Yeongdeungpo Korean BBQ with a 20-minute weekend wait: Dongnaejeong

Getting to Dongnaejeong Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Main Branch, and how long is the weekend wait?

Dongnaejeong Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Main Branch is right by exit 4 or 5 of Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Station, and on a weekend evening around 6:30pm we waited about 20 minutes. I was out hunting for good places to eat when a friend said there was a BBQ place she'd always wanted to try — Dongnaejeong. I'd never heard of it, but turns out it's a really famous spot. Since the main branch was right near Yeongdeungpo-gu Office, we went straight there.

For reference, the wait is worth it. Seriously worth it, it's that good,,,,, ⭐ At any Dongnaejeong branch, expect a wait no matter what.

There was a wait when we showed up at 6:30 on a weekend~ About 20 minutes and we were in. Definitely a well-known Korean BBQ spot near Yeongdeungpo-gu Office — three more groups showed up while we waited.

Side dishes and table setup at Dongnaejeong: what melchorim is

Dongnaejeong Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Main Branch sets you up with neat side dishes and a charcoal grill on black pebbles. Cute little black pebbles with the charcoal fire set up on top. I was pretty hungry that day, but the meat came out fairly quickly after ordering!!

Dongnaejeong is 100% domestic fresh meat, top-grade white charcoal, and the staff grilling for you is basically part of the service. Like the sign says, they recommend dipping in melchorim, right? Meat is usually good but rarely memorable in a special way, in my opinion — but I'll dare say Dongnaejeong became the best BBQ meal of my life.

They put whole garlic on to grill too. Once the meat comes out, staff grill it for you right away. By the way, that braised chili pepper thing in the back of the photo above cleanses your palate — eat it with the meat and it cuts right through the greasiness.

Two servings of thick-cut pork neck, grilled by Dongnaejeong staff

They put out our two servings of pork neck first, with mushrooms on the side in foil. Looks like a small amount, right? Nope — once you cut it, it's not small at all. A bit after the meat starts grilling, they cut the mushrooms too.

This is the melchorim I mentioned earlier. Savory and salty, served simmering and bubbling! I usually dip meat in salt, but this melchorim is such a magic sauce that even people who don't usually like melchorim should try it here at Dongnaejeong Yeongdeungpo-gu Office branch.

They're cutting it into thick chunks. Meat this thick really needs to be grilled well, right? Usually it's either burnt outside and raw inside, or overcooked and tough — but the staff here grill it perfectly.

Just the right chewiness and crispness,, and the juiciness is honestly insane. Looks like they're just casually poking at it, but it's cooking exactly right?!

Grilling up nice and thick. Getting properly smoky too. Before coming to Dongnaejeong I read reviews and the thick-cut pork neck looked delicious, so I had high expectations? It exceeded them. I said I wanted to come back the day after, or maybe two days after, eating here haha

Not tough at all, savory, well-grilled — dipped it in salt, dipped it in melchorim, and honestly the melchorim dip was so my style that I scraped the big bowl it came in completely clean.

The mushrooms! Grilled up nice and tender. Great with salt too, chewy in a good way.

Doenjang stew, then adding one serving of chadolbagi

Dongnaejeong's doenjang (soybean paste) stew is packed with tofu and squash. Not bland at all, has this savory depth that hits the spot — so we added one more serving of meat. This time we ordered chadolbagi.

Chadolbagi is great with sushi rice, but once the pink faded I dipped mine in sesame oil sauce!!! Slightly regretted not ordering chadolbagi first, but I still enjoyed it plenty.

Pork neck vs chadolbagi at Dongnaejeong: which should you order?

Having tried both pork neck and chadolbagi at Dongnaejeong Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Main Branch, my conclusion is pork neck wins. Chadolbagi is good too, personally, but the pork neck is just next level. You have to try the pork neck. Even writing this, I want to eat it again? That's how good it is, please.

Finishing the meal with milmyeon noodles

For the finishing dish at Dongnaejeong, I picked milmyeon (wheat noodles). The next table was layering theirs like sushi, and I thought about copying them, but switched to milmyeon instead. Much cleaner-tasting than naengmyeon (cold noodles). I'd hesitated because I've rarely had milmyeon I actually liked, and only ordered it since there was no naengmyeon on the menu — but it was. so. good.

Worth a return visit: gabrisal and whole pork belly next time

Dongnaejeong Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Main Branch is already a well-known Korean BBQ spot near Yeongdeungpo-gu Office, but it wasn't until this visit that I understood why it's so popular. A place where the tough wait makes total sense. This time we had pork neck and chadolbagi, but next time I want to try gabrisal and whole pork belly!!! If you're looking for a samgyeopsal (pork belly) place near Yeongdeungpo-gu Office, I highly recommend Dongnaejeong 💚

I was here as part of a sponsored tasting group, but this is genuinely one of the places I enjoyed the most!