Sejong Korean BBQ with unlimited wraps: Yachae Hanssam Daepae

In the blink of an eye, the sky grew higher and autumn arrived with a cool breeze. Lately, I have been taking lots of walks near home with the kids. I had kept putting it off because it was hot and humid, but now that excuse is gone, we have to get out.

Sanul-dong Park was recently completed, and it has become great for exercising, riding scooters, and hanging out, with lots of people around. It seems plenty of Haemil-dong residents come too. After playing hard and getting hungry, a rather suggestive sign caught my eye at just the right moment.

“Yahan Daepae?” Did I read that wrong? I moved closer.

Whoever named it is clearly a genius. From afar it sparks curiosity, and up close the scent of thin-sliced pork belly gets your nose going. Just what you would expect from a good Sanul-dong Korean BBQ place.

Actually, I have been a regular at Yachae Hanssam Daepae (야채한쌈대패) since it first opened. When my wife gets home from work, she is always starving, so she has long loved daepae, thin-sliced pork belly that cooks quickly. And because she loves wrapping it in heaps of vegetables, we often end up here for the unlimited vegetables.

Yachae Hanssam Daepae address and parking

Yachae Hanssam Daepae, a Sejong spot for frozen pork belly and ssambap (rice wrapped in leafy vegetables), is on the first floor of Building G at 11 Sanul 7-ro, Sejong, and underground parking is available.

If you are walking over from Sanul-dong or Haemil-dong, look for the giant letter G at Complex 7.

Hours and its park-front location

Hours are 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday, and noon to 11 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. There are not many restaurants near Sanul-dong and Dodam-dong that stay open late, so it is good when you crave savory thin-sliced pork belly for a second round too; on weekends, you can eat here from lunch onward.

What is especially nice is that the front of Yachae Hanssam Daepae faces a park where children can play, not a road with cars, so adults can eat a little more comfortably. *Do watch for bicycles, and make sure to go over safety rules first!

A restaurant that was easy to visit with kids

Here is the inside of the restaurant. Despite what the sign's name suggests, it does not feel suggestive at all. If anything, it is downright wholesome.

It has a bright atmosphere with soft music playing inside. It was not loud and chaotic, so it was pleasant for a meal. Children's tableware and chairs are available, and if you sit by the floor-to-ceiling window near the counter, you can see outside—it is as good as a restaurant with a kids' playground.

True to its unlimited-vegetable promise, fresh and varied vegetables are ready to go, along with plenty of ingredients to add to your wraps.

As a popular Korean BBQ restaurant in Haemil-dong, it gets many families from the surrounding apartments, so there are clean dishes and steamed egg and soup for the kids.

Three portions of daepae and the basic spread

We ordered three portions of daepae, mul naengmyeon (cold noodles in chilled broth), a bowl of rice, and soju through the kiosk. Since it is right near home, it is perfect for a casual drink.

They give you steamed egg with the basic table setting. You would believe it if someone said it was a side dish from a home-style set-meal restaurant. The steamed egg is nutty from sesame oil and mildly seasoned, so the kids can eat it easily with rice, and they eat the other side dishes well too. I think this was my first time seeing broccoli tofu at a Korean BBQ place.

When I first saw the price of the daepae, I thought, “Oh? Isn't it a given that daepae should cost under ₩10,000?” Premium Korean pork? Still, isn't it just daepae?

Nope. It looked so savory that it seemed like you could just chew it raw. The quantity, fat distribution, freshness, and cut were all there.

I should have preheated the grill... my mistake.

How we ate the pork wraps and cold noodles

Here is a tip for enjoying Sejong frozen pork belly ssambap deliciously! But my wife does not listen.

She keeps making her own personal wraps. She likes wrapping bracken fern and bean sprouts in them. I grilled those garlic scapes, and they lost their heat and became tender—so delicious.

The soju came out looking like the main event, but I was trying to dip into the perilla seed powder and young radish greens... The bad thing about eating too much perilla seed powder is that the next day, the alcohol hits you like “perilla.” The young radish greens had a slight chojang (vinegared red chili paste) base, so as someone who loves dipping meat in chojang, I was completely into it.

The naengmyeon was not the mild kind; it had a sharp dongchimi (radish-water kimchi) feel. I wanted to cut it up and spoon it down as a drinking snack, but today I gave it up for the kids.

I really love naengmyeon. It takes care of the carbs and protein that I cannot even manage properly at home.

Finishing with vegetable-loaded fried rice

Now we grill the leftover meat and side dishes for the main event: fried rice.

As you would expect from a Sejong daepae restaurant with unlimited vegetables, the fried rice is loaded with vegetables including minari (water celery). The look is seriously “ya”-getable.

The final touch is handled by the fried-rice master. The flipping angle is practically Marine Corps level. Because there are so many vegetables, there is moisture, so you need a little more time if you want to press it down and eat it crisp. One great thing here is that the pan does not stick, so you can keep your golden rice to the very end instead of scraping it off. That is really great, because elsewhere half the rice gets stuck and you leave after furiously scraping, or there is something like greaseproof paper and you cannot tell whether it is being boiled or grilled...

We eat fiercely to the very last bite and wrap things up. Nothing sticks, right to the end.

What I thought of this family meal near home

It is easy to head out because it is right near home, and the meat is savory and good quality. There are so many vegetables that even after eating it all, I feel like I lost weightㅠㅠ The kids can run around right in front of you, making it easier to eat, and there are lots of basic side dishes for them, so I feel less guilty.