Yongmun Station charcoal BBQ with salt-grilled hagfish: Yeontansidae

These days there are plenty of sleek, stylish barbecue places, but sometimes you just crave that old-school, retro grill-house vibe with meat sizzling over charcoal, you know?! This time my husband and I wanted good food and a proper dose of atmosphere, so we headed to Yeontansidae.

Where is Yeontansidae and how do you get there?

Yeontansidae is at 383 Dosol-ro, 1F, Seo-gu, Daejeon, right across from Lotte Department Store, so it wasn't hard to find, and it's close enough to Yongmun Station to make it easy by public transport too. (We just parked comfortably at Lotte and browsed around while we were at it!)

More than anything, this place felt a bit different from your typical barbecue restaurant. You grill meat and seafood over actual charcoal here, and with the nostalgic retro atmosphere on top, it felt like a meal that came with a side of memories, haha!

The retro charcoal-grill atmosphere at Yeontansidae

The first thing that caught my eye the moment we walked in was, of course, the retro vibe! It's the kind of old-school feeling you don't see much anymore, and it made me nostalgic for childhood — a relaxed, comfortable place to eat.

The dining room was bigger than I expected, so it worked well for a family meal, and it would also suit a group dinner or work get-together in the Gwaejeong-dong, Daejeon area. Being close to Yongmun Station also makes it easy to gather here after work.

What's on the menu at Yeontansidae?

Being a barbecue place doesn't mean it's just meat here. Beyond beef, hagfish, grilled chicken, and cuttlefish, you can also grill seafood like scallops over the charcoal, so there's plenty to order depending on your taste (which suited my husband and me perfectly). And with dalgona candy, ice cream, and grilled heart offered as service items, it just put us in an even better mood.

We went with cheonggukjang (fermented soybean stew), beef short rib, salt-grilled hagfish, and cheese-grilled scallops!!

The side dishes that come with every order

Once we sat down, a variety of basic side dishes came out along with the charcoal grill! And they threw in two grilled hearts as a service dish too — grilling them straight over the charcoal gave them a subtle smoky flavor and a springy texture.

It was nice as a quick bite before the main meat courses, and it felt great that they threw in a dish like this for free! The side dishes were also put together to go well with the meat, so we had nothing missing to start our meal.

Salt-grilled hagfish and beef short rib: the perfect pair

The first dish we ordered was salt-grilled hagfish.

I'm firmly of the opinion that hagfish just tastes best grilled over charcoal! Watching it turn golden brown on the grill made me want a drink right then and there. Being salt-grilled meant we got to enjoy the flavor of the hagfish itself rather than a heavily seasoned taste.

It was chewy with a savory flavor that came out more the more you chewed, and with the distinct charcoal smokiness added in, it was delicious even eaten plain. On top of that, you could dip it in sesame oil sauce or spicy sauce depending on your taste — that really maximized the savory flavor of the hagfish!

My husband likes hagfish too, and he kept saying how good it was as we ate — the flavor definitely felt more alive grilled over charcoal than on a regular grill pan.

And to cover land, sea, and sky, so to speak, we also ordered the chewy beef short rib! For us, since we're partial to rib cuts among beef cuts anyway, this was exactly right!!

Bursting with juice — truly a meat dish the whole family could enjoy. And the fact that the menu itself covers beef short rib, hagfish, and cheese-grilled scallops all at once — how do they have everything we love?! It really felt like there's no better place, whether you're having a drink or a proper meal.

Cheese-grilled scallops are worth ordering too

It felt like it would be a bit of a shame to stop there, so we also ordered the cheese-grilled scallops!

Being able to enjoy scallops at a charcoal-grill place was such a nice surprise!! With cheese melted on top of the scallops, it added a savory, creamy note that gave it a different charm from the hagfish.

As it grills over the charcoal, the scallop flavor and the cheese blend together really well, so if you like seafood, it's worth ordering this alongside everything else. Being able to enjoy meat and seafood at the same table gives you a lot of range in what you can choose — that felt like one of Yeontansidae's strengths! Honestly, ordering all of this separately elsewhere would be a lot, but being able to enjoy single portions of each together here is such a win.

Beef-loaded cheonggukjang to finish the meal

And for our main dish, we also ordered the beef-loaded cheonggukjang!

When you order cheonggukjang at a barbecue place, you usually think of it as more of a side dish, but here it truly lives up to its name — loaded with beef, generous in portion, and really filling. Taking a warm spoonful of the broth in between grilled bites cleaned up the palate nicely!

The earthy, distinctive flavor of cheonggukjang combined with the beef made it perfect eaten with rice! If you're the type who wants rice alongside your meat, I think you'd all enjoy ordering this as your main dish.

Is Yeontansidae good for family dinners and group nights out?

Yeontansidae isn't just a place to eat meat and leave — its charm is being able to enjoy a variety of dishes while soaking in an old-school atmosphere. With beef, hagfish, grilled chicken, and seafood like scallops all on the menu, it would be great for a group visit where everyone picks what they want! That's why I think it would suit anyone looking for a group dinner spot in Gwaejeong-dong, Daejeon. It's also close to Lotte Department Store and easy to get to from Yongmun Station, making it a convenient spot to set up a meal.

Thanks to the retro atmosphere, it would also be a nice spot to visit with parents, and it suits a relaxed drink with friends just as well. Above all, there's the fun of grilling everything yourself over charcoal, so it's a great pick when you're after something a bit different from your average barbecue place.

Grilling hagfish over charcoal, tasting the cheese-grilled scallops, and finishing it all off with a filling beef-loaded cheonggukjang made for a genuinely satisfying meal. If you like retro atmospheres or dishes grilled over charcoal, this is worth a visit at least once! I'd especially recommend Yeontansidae to anyone looking for a barbecue restaurant near Yongmun Station, a barbecue restaurant in Gwaejeong-dong, Daejeon, or a group dinner spot in Gwaejeong-dong, Daejeon.