Honey potato wrap Korean BBQ after a movie in Jongno, Daegu: Hubaldae

Hubaldae Jongno Branch

Every time I passed by Jongno, this place always had a crowd — I kept wondering, "what's the deal with this place that there's always a line?" As it happened, my husband and I were walking out of Manggyeong Theater after watching Odyssey, so we stopped by for dinner. Here's my honest review of Hubaldae, the Jongno restaurant in Daegu I was curious would have a wait.

Where is Hubaldae Daegu Jongno Branch, and what about parking and waiting?

Hubaldae Daegu Jongno Branch sits right where the Jongno restaurant street begins, across from Manggyeong Theater. It's within walking distance of Jungangno Station too, so if you're planning to have a drink, public transit is the easiest way to get there. There's no dedicated parking lot, so you'll need to use paid lots nearby. Well... if you come to Jongno often, you already know parking around here isn't exactly easy haha.

• 📍Location: 1F, 50 Jongno, Jung-gu, Daegu, South Korea
• 🕒Hours: Daily 17:00–00:30
• ❌Closed: None / open year-round
• 🅿️Parking: None

We arrived around 6:10pm on a weekday and the place was already almost full. There was luckily exactly one table left so we got seated right away, but by the time we finished eating and left, quite a few people were waiting outside. If it's this busy on a weekday, I'd recommend reserving ahead for a weekend evening visit.

What does the inside of Hubaldae Jongno look like?

Hubaldae Jongno Branch isn't a huge space, and it's mostly set up with tables for four. With so many people, the overall vibe felt lively — closer to a Jungangno restaurant made for meat and drinks than a quiet dining spot.

And looking at the walls, there were a ton of baseball player autographs. I don't know much about baseball so my reaction was just "whoa... there's a lot" lol, but if you're a Samsung Lions fan, checking them out would probably be fun.

Hubaldae menu prices and the corkage-free policy

Hubaldae's main menu is actually very simple. Fresh pork neck, fresh pork belly, Korean beef large intestine grill, beef tripe grill. Just four items! For meal items there's naengmyeon (cold noodles), special ramen, fried rice, and more.

Hubaldae is corkage-free for any alcohol they don't sell themselves, so it seems like a good option for anyone who wants to bring their own wine or liquor.

Side dishes and other dishes worth ordering at Hubaldae

Even before the meat arrives, the basic side dishes are a little unusual. They bring out honey potato, basil, green onion salad, angelica shoots, mountain garlic, and more — I'd never seen basil and angelica shoots at a Korean BBQ place before.

On top of that, kimchi jjaglee (braised kimchi stew) comes out too.

One serving of pork belly, two servings of pork neck. Hubaldae's pork is said to use 1+ grade female pigs, aged for 168 hours.

The staff grill every cut of pork for you

And the meat is grilled from start to finish by the staff. Thick cuts really do taste different depending on who's grilling and how, right? The staff kept checking the doneness and grilled everything so skillfully that we didn't have to lift a finger and just ate comfortably.

The well-grilled pork neck was golden and crisp outside, soft inside, and the fatty part of the pork belly was savory enough to eat plain.

How to eat the signature honey potato wrap

But honestly, what stuck with me about Hubaldae was less the meat itself and more the fun of trying different combinations. At the start, the staff walk you through how to eat it the tastiest way, one by one.

The one that surprised me most was the signature honey potato wrap. It's a combo where you put mountain garlic, seasoned kimchi, fresh wasabi, and meat on top of the honey potato.

When I first heard it, I thought, "potato and mountain garlic and meat together...?" but once I actually tried it, it surprisingly worked really well lol.

Whoever came up with this combo really knows food... It's also fun to try pairing it one by one with the basil or angelica shoots, so if you're a little tired of plain pork belly places, this should feel like a nice change.

Is Hubaldae Jongno worth the wait?

I'd always been curious about this Jongno restaurant in Daegu with the constant wait, and after actually going, I got why it's so popular. Having the staff grill everything made it easy, and combinations like the honey potato wrap that you don't often see elsewhere made it fun to eat. If you're looking for a Jungangno restaurant that's a bit different from an ordinary pork belly place, Hubaldae is worth a visit. Just know that a wait is likely during evening peak hours, so reservations are a must!