Hapjeong grill house with 3 pork specialty cuts: Jeongyukdo

Recommending an outdoor Korean BBQ spot for hanwoo/hanwoo pork near Hongdae/Hapjeong — Hapjeong Station restaurant 'Jeongyukdo'

Where is Jeongyukdo, and what is the seating like?

Jeongyukdo is a romantic outdoor patio BBQ spot just 3 minutes on foot from Hapjeong Station. If you're looking for a Hongdae/Hapjeong Korean BBQ place that nails atmosphere, taste, and price all at once, you absolutely have to try this place!

The outdoor patio vibe was really great. I went in before the lights were turned on, and on my way out after eating I saw the patio atmosphere and regretted eating inside,,, Next time I'm definitely eating outside!

The restaurant is spacious with lots of tables. There are group tables and private rooms too, so it seemed great for company dinners or gatherings, and the atmosphere was nice.

What we ordered at Jeongyukdo, and what it cost

The set menu comes with a choice of hanwoo doenjang jjigae or meljeot stew, so ordering the set was much better value.

• Pork specialty set ₩65,000
• Hanwoo doenjang rice soup ₩10,000
• Steamed egg ₩4,000

If you participate in the review event, they give you one free dish — choose from doenjang rice soup, ugeoji soup, or naengmyeon (cold noodles) — worth checking before your visit!!

Side dishes and plates at Jeongyukdo

Two side dishes come with the meat — onion and green onion shreds. Two of my favorite sides arriving together made me happy.

Gochu-ji (pickled peppers), musaengchae (spicy radish salad), and squid jeotgal (fermented squid) come neatly arranged with a small plate. It was nice getting one tray per person.

On the small plate they set aside onion shreds and green onion shreds, plus whole grain mustard, wasabi, and salt — all great with the meat.

Ordering the set comes with a choice of hanwoo doenjang jjigae or Gijang-style meljeot stew. Since I was planning to order the doenjang rice soup, I went with the meljeot stew.

Which cuts come in the 500g pork specialty set?

The 500g pork specialty set is a very generous amount for two people to eat — they say it's good for 2 to 3 servings.

Ordering the pork specialty set gets you three classic pork specialty cuts: galmaegisal (skirt meat), gabrisal (pork rib finger), and hangjeongsal (pork neck).

Grilling order: galmaegisal, then gabrisal, then hangjeongsal

They recommended grilling the leaner, lighter cuts first, so I ate in the order of galmaegisal, gabrisal, then hangjeongsal.

Gabrisal tastes similar to beef, so it has this mysterious flavor where you get confused whether you're eating pork or beef.

The key with gabrisal is not to overcook it — cut it into bite-sized pieces first, then roll it on the grill or grill it until the surface is fully done, that's the best timing to eat it!

The cut I enjoyed the most was gabrisal. The gabrisal here is genuinely delicious.

The good ratio of fat to lean meat made it go down so smoothly.

Gabrisal paired well with meljeot. Jeongyukdo's meljeot had that distinctive pungent aroma and deep flavor typical of meljeot. Dipping it in deep is delicious.

Hangjeongsal: cut into pieces for one-bite portions

Last was hangjeongsal! This is the first cut that comes to mind when you think 'specialty cuts.' The quality here was great.

Hangjeongsal has an appealing crisp texture with fat that pops, so cut it into pieces and eat several pieces together in one bite to really bring out the texture — try it this way too~~~

Hangjeongsal was delicious with wasabi and jeotgal (salted seafood) together. Since it's a fattier cut, it pairs really well with wasabi.

Jeongyukdo also serves garlic scapes, which you just grill along with the meat! You can taste a subtle garlic aroma, and the grilled garlic scapes were delicious too.

Best sides at Jeongyukdo: steamed egg with doenjang rice soup ⭐️⭐️⭐️

If you're ordering sides at Jeongyukdo, I'd strongly recommend the steamed egg and doenjang rice soup combo. The two dishes really complement each other!

A soft, fluffy steamed egg is essential at a BBQ place — you'd be disappointed without one. This one was savory and smooth.

When eating meat, I always order doenjang jjigae or doenjang rice soup. Jeongyukdo's rice soup has a rich, spicy broth — that's its defining feature.

It was a generous serving, good for about 2 to 2.5 people. The broth had radish in it, giving it a refreshing taste too. I liked how packed it was with ingredients.

A bite of meat, a spoonful of the punchy rice soup, a bite of soft steamed egg — that rotation is the best way to enjoy the meat!

Is Jeongyukdo worth it? Final verdict

Being able to try galmaegisal, gabrisal, and hangjeongsal cut by cut was a big plus, and pairing it with the steamed egg and doenjang rice soup combo made for a really satisfying meal.

If you want to properly enjoy specialty pork cuts in Hapjeong, I genuinely recommend Jeongyukdo. It's also great for company dinners or gatherings, so this is a Hapjeong Station meat spot I'll be revisiting~~~