Unlimited Korean side dish salad bar in Cheongju: Jeju Badang

Hi everyone! It's Matjjang's Definition. Today I visited "Jeju Badang," a fish restaurant in Gyeongyang-dong, Cheongju. Jeju Badang serves grilled and braised fish dishes alongside Korean side dishes and a salad bar. Since it's recently opened, the space is clean and modern, and the atmosphere made the delicious food even better.

Parking and the vibe of the restaurant

There's a private parking lot on site.

Jeju Badang serves fish dishes together with pot rice and a salad bar of 15+ Korean side dishes, so you can enjoy a hearty, healthy meal — which is probably why so many elderly diners and families come here.

With a motto of capturing Jeju's sea as honestly as possible, Jeju Badang serves fish sourced directly from Jeju, paired with braised hairtail, grilled fish, and pot rice.

The stone-wall interior and props capture Jeju's atmosphere and make you feel like you've traveled there.

Inside there are about 20 tables for four, and the tables themselves are huge with wide spacing between them, making for a very comfortable dining space.

There's also a kids' play room and baby chairs, so you can comfortably visit with children.

Menu and ordering

Jeju Badang prepares a full Korean meal with fresh ingredients sourced directly from Jeju, offering dishes made with prized ingredients like Jeju silver hairtail, Jeju horned turban shell, and Jeju large black tilefish.

Ordering is done via kiosk.

We ordered the grilled mackerel set with pot rice, and the Jeju boneless braised hairtail set with pot rice.

Basic sides and refillable spicy pork stir-fry

The basic side dishes arrive first — just looking at them makes you feel healthier.

• Soft, gently seasoned fernbrake (gosari) namul
• Spicy yet clean-tasting zucchini namul
• Crisp and spicy radish salad (muchae)
• Soft, savory oyster mushroom namul
• Crunchy stuffed cucumber pickle (oisobagi)
• Chewy mung bean jelly salad (cheongpomuk muchim)

Spicy-sweet, savory stir-fried pork (jeyuk bokkeum) comes as a basic dish — and apparently it's refillable if you want more.

The seaweed soup (miyeokguk) didn't seem to have anything fancy in it, but it was clean, soft, and really delicious, with a savory, deep broth.

15+ Korean side dish self-serve bar

The self-serve bar has more than 15 different side dishes you can take as much of as you like, plus chicken, japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), and barley candy. There's also peach iced tea and plum tea — perfect for dessert!

Bringing back lettuce wraps, chicken, and japchae from the salad bar made for an even more generous spread!

Grilled mackerel set and Jeju boneless braised hairtail set

The boneless braised hairtail was made entirely of fillet, so I could enjoy it comfortably with no worries about bones — that was really nice.

The mackerel was large and glistened with oil — soft and savory, with no dryness at all.

The pot rice is made fresh to order too, and since they use good rice, it came out steaming hot, nutty, glossy, and full of sweetness — even more delicious.

Picking apart the thick mackerel flesh, it's full of fish juices. So nutty and soft that placed on white rice, it's basically rice-thief material.

The boneless braised hairtail was so convenient too — no need to pick out bones, just straight onto the rice. The braising sauce was so delicious that this dish was also a total rice-thief.

And the spicy pork stir-fry that came as a complimentary side was good enough quality to sell as its own dish. Since it's refillable too, and I love both grilled fish and spicy pork stir-fry, Jeju Badang felt like heaven to me.

Can you see how glossy the grilled mackerel is? ㅠㅠ It wasn't salty at all, just nutty — so good I could've eaten it plain without rice.

I tried the grilled mackerel wrapped in lettuce too. A perfect combination of healthy and delicious.

Eating the well-seasoned radish from inside the braised hairtail together with the fish itself will finish off a whole bowl of rice in no time.

The chicken from the salad bar was so crispy and delicious that I went back for a second refill.

Finally, a bite of scorched rice (nurungji) they'd made, together with the grilled mackerel! A perfect finish. And barley candy for dessert!

How was it as a family outing?

Today I visited "Jeju Badang," a fish restaurant in Gyeongyang-dong, Cheongju. I ate hot pot rice with healthy grilled and braised fish alongside. Beyond the delicious grilled fish, there's a side dish salad bar full of healthy namul that you can enjoy as much as you like, plus dishes kids love like chicken and japchae — I think it's a great spot to visit as a family.

After eating the pot rice and full fish spread at Jeju Badang, I somehow felt healthier. I think it's a place where elders would also have a very satisfying meal. If you want a healthy Korean meal in Cheongju, I highly recommend "Jeju Badang."