Naju galbi restaurant for holiday family gatherings: Chamsutjip

Why Chamsutjip is the family's holiday galbi restaurant in Naju Innovation City

Chamsutjip Naju Innovation City Branch is a regular spot my whole family goes back to. Back when I was a young woman working out with my mom, I noticed how many customers this place always had and thought, what is this place, we should check it out sometime — but never got around to it. Then my husband suggested we finally try it, and I was hooked from the first visit haha. Now I'm basically addicted to this flavor and I've addicted everyone else too.

Chamsutjip Naju Innovation City Branch: location, hours and parking

The address is 317-15 Green-ro, 1st floor, units 105, 106, and 107, Naju, South Korea. Hours are 11:00 - 22:00, with a break time from 15:00 - 17:00.

(My workplace does its get-togethers starting weekend afternoons, and every time I want to come here, that break time gets in the way — so annoying, ugh.)

You can park right in front of the restaurant, but there's also a basement parking lot in the building you can use.

Outdoor tables at Chamsutjip

They also have outdoor tables, and in weather like this, eating out there is just pure bliss! But it's still a bit warm sitting in front of the fire right now, so I'll save the outdoor terrace for about two weeks from now~

Not quite shivering-in-the-cold-outside territory, but drinking while a little chilly is delicious too — this winter I have to go get dakbal (spicy grilled chicken feet) at Gwangju Park. My beloved dakbal! Say what you want, Gwangju Park dakbal is the best. I went there with friends back in my younger days and it was so good — sudden trip down memory lane there.

Corkage allowed, plus a review event

This pork galbi restaurant in Naju allows corkage! I haven't brought my own bottle yet, but next time I get the chance I want to bring something good. There's also a review event running, so keep an eye out for the details.

What we ordered at Chamsutjip and what it cost

• 2+1 seasoned pork galbi ₩18,000 x2
• Pork skin ₩9,000
• Rice ₩1,000
• Soju ₩5,000
• Cider ₩2,000

The side dishes that come with the galbi

The basic table setup comes with lettuce wraps, green onion salad (this is genuinely delicious!!!), corn kernels, napa cabbage kimchi, pickled greens (great crunchy texture), seasoned crab, garlic, doenjang, and even acorn jelly with cucumber — before you even get to the meat, you're already snacking your way through everything. Saying you'd get full off this stuff would be a lie haha, it's really more of a palate cleanser.

Order two servings of seasoned pork galbi, get one free

Three servings of pork galbi! Ta-da — order two and they give you one extra, that's how popular the pork galbi is here. And personally, I think the pork galbi here is the tastiest — amazing! Ordering just two servings and getting an extra one for free is such a good deal.

Grilling the meat on the charcoal grill — seasoned galbi is truly love. My mom loves galbi too, and prefers seasoned galbi over pork belly. My little one keeps saying thin-sliced pork belly is her favorite, but from what I can tell, since she keeps talking about the sweet meat, I think she actually prefers the seasoned galbi more haha?

Corn snail doenjang stew, finished with rice stirred in

And now the moment you've been waiting for — this corn snail doenjang stew (된장찌개) at Chamsutjip is a total game changer! Scoop up the broth and snails as you go, and at the end, mix in rice to make sul-bap (drinking rice) — this is so spicy and salty and so, so good.

Completely obsessed.

Pork skin is a must at Chamsutjip, but watch how much you order

Plump pork skin, I can't help myself and always order it whenever we come, though maybe my body's gotten too fatty from it haha — lately my body's been rejecting a lot of it, ugh. There was a time I could easily put away 3-4 servings of daechang (grilled beef intestines) alone haha. Anyway, pork skin is a must!

Last time we went, we ordered one and it turned out to be a lot — oh, that's a big portion, I thought, but it turned out to be four servings^^ What happened there^^? Definitely order carefully next time haha.

Galbi tastes better with pa-jeori than in a lettuce wrap

Galbi tastes even better eaten with green onion salad than wrapped in lettuce. Ah, I got so full I left a little meat behind, and now I'm craving it again, ugh. I'm so hungry right now~ Chuseok, shall we come back again? Deal! This is one of the meat restaurants we always go to whenever we're in town, so whether it's Lunar New Year or Chuseok, we end up here at least once haha. I want to eat it again already???