Hongdae Korean BBQ restaurant with cube-cut gabrisal: Gogi Salon

Why we picked Gogi Salon near Hongik Univ. Station for dinner

My boyfriend and I went looking for Korean BBQ around Hongdae for dinner and ended up at Gogi Salon. It's a certified Doduram pork retailer, so I expected good meat quality, and since they grill the meat for you, I figured we could just relax and eat.

The meat itself was great, but what really made the whole meal satisfying was how well they grilled it!

Gogi Salon: address, hours and lunch sets

Gogi Salon really is close to Hongik University Station, and they also sell lunch set menus — seasoned grilled pork, beef brisket, and kimchi stew sets — so a lot of office workers come by for lunch too.

What Gogi Salon looks like inside and out

The exterior looked clean and tidy, so even as a first-time visitor I found it easily. The location is pretty convenient if you're hunting for dinner spots near Hongik Univ. Station!

Once inside, the place was bigger than I expected.

The tables had plenty of space, so it seemed great for a two-person date but also fine for larger groups. Worth keeping in mind if you're looking for a group dinner spot near Hongik Univ. Station.

There were diagrams on the wall explaining the different cuts of pork and beef, which was fun to look at.

The bathroom inside was also spotless, and I noticed they even had mouthwash in there — a sign the owner really thinks about the little things for customers. That kind of small touch matters when you have somewhere to be right after eating meat, haha!

Gogi Salon menu and prices: pork belly and gabrisal

• Pork belly ₩16,000 x 2
• Neck skirt meat (gabrisal) ₩17,000
• Alcohol

Once we sat down, wasabi, salt, and mustard came out neatly arranged in separate little containers, ready to help yourself to. Seeing even the sauce containers lined up so tidily, I could already tell the owner had a meticulous streak.

The side dishes were laid out neatly too — pickled cucumber, pickled chili, seasoned marinated crab, garlic, soybean paste, lettuce wraps, and salad, each in its own spot.

I especially liked that Gogi Salon includes seasoned marinated crab as a standard side dish — not all BBQ places do that. Grabbing a bite of that salty-sweet crab between pieces of meat makes for the perfect drinking snack! With side dishes and drinks all set out, the table looked generous but still felt well organized.

We ordered two servings of pork belly and one of neck skirt meat that day. As a certified Doduram pork retailer, my expectations for the meat itself were high, and it came out with really good-quality raw meat along with mushrooms and baby potatoes.

The owner grills the meat and cuts each part to fit

And this is where Gogi Salon's real strength shows.

The owner grills every single piece of meat himself.

It wasn't just meat sitting on the grill while we waited — he watched the meat's condition and flipped it right on time, so we could just chat comfortably while it cooked.

I was especially impressed watching him time the flip on the pork belly, catching it just before it got overcooked.

Once the meat was done, he cut it to suit the cut — and this is where I was really impressed again. The pork belly was sliced into long, easy-to-eat strips, while the neck skirt meat was cut into thick cubes to preserve its chunky texture, and even the arrangement on the grill was kept neat. You could really feel the owner's meticulous personality carried right through into how he grilled, haha.

How the gabrisal and pork belly tasted

A shot of soju to go with all that well-grilled meat 🍶

The neck skirt meat, cut into thick cubes, was golden and crisp on the outside with juicy meat inside on the first bite. Every chew released a burst of juice and a deep, savory pork flavor, and a touch of wasabi and salt cut the richness while sharpening the meat's natural umami even more.

The pork belly had a fat layer that turned golden and deeply savory, while the lean part stayed juicy with every bite. Best of all, there was zero pork smell, so it was plenty delicious with just a light dip in salt. I get now why people looking for good pork belly near Hongik Univ. Station care so much about meat quality.

Free doenjang stew and bibim noodles at Gogi Salon

And then the complimentary soybean paste stew arrived! It came out still bubbling, and a spoonful between bites of meat had a savory, salty broth that cleaned the palate nicely.

On top of that came a free serving of bibim noodles (spicy mixed noodles). They tossed the noodles so the sweet-and-tangy sauce coated every strand evenly,

and eating it with a piece of pork belly on top was perfect — the noodles' tangy-spicy sauce cut right through the meat's rich, fatty flavor. That combo with grilled meat is just impossible to resist, haha.

Looking at the menu board, I noticed they have separate lunch set menus (seasoned grilled pork, beef brisket, kimchi stew), which seems great for Hongdae office workers grabbing lunch.

They're also running a Naver receipt review event, offering one canned drink at lunch and bibim noodles at dinner, so keep that in mind if you're planning a visit!

Is Gogi Salon worth it for a Hongdae dinner date?

Both the pork belly and neck skirt meat we tried were high quality, but personally, what satisfied me most was having the meat grilled for us. From timing the flip to how it was cut to suit each part, the attention to detail meant we got to eat the meat at its absolute best, juices and all.

From the neat side dishes and sauce containers to the careful arrangement of meat on the grill, and even the mouthwash in the bathroom — it was clear the owner thinks carefully about his customers. I fell for the taste of the meat first, then fell for the generous, thoughtful service all over again.

Next time I'll have to try the flower pork neck (kkotmokssal) too! If you're searching for a Hongdae meat restaurant, a Hongdae favorite, or somewhere near Hongik Univ. Station that actually grills the meat properly for you, I recommend Gogi Salon!