Jongno 3-ga pork belly restaurant with a clean restroom: Chowon

A fall evening after work when heading straight home just feels like a waste. That's exactly when the outdoor dining street (yajang) in Jongno 3-ga comes to mind.

The Jongno alleys you'd normally just walk past during the day completely change mood once the sun goes down. Outdoor tables start popping up one by one around Tapgol Park, and between the smell of grilling meat and the sound of people chatting, it creates exactly the kind of atmosphere that says 'time for a drink tonight.'

This time, I headed out for a fall evening of yajang near Jongno after work and ended up at Chowon Restaurant.

Where is Chowon Restaurant Jongno 3-ga Branch, and when is it open?

Chowon Restaurant Jongno 3-ga Branch is on the 1st floor at 30 Jongno 17-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, and it's open daily from 17:00 to 01:00 the next day. From Jongno 3-ga Station, just head into the alley toward Tapgol Park.

• Address: 1F, 30 Jongno 17-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Hours: Daily 17:00 - 01:00 (next day)

There are plenty of places to get pork belly on the Jongno 3-ga outdoor dining street, but the one I picked this time was Chowon Restaurant!

Bracken fern, bean sprouts, kimchi, and frozen pork belly — that combo is irresistible!

The Jongno 3-ga yajang street along the Tapgol Park stone wall

When people think of the Jongno 3-ga yajang street, they usually picture the pojangmacha (street food tent) alleys near Jongno 3-ga Station first. But once evening hits, outdoor tables really do spread across Jongno 3-ga, and you can properly feel the yajang atmosphere. In particular, a row of pork belly restaurants and eateries lines the stone wall circling Tapgol Park.

Living up to its reputation as the heart of the Jongno 3-ga yajang scene, the restaurants nearby were already full even on a weekday Tuesday, late in the evening!

This kind of atmosphere suits the cool evening breeze of fall even better these days.

The Jongno 3-ga yajang street is a place worth seeking out for the atmosphere alone, so rather than just picking one restaurant and going straight there, I'd recommend taking a little walk through the surrounding alleys too.

Chowon Restaurant's quick-frozen pork belly: 18,000 won per serving

Since I'd come all the way to Jongno 3-ga, there was nothing to think over for the order.

Frozen pork belly!

Frozen pork belly really is the foundation of yajang, isn't it? Haha. At Chowon Restaurant I ordered the quick-frozen pork belly, and putting the meat on the wide griddle along with kimchi, bracken fern and bean sprouts turned out to be a really great combination.

Based on the menu as currently confirmed, the quick-frozen pork belly is ₩18,000 per serving, and there are also other meat dishes like woo-samgyeop (beef belly) and chadolbaegi (thinly sliced beef brisket). I like grilling frozen pork belly thin and crispy and eating it with kimchi, and eating it in a yajang setting gave it a different flavor than at home or at a regular BBQ restaurant.

The moment the kimchi on the griddle starts soaking up a bit of the meat's fat and cooking, it's basically game over. They grill the bracken fern and bean sprouts alongside too, and paired with a bite of meat, you naturally start craving a drink.

Pork belly + kimchi + bracken fern + bean sprouts + outdoor seating — that combo should be illegal!!!!

An outdoor grill house that stays clean, restroom included

Another reason I liked Chowon Restaurant was the balance between value and atmosphere. Jongno 3-ga has so many old, established restaurants that while the charmingly nostalgic vibe is great, sometimes you have to put up with outdated facilities or inconveniences. But Chowon Restaurant kept that familiar Jongno comfort while still feeling clean overall, which I really liked.

I love the particular atmosphere of yajang, but it's hard to sit for long in a place that's too uncomfortable. In that sense, Chowon Restaurant was quite satisfying. You still get the full lively buzz that's typical of Jongno 3-ga yajang, but the restaurant itself is clean, so there was nothing to feel burdened about.

I especially loved how clean the restroom was.

With outdoor seating, you tend to lower your expectations for the facilities a bit, but it's a bummer when you're in the middle of a meal and the restroom or interior space turns out to be uncomfortable. Here, though, it was more pleasant than expected in that regard, and I thought it would be a fine place to visit with friends, family, or even for a date.

What an autumn night on the Jongno 3-ga yajang street feels like

Above all, the weather was really nice that day. Once the sun fully set and a cool breeze started blowing, the meat sizzled away on the griddle while the sound of people talking and laughing drifted in from all around.

I think this is exactly why people seek out yajang on fall nights. Even a dish that isn't anything special somehow tastes so much better eaten in this kind of atmosphere.

With evenings this cool and days still warm, now is exactly the right season to enjoy yajang. If you're visiting the Jongno 3-ga outdoor dining street for the first time, take a walk around the alleys near Tapgol Park too, and if you're craving pork belly, grill up a round of frozen pork belly at Chowon Restaurant.

There's a real fun to putting frozen pork belly on the griddle and grilling it together with kimchi, bracken fern, and bean sprouts, and it went great with a drink too. Definitely worth a visit before fall nights like this are over!