Myeongdong pork belly restaurant, kimchi stew finish: Yuktongnyeong

It's Ddogi! Honestly, I used to think Myeongdong was full of tourist-trap Korean food since so many foreigners go there, nothing you could really call a real find. But then I discovered a gem there...

Yuktongnyeong Myeongdong Main Branch: the Blue Ribbon at the entrance

This is Yuktongnyeong, a Myeongdong pork belly restaurant. Seeing the Blue Ribbon and the banner announcing it was picked on the show Sooyoomisikhoe at the entrance, I thought, this must be the place. Except it turned out to be famous for ogyeopsal (skin-on pork belly), oops. Guess I have no choice but to book a return visit, haha.

What time to go for no wait on a weekend, and the walk from Myeongdong Station

I went outside lunch hours, and even though it was a weekend, I luckily got in with no wait! Still, they gave a coupon for a free stew if you book on Naver and leave a review after visiting.

The location is super convenient too — about a 3-minute walk from Exit 5 of Myeongdong Station, haha. Great accessibility!

Restrooms on the 2nd floor, shared with Eunseong Yang Gopchang

I went up to the 2nd floor for the restroom, which was separated by gender, haha. There was a different sign on the 2nd floor, so I figured it must be a separate restaurant.

But looking at the stairs going up, it turned out that Eunseong Yang Gopchang on the 2nd floor sign is actually the same place as Yuktongnyeong, and it said you can order meat and gopchang (grilled intestines) on any floor, haha.

Yuktongnyeong menu: one serving each of pork belly and pork neck

Next up is the menu at Yuktongnyeong, the Myeongdong pork belly restaurant. Not even knowing it was famous for ogyeopsal, I just ordered one serving of samgyeopsal (pork belly) and one of my favorite mokssal (pork neck), haha. Since it was hot out, I also ordered a bowl of mul naengmyeon.

What banchan (side dishes) and sauces come with the meat

As soon as we ordered, they set up the side dishes and charcoal, haha. Wine-roasted salt, wasabi, salted shrimp, a sauce made with bokbunja (black raspberry), galchi sokjeot (fermented hairtail innards), and even ssamjang (dipping sauce) — such a variety of sauces! They also gave us myeongi namul (wild garlic leaves), scallion shreds, salad, and perilla leaf pickles, so many sides to pair with the meat, I was so excited, haha.

Grilling service: staff cook the thick-cut pork for you

The meat came out right away too, and with the grilling service, staff grilled it for us directly! The thickness was incredible, I could already tell it'd have a great chewy bite.

The staff member clearly knew what they were doing — when grilling the mushrooms, they let them soak up the meat's fat. There was no chili pepper among the basic side dishes, so I asked just in case, and they brought some out, haha.

Mul naengmyeon while the meat grills

Here's the naengmyeon they prepared quickly before the meat finished grilling! I added a splash of vinegar and mustard, mixed it all up, and took a bite — wow, this place is legit good for naengmyeon too. The broth was so refreshing, with insane depth of flavor.

Meanwhile they kept grilling the meat — can you see how thick it stays even after grilling? That's exactly the point, isn't it. I really felt like I'd finally found a proper pork belly place after a long time, and who would've guessed it'd be in Myeongdong, lol.

Just watching it turn golden brown while it cooked was tough enough. And just eating the naengmyeon on its own wasn't easy either... isn't the visual just amazing?

Pork belly on the left, pork neck on the right

I'd never seen a staff member with this much thoughtful attention to detail. Plating the pork belly on the left and the pork neck on the right in the bowl — isn't that level of care amazing?

My first bite was dipped in the wine-roasted salt — the pork belly was cooked perfectly, so juicy. My second bite was pork neck with wasabi on top, and it genuinely melted in my mouth, so good I nearly passed out.

Then I really dug in, wrapping bites in naengmyeon noodles too, lol. Eating it with scallion shreds and wild garlic leaves, the meat kept disappearing. Once I felt satisfied with the meal, I decided it was time for dessert, haha.

Kimchi stew to finish, with rice ordered separately

Dessert is the kimchi stew!!! Rice is ordered separately for the kimchi stew, so I ordered a bowl on the side too. They said they use Paju Hyangmi rice, and the rice was really good. So as soon as I got my rice, I topped it with meat, dipped it in ssamjang, and ate it right away, haha.

Wow, they really did the kimchi stew properly. They brought out a burner, small plates, and even a ladle, then put a whole head of napa kimchi in and cut it right at the table, haha. They told us just to boil it once and it's ready to eat!

I snipped in the cheongyang chili pepper they'd given me earlier with scissors, which made it even spicier and more refreshing, haha. Feels a bit piggish, but what can I say, it's delicious!!!

It had been a while since I visited, but I was so satisfied. Yuktongnyeong, the Myeongdong pork belly restaurant — totally recommend it, haha.