I'd seen so many reviews mentioning waits that I worried I'd have to queue even that late.

Thankfully, at 10 PM on Thursday I could sit right down. There were quite a few customers even at that hour. The inside was roomier and more pleasant than I expected. With plenty of tables, it looked fine for group gatherings too!

A good restaurant can't go without celebrity autographs, right? Haha. There were some signed by celebrities on the wall.

The owner is full of thoughtful touches: hair ties, toothpicks, dental floss, mouthwash, candy, even Febreze. You worry about the smell after eating meat, so I liked these small considerations. Haha.

Cham Dwaejitgan menu and prices

Cham Dwaejitgan, the Jongno 3-ga favorite, sells Boseong green pork and Jirisan black pork. Here are the main prices.

• Flower neck ₩16,000
• Cham samgyeopsal (pork belly) ₩16,000
• Jirisan black pork belly (ogyeopsal) ₩19,000
• Jirisan black pork neck ₩18,000
• Cheongyeopsal (jowl) ₩19,000
• Gabrisal (neck-end cut) ₩19,000

For meals there's also fried rice ₩3,000, steamed egg ₩5,000 and kudzu naengmyeon (cold noodles) ₩7,000.

There's also an event: leave a Naver receipt review and you get a drink or fried rice. Can't miss a deal like that...

I ordered 1 serving of flower neck and 2 servings of Jirisan black pork belly. The meat alone came to ₩54,000!

What side dishes come with Korean BBQ at Cham Dwaejitgan?

The basic sides are perilla leaves, lettuce, garlic-stem pickles, scallion salad, cabbage salad with sauce, water dropwort, seasoned bean sprouts, kimchi, thinly sliced potato and mushroom wasabi. I love having lots of little extras with my meat, so I really liked the lineup even before the meat arrived! Haha. Perilla leaves, lettuce, garlic-stem pickles, scallion salad, cabbage salad, plus sauce!

There were also water dropwort, seasoned bean sprouts, kimchi, thin potato slices and mushroom wasabi. I especially love mushroom wasabi.. this is my kind of BBQ place.

The water dropwort looked really fresh too. As a root-vegetable lover, I was so happy that I could grill the potatoes as well. Haha.

Staff grill the meat for you here, which made things easy!

How does the flower neck (₩16,000) taste?

Flower neck is ₩16,000 per serving. It isn't as heavily fatty as pork belly, so it goes nicely with kimchi or scallion salad ✌🏻

I happily ate it in lettuce wraps, even with grilled bean sprouts! Grilling water dropwort together with the meat makes the aroma incredible..

With so many add-ons, the same meat can be eaten in several ways. Totally satisfied!

Jirisan black pork belly (₩19,000) and how to eat a potato wrap

The Jirisan black pork belly is ₩19,000 per serving. The black pork is said to come from Jirisan, so I was looking forward to it before ordering. The flower neck was good too, but the belly stayed with me more.

Rich, nutty belly with water dropwort and kimchi goes without saying. But what I'd recommend most at Cham Dwaejitgan is the potato wrap combo!

Potato wrap combo: potato, pork belly, shiitake wasabi and pickled garlic stems

Put a piece of pork belly on a thin potato slice, then top it with shiitake wasabi and garlic-stem pickles. After trying it, I understood why it's recommended.

The potato is soft and the belly is nutty, and the kick of wasabi and salty pickles hit all at once, which was pretty addictive. It's just so good. The owner is a food genius, the best! Even among Jongno pork belly spots, the potato wrap here is worth coming back for. Haha.

Verdict: is Cham Dwaejitgan Jongno worth a late-night visit?

Getting in with no wait was nice, but the variety of sides and staff grilling the meat made it an easy, comfortable meal. If you're looking for a Jongno 3-ga restaurant, give Cham Dwaejitgan a look.

If you want to eat pork a little differently at a Jongno pork belly spot, definitely try the potato wrap. Next time, I'll probably start by making potato wraps with the belly again. Haha.