Daejeon Korean restaurant for half-and-half pork bones: Yeonam

While looking for somewhere to eat dinner during our Daejeon trip, we visited Yeonam Charcoal-Grilled Pork Backbone & Gamjatang (연암숯불뼈구이&감자탕), a popular spot in Daeheung-dong! Honestly, I don't usually go out of my way for gamjatang (pork bone soup). I like the flavor, but picking the meat off the bones is a hassle too 😂 Food that requires lots of diligent chopstick work always felt a little inconvenient.

But Yeonam's grilled bones were completely different from the bone dishes I had imagined. To give you the conclusion first: “Ah, so this is why it's famous!”

Yeonam grilled bones: basic information and reservations

• 37-9 Jungang-ro 130beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon
• 11:30–24:00; last order 23:30
• Reservations, takeout, and group visits available
• High chairs and Wi-Fi available

We made a reservation through Catchtable before our trip. It was nice to arrive feeling relaxed! There were still a few tables open when we went in, but not long after, people started filling the place incredibly quickly. Famous places really are famous for a reason. I hear weekend waits are even longer, so definitely make a reservation..!

They say you have to get the half-and-half grilled bones!

I kept seeing people say that if you come to Yeonam, you have to order the grilled bones half-and-half. So we ordered it without hesitation. Our order was half-and-half grilled bones and rice balls. That's it!

The half-and-half grilled bones start at a medium size and cost ₩39,000. The rice balls are ₩5,000. We were already somewhat full and aren't huge eaters, so we expected there would be a lot of food. Everyone said adding udon noodles was essential, but... for the two of us, ordering that too felt like it would be seriously overdoing it, so we held back 😂 But then...

Even the rice balls were an outrageous amount

When the rice balls arrived, I was like, “Uh...?” This was not the amount of rice balls I had expected... There were SO many 😭 There was seriously such a huge amount of rice...? I already thought the grilled bones would be plentiful, but I had no idea the rice balls would be this generous too. This was when I started getting a little worried. “Can we finish all this...?”

Dip the rice balls in the sauce!

And the rice balls were really delicious too. They were moist and good on their own, but I liked them best lightly dipped in the grilled-bone sauce. The spicy sauce went so well with the rice. A bite of rice while eating the bones, then another bite of bones... I just kept reaching for that combination 😂 The regular spicy flavor is like an extra-hot Buldak, while the less-spicy one is like Buldak, so I recommend having them together 🔥

Could the complimentary gamjatang broth be good too?

And the very last thing that really impressed me! They gave us gamjatang broth as a complimentary service. And this broth was so delicious...!!! Honestly, it was good enough that I thought, “I could eat a whole bowl of rice with this broth alone.”

A spoonful of hot broth, a rice ball, then grilled bones... the combination was so good. We came expecting only grilled bones, but even the complimentary broth was delicious, which made us even happier. Next time, I might come back for the gamjatang... 🙂

Half-and-half grilled bones: salted and spicy

We ordered the grilled bones half salted and half spicy. It was nice to enjoy both flavors at once. The less-spicy flavor was not as hot as I expected. They say its heat is about like Buldak 볶음면 (spicy stir-fried noodles). I'm not exceptionally good with spicy food, but I could still enjoy it.

Yeonam also sells gamjatang made with fresh pork backbone, a broth carefully simmered for 120 minutes, and tender meat. But its signature is grilled pork backbone coated in Yeonam's special sauce and cooked over charcoal, making it crisp outside, tender inside, and full of smoky flavor.

Does the meat really come off the bone easily?

The reason I don't usually seek out grilled bones or gamjatang is that “picking off the meat is annoying.” When meat is stuck to the bone, you have to keep scraping with chopsticks, and if it won't come off, you eventually have to gnaw at it... It was such a hassle....

But at Yeonam, seriously... the meat slipped right off with just a light press of my hand. It came away so easily that I was like, what is this? ❤️ There was no need to struggle with chopsticks or gnaw at it; just a quick sweep with your hand and the meat comes right off. It was much more convenient than I expected.

And dipping that tender, easily separated meat in the sauce... wow... it was really deliciousㅠㅠㅠ👍 I liked the spicy flavor more than the salted one.

How much is it for two people?

We were careful from the start because we expected a lot of food, but once we properly picked clean one bone, we were getting full...! (We hadn't arrived hungry...) After one salted piece and one spicy piece, we were seriously stuffed. I thought, “How could we possibly eat udon noodles too...?” 😂

So we ultimately did not add udon noodles. Looking back, though, people who don't eat much like us probably don't need to add lots of extras from the beginning. The grilled bones themselves are a substantial portion. It is a medium size, after all.....;;

What to know when packing up leftover grilled bones

We were so full that we packed up the remaining grilled bones. But I was surprised again here. They pack it for you after you remove the meat from the leftover bones, and when we received the container.... it was completely full???? No... we didn't even add extra meat...? It almost looked as though they had packed us a whole new container.

“We left this much...?” We had ordered one medium portion, but seeing the packed leftovers made me marvel at the quantity all over again. The portions are truly generous. They say you need to remove the meat from the bones before packing it up! Apparently, reheating it while the bones are still in can make it smell fishy.. 😭

I could see why Yeonam grilled bones are famous

Before visiting, I honestly wondered, “Why are grilled bones famous to that extent?” But after trying them myself, I understood. Best of all, the meat came off incredibly tenderly. Even someone like me, who finds picking meat off bones annoying, can eat comfortably; the charcoal grilling adds smoky flavor; and having half salted and half spicy is great too.

The portions are also truly abundant, so I thought it would be a good place to visit with several people 👍 If you're looking for a hearty meal in Daeheung-dong, Daejeon during a trip like we were, I think it would suit you well. I personally don't often look for grilled bones or gamjatang, but this meal changed my mind a little. I found myself thinking, “Were grilled bones always this easy to eat?”

And if you want rice alongside it, I recommend the rice balls too! They're really delicious dipped in the sauce 🤤 If you want to try something less common in Daejeon or are looking for Korean food, it may be worth a visit. We had so much food that we ended up taking some home 👍 Thanks to that, we enjoyed it again the next day. It was a truly delicious meal on our Daejeon trip 😊