Daegu Korean BBQ family set with makchang, ₩80,000: Hyeongnim Dakgui

A Daegu BBQ restaurant my son picked: Hyeongnim Dakgui Daemyeong-dong Gyeongdae branch

Hyeongnim Dakgui Daemyeong-dong Gyeongdae branch is a charcoal-grill restaurant beside the stone steps at the back gate of Keimyung University in Daemyeong-dong, Daegu. My son picked it as the tastiest of all the meat places our family likes, so off we went. With the blue autumn sky getting higher by the day, our appetites were rising too.

Honestly, it's hard for charcoal-grilled meat to be bad, and hard for chicken to be bad, so my expectations were high from the start. But my eldest son pointed and said "Here!!!", so I had to sit through the rush-hour traffic I really hate. It's not close and there was definitely traffic, but it was a place that made the drive worth it.

Where is Hyeongnim Dakgui Daemyeong-dong Gyeongdae branch, and where do you park?

The restaurant is next to the stone steps at Keimyung University (Gyeongdae) in Daemyeong-dong. Park on campus, go out the back gate and walk down a few steps, and ta-da, there it is. They give you 2 hours of free parking.

Hyeongnim Dakgui opening hours

• Monday to Thursday: 15:00 – 02:00 (next day)
• Friday, weekends and public holidays: 12:00 – 02:00 (next day)
• Last order: 01:30 every day

Only chicken BBQ? Pork ribs, makchang, beef and the self bar

The name says dakgui (chicken BBQ), but they also have marinated pork ribs, makchang (grilled pork intestine) and beef. On top of that there's a lovingly stocked self bar (the side dishes are real rice thieves), plus ramyeon, ice cream, fried eggs and coffee. They really let you help yourself.

The self salad bar was already hearty back when this space was a shabu-shabu place, so I wondered for a moment whether that's a tradition of this location. Just a silly thought!

They really should write that up like that. This Daemyeong-dong meat restaurant has so many strengths, and who'll know if nobody says so? It was better than I expected, so I praised my eldest. Let's step inside.

Why a family with kids stayed comfortable even on a busy company-dinner night

The restaurant is very spacious. On the day I visited, a company group came for a hwesik (team dinner), but they were seated completely away from us, so everyone could eat without any bother.

Oh no, did I pick the wrong day?? This is going to take a while... But after I came back from taking photos, water and tableware were already set and they took our order right away. They were incredibly busy, yet at a regular table, and with us being two middle-schoolers and one woman (a combination meat restaurants don't exactly welcome; I've had really bad seats and poor service before..), they looked after us so well. They kept encouraging the kids to have ramyeon and ice cream, and even gave us Fanta as a freebie~~ 💕💕💕

The pretty woman in the kitchen looks about the owner's age, so maybe she's his wife? I'm just an ajumma (middle-aged woman) guessing all by myself.. Anyway, the two of them were both so kind, which I loved.

What's in the ₩80,000 family set at Hyeongnim Dakgui?

The family set comes with all three chicken BBQ flavors (soy, spicy-marinated, salt), marinated pork ribs and makchang. You can order sets or individual items, whichever you like.

Even though there's a smaller set, when I ordered the large ₩80,000 family set the owner worried it would be too much.. 🤣🤣🤣 But I said nope!! No regrets. We don't compromise when it comes to meat.

Screen, self salad bar and my daughter's first fried egg

The restaurant also has a projector screen for watching big football or baseball games. The self salad bar, with side dishes, ramyeon and more for all ages, was very impressive too.

My daughter brought back a plate of tofu and kimchi (dubu-kimchi) that was honestly at the level of a drinking snack at a pub. And the first fried egg she ever made: setting aside that I didn't want to eat it, it was the kind of salad bar where you might not have any left to eat.

Regular seating and group seating are well separated. Each table has a whole napkin roll hanging on it, and when I see that done it strikes me as a great idea. It doesn't take up table space either.

How did the three chicken BBQ flavors and makchang taste?

The chicken BBQ arrives well pre-grilled, so it snips apart easily with scissors, and since it's drumstick meat it's smooth and chewy with absolutely no gamey smell. When you move on to the makchang, they swap the grill plate for a fresh one.

I ordered the ₩80,000 family set, and I hope you'll forgive me for already putting the salt and soy chicken on the grill on both sides. The owner said they prep the meat themselves..

The fresh, tasty chicken comes pre-grilled, so if you cut it up when you put it on the fire you can eat it quickly. The soy, salt and spicy-marinated versions were all really good. First of all, the meat is good,, and the seasoning isn't too strong; each one brings out its own character.

I had some fun with my daughter's very first fried egg, the free drink and an onion. 😁😁😁 The kids, who've become meat connoisseurs from eating out so much, and my daughter in particular, who says she's sick of chicken, said it was really tasty and ate it up.

The marinated pork ribs come raw, but they cook in no time. It's charcoal, after all~ You know the fresher the meat, the more fat renders out on the fire, right? At Hyeongnim Dakgui near Keimyung University in Daemyeong-dong, the makchang has no smell at all and the fat comes out well, so it grills up totally crispy.

Hyeongnim Dakgui Daemyeong-dong Gyeongdae branch: overall verdict

I started blogging late so I work hard at it, and I visit lots of places as part of review campaigns, and there are really many good ones. Hyeongnim Dakgui is one of them. I took the liberty of telling the male owner he looks like a mild-flavor Heo Sung-tae (a Korean actor), and he said he's already heard that a lot. 🤣🤣🤣

They're so kind and work so hard that I naturally felt like working hard on this post too. The meat is truly delicious, and fresh.

• A self salad bar you can use as much as you like
• A playroom for kids, plus ice cream, ramyeon and coffee
• A screen for watching your favorite games together
• Group seating that fits a large party

We were very satisfied with every part of the meal at Hyeongnim Dakgui Daemyeong-dong Gyeongdae branch, and at the kids' request we'll probably go again soon. If you're looking for a BBQ restaurant in Nam-gu, Daegu, I highly recommend it.