Songpa meat buffet in Seoul with scallion ramyeon: Muhan Paldo Daepae

You know those days when you're so hungry before you even leave work that your stomach starts growling? This was exactly that kind of day.

I was trying to figure out what would fill me up properly, and I ended up at Muhan Paldo Daepae Jamsilsaenae Branch, a place where you can eat as much meat as you want. If you're looking for dinner around Jamsilsaenae, this is a solid choice — lots of meat varieties and plenty of side dishes to go with them, so you can eat a really satisfying meal.

It felt especially suited to hungry office workers just off work, or friends grabbing a casual meal together — there were quite a lot of people in the restaurant that day too.

A dining room wide enough for a work dinner

The first thing I noticed walking into Muhan Paldo Daepae Jamsilsaenae Branch was just how big the place is.

The tables were spaced out generously, so even visiting with several people didn't feel cramped, and I actually saw groups of office workers gathered for work dinners. There were quite a few students too — I guess because you can eat as much meat as you want and enjoy a variety of menu items, it seems to work for any age group.

Restaurant size quietly matters a lot when looking for a good spot in Jamsilsaenae, and if you're searching for somewhere to eat with a group, a spacious place like this is pretty convenient. Especially for after-work gatherings, it's easier to just grab whatever cut you feel like grilling rather than deciding on one dish for everyone.

Six shaved cuts to choose from at Muhan Paldo Daepae

Looking through the meat in the freezer at Muhan Paldo Daepae Jamsilsaenae Branch, there were more varieties than I expected — enough that just trying one of each would fill you up. There was daepae samgyeopsal, daepae mokssal, kkotsamgyeop, naengsamgyeop, handon daepae, and woo-samgyeop daepae, all ready to go.

• Daepae samgyeopsal (shaved pork belly)
• Daepae mokssal (shaved pork neck)
• Kkotsamgyeop (flower-cut pork belly)
• Naengsamgyeop (chilled pork belly)
• Handon daepae (shaved Korean pork)
• Woo-samgyeop daepae (shaved beef brisket)

Personally I also like meat sliced thick, but on a day like this when I was starving right after work, thin shaved pork was nice because it's easier to grill.

It cooks fast once it's on the pan, so there's not much waiting around, and since I like it grilled crispy, that thin, crunchy texture unique to shaved pork really worked for me. Eating just one type of meat the whole time can get a bit repetitive, but here you can switch between the basics like daepae samgyeopsal and daepae mokssal and then move on to kkotsamgyeop or woo-samgyeop daepae, so it stayed fun to keep picking different cuts right to the end.

Among Jamsilsaenae restaurants, having this many meat varieties is great when visiting with a group, since everyone can pick their favorite cut.

Why Goesan cheonggukjang sauce works with grilled pork

Having a variety of sauces and side dishes to go with meat means the same cut can taste a bit different each time. Muhan Paldo Daepae Jamsilsaenae Branch had quite a few sauce options to go with the meat, and the one that stuck with me most was the Goesan cheonggukjang (fermented soybean paste) sauce.

Dipping meat into cheonggukjang sauce felt a little unfamiliar at first, but once I tried it, it worked better than expected. It was a totally different feel from dipping meat in plain salt or a basic sauce, so switching sauces back and forth was part of the fun.

You could wrap the meat in perilla leaves like a ssam (wrap), or dip each piece into a different sauce. Changing up how I ate it like this meant I ate quite a lot of meat without ever really getting tired of it.

Kimchi, bean sprouts, bracken fern and mushrooms on the grill

Once you start grilling meat, you naturally start looking for things to grill alongside it — so we threw in kimchi, seasoned bean sprouts, bracken fern, and mushrooms too. Kimchi and mushrooms that soaked up a bit of the meat's fat paired especially well with the pork, and adding bean sprouts and bracken fern here and there changed up the texture nicely.

I like putting a bunch of things on the pan together like this while eating meat, and being able to mix and match to my own taste at the table was great. A piece of meat with perilla leaf here, grilled kimchi on top there, switching sauces along the way — before I knew it, the plates were emptying out one by one.

Yeolla ramyeon with shredded scallions, halfway through

Partway through the meat, I noticed there were several types of ramyeon (instant noodles) available. Yeolla ramyeon, one of my favorites, was among them, so I boiled it up right away. Meat followed by ramyeon is really a combo you can't resist.

I especially like putting scallion shreds into yeolla ramyeon, so I added those in this time too. The crunchy scallion in the spicy broth added texture, and after all that meat, it felt like a palate reset.

Even with my stomach already pretty full, the ramyeon somehow found room, like there's a separate stomach just for noodles. That's the kind of greed that kicks in when you show up at a BBQ place starving after work. I figured meat plus ramyeon was the finish line — but it wasn't over yet.

Fried rice to close out the meal

After eating plenty of meat, I made some simple fried rice too. Fried rice made with the tasty bits left in the pan after grilling meat is one of those dishes you just have to have at the end. I was already full, but bit by bit I kept scooping it up until it was gone.

Grilling meat, then kimchi, bean sprouts, bracken fern and mushrooms, then eating yeolla ramyeon, and finishing with fried rice — it really felt like I'd eaten a thorough, complete meal.

A slushie after dinner to clear the palate

After grilling hot meat and finishing off with ramyeon, drinking a cold slushie let me end the meal on a good note all the way through. Instead of just meat and out, there was so much to eat that the whole flow from start to finish felt natural.

Maybe that's why, even though I showed up starving that day, I left with my stomach thoroughly full. Muhan Paldo Daepae Jamsilsaenae Branch seems like a great fit for anyone who wants to try a bunch of different cuts in small portions.

You can pick from daepae samgyeopsal, daepae mokssal, kkotsamgyeop, naengsamgyeop, handon daepae, and woo-samgyeop daepae, plus enjoy various sauces, perilla leaves, and grilled side dishes. Add in yeolla ramyeon, fried rice, and a slushie at the end, and it really felt like I'd had a proper meal on a truly hungry day.

Most of all, the spacious layout made me think it'd be an easy pick for visiting with a group of friends or for a work dinner. If you're trying to decide on dinner in Jamsilsaenae and want to eat until you're really, truly full, this is the kind of place that comes to mind naturally.

If you're like me and love grilling meat quickly and eating it crispy on a starving after-work day, you'll really get to appreciate the strengths of shaved pork here. Rather than sticking to one cut, picking through several, switching sauces, grilling kimchi and mushrooms, then finishing with ramyeon and fried rice — that's what made Muhan Paldo Daepae Jamsilsaenae Branch fun.

Next time I'm in Jamsilsaenae on a truly hungry day wondering where to go, this is the place I'll probably think of again. A meal that properly filled that day's hunger, right to the end.