Daegu beef grill revisit: flower rib and skirt half-plates, Gogi 9dan

Basic info on Gogi 9dan Chimsan Direct Branch

Gogi 9dan Chimsan Direct Branch (고기9단 침산직영점) is at 197 Chimsan-namno, Buk-gu, Daegu. It is open 11:00–21:50 (last order 21:00) with a break from 15:00 to 17:00. There's a dedicated parking lot, plus a play room and high chairs.

Why I came back to Gogi 9dan in Chimsan-dong, Daegu

I'd been to Gogi 9dan Chimsan once before and the meat quality was so good that I came back for more beef. And again, from the quality to the taste, it was really good. Here's the story of another tasty meal.

Parking and atmosphere at Gogi 9dan Chimsan

There's a separate parking lot with plenty of space, so I could visit without worrying about parking.

Once you park, just head up to the 2nd floor.

The inside is clean and spacious too, which I liked. Each table has a partition, so you can eat comfortably without worrying about the next table, and there's plenty of seating.

It's a good place for a family meal out, and with the play room it looked easy to come with kids as well.

What we ordered: kkotgalbisal and anchangsal half-plates and the 9dan set

I like that Gogi 9dan lets you order half-plates, so you can try several cuts in smaller amounts. This time we ordered a half-plate of kkotgalbisal (flower short rib meat) and a half-plate of anchangsal (inside skirt), and added the 9dan set.

The 9dan set comes with hanwoo yukhoe (raw beef), pork kimchi jjigae, jjolmyeon (chewy cold noodles), fresh wasabi and sushi. Rather than ordering each as a single item, you get lots of things at once, so the value looked decent to me. If you want a variety of sides with your meat, ordering the 9dan set along with it seems like a good idea.

What the side dishes at Gogi 9dan are like

The side dishes at Gogi 9dan Chimsan come out really generously. It's a meat restaurant, but every banchan (side dish) is neatly done, easily on par with a full-course hanjeongsik meal. And gejang (marinated crab), which I love, came as a side dish, so I liked it even more.

Kkotgalbisal half-plate, dipped in salt

The kkotgalbisal half-plate and the anchangsal half-plate came out together, and even in the photo the meat looks great, right? The kkotgalbisal has marbling spread densely, so it looks tender just by looking, and the anchangsal had a vivid red color and a sheen, so the meat looked to be in great condition.

I grilled the kkotgalbisal first. The moment it hit the grill it sizzled and the marbling melted away, and I got so impatient to eat it before it was even cooked.. haha

The kkotgalbisal was cut into bite-size pieces for grilling, and the inside stayed moist and juicy. Doesn't it look delicious just from the looks?

I first tried the kkotgalbisal with just a light dip in salt. Maybe because of the rich marbling, a nutty flavor spread through my mouth the more I chewed. Juices seeped out, and the balance of lean meat and fat was so good that it was plenty tasty without any sauce.

Beef sushi, jjolmyeon and yukhoe from the 9dan set

While I was eating the kkotgalbisal, the 9dan set arrived. It's a perfect combination to eat with the meat, isn't it?

Put a piece of golden grilled kkotgalbisal on the vinegared rice from the 9dan set, and you've got beef sushi!

I also ate it with the jjolmyeon from the 9dan set. With its sweet-and-sour seasoning and chewy noodles, adding a piece of meat cut the richness and really woke up my appetite.

I tried the yukhoe in the 9dan set too. Picking up a piece, it was chewy yet soft with a nutty taste, and the seasoning wasn't overdone, so the flavor of the beef itself came through.

How tender was the anchangsal half-plate?

Maybe because I've really opened my eyes to anchangsal lately, I enjoyed the anchangsal at Gogi 9dan so much that day.

I grilled the anchangsal until lightly golden, and the texture was so tender that it melted in my mouth almost without chewing.

Full of juice, with a nutty flavor rising the more you chew, it was a cut I was really satisfied with.

Finishing with pork kimchi jjigae and bingsu

I finished with the pork kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew) from the 9dan set. The spicy, piquant broth wiped away the richness after all that meat.

It had well-fermented kimchi and pork in it, so with rice it was a perfect match! I ended the meal full and neatly wrapped up.

Around the end of the meal, the staff asked first, "Would you like some bingsu (shaved ice)?" Getting dessert after the meat is top-notch service..

Besides bingsu, Gogi 9dan Chimsan also has coffee, plum tea and other drinks, so I could properly freshen my mouth at the end.