Beomeo-dong, Daegu Korean restaurant: two bowls of rice, no drinks

Why I came to Banwoldang Buja Sikdang Suseong Branch in Beomeo-dong

Banwoldang Buja Sikdang Suseong Branch (반월당부자식당 수성점) is a pretty famous fire-grilled Korean restaurant in Suseong-gu, and this time I went with Lee, a friend I hadn't seen in a while. Special edition: meeting a friendly face! Lee and I get together whenever we feel like a non-alcohol meetup, and since I hardly drink these days, our interests lined up perfectly this time.

Banwoldang Buja Sikdang is a place I've wanted to try for ages. Back then it was in the Banwoldang area, just like the name says, but when I heard it had opened in Beomeo-dong, Suseong-gu, Lee and I dashed over.

Banwoldang Buja Sikdang Suseong Branch hours and days off

• Mon–Sat 10:00–20:45
• Break time 15:00–17:00
• Last order 14:45 and 20:00
• Closed every Sunday

Banwoldang Buja Sikdang has appeared on the TV show Saengsaeng Jeongbotong. Such a nostalgic program! It has also been on MBC's Oneul Jeonyeok, so it's a Daegu Korean restaurant that shows up in the media a lot.

Inside the Suseong branch, the table seating is neat and tidy.

What we ordered: fire-grilled ojebokkeum for two and bibimbap

Lee and I were starving, so we ordered 2 servings of fire-grilled ojebokkeum (squid and pork stir-fry). Oh, and Lee, who was even hungrier than me, went one step further and ordered a bibimbap too.

You order on a tablet at each table, and it's handy because every menu item has a description and you can add options.

How are the side dishes and the free country cheonggukjang stew?

Before the main dishes arrived, I got hooked on the side dishes. No lie, the side dishes alone could carry 2 bowls of rice.

They also bring cheonggukjang (strong fermented soybean stew) to boil on a burner.. wow, it might be the best I've had as a basic table offering. They said this country cheonggukjang stew is made by hand every morning with village doenjang (soybean paste) and cheonggukjang at a 3:1 ratio, and it's free when you order a signature menu item.

The ssam vegetables, a perfect match for the ojebokkeum (squid and pork) coming soon, are at the self-bar.

Sadly I didn't get a full video 😢 but the smoky ojebokkeum was being cooked right before my eyes 👏👏 Thinking I was about to fully experience a Beomeo-dong Korean restaurant, my excitement exploded.

Lee's bibimbap ingredients came out first, and when I saw the dish I briefly wondered if I should have ordered one too. Watching Lee eat made me full enough, so I just looked on happily ^^🙂

How does the fire-grilled ojebokkeum taste?

Next came the fire-grilled ojebokkeum. They say it's made with ocean-caught squid trimmed by hand every day and pork marinated for 24 hours, and that the mother's cooking touch passed to her son added care and fire flavor. I faced one of the best ojebokkeum I've had.

Fire-grilled dish sizzling on a stone plate, topped with enoki mushrooms, and eaten together, how good is that~

Moved, I picked up a piece with my chopsticks. Stir-fried over fire together with the vegetables, it was full of smoky flavor, whoosh~ and nicely spicy.

Ojebokkeum ssam with a spoonful of black rice

I put a spoonful of black rice (Angye rice mixed with chal-jinju black rice) on a lettuce leaf with the pork, added garlic and chili, and took a bite. Wow, best ever.

On weekday evenings I normally try to cut carbs and eat simple, but honestly, nobody can resist fire-grilled food like this. I inhaled so many ssam vegetables, and I was glad to top up on greens along with a spoonful of rice.

A little more on the ojebokkeum... the fire flavor was really well applied, and with the not-too-salty seasoning, the nutty squid soaked in very softly. On top of that, the (never-fail) pork spread flavor through my mouth, and that blissful memory still hasn't faded.

Would I go back to Banwoldang Buja Sikdang Suseong Branch?

Lee said it was the first time in a while he'd eaten 2 bowls of rice, so it was obvious he was totally hooked on this Beomeo-dong Korean restaurant. It's a Beomeo-dong Beomeocheon-ro spot, and it made me firmly resolve to come back with my parents: the fire-grilled specialist Banwoldang Buja Sikdang Suseong Branch.