Korean BBQ in Jongno, Daegu: staff cut rib meat off the bone, Jangjak

What is Jangjak Saenggalbi Jongno Main Branch?

Jangjak Saenggalbi Jongno Main Branch (벽돌 생갈비 종로점) is a fresh-galbi specialist in Jongno, Daegu, a 4-minute walk from Jungangno Station Exit 1. It says it learned its secrets from Wall Street Galbi (월가갈비), a longtime favorite in Bukchang-dong, Seoul, and added the owner's own take to make a premium fresh-galbi restaurant 👍🏻

• 4-minute walk from Jungangno Station Exit 1
• Daily 17:00–01:00, last order 00:00
• Parking at nearby paid lots

This is the exterior of Jangjak Saenggalbi Jongno Main Branch. It's only a 4-minute walk from Jungangno Station, so it's easy to get to!

Jangjak menu and prices: what did we order?

At Jangjak Saenggalbi Jongno Main Branch, beef galbi is ₩58,000 for 500g and pork bakpo galbi is ₩11,000 for 150g. There were also steamed dishes, soups and meal menus.

• Uiseong garlic fresh galbi (Uiseong maneul saenggalbi) 500g (₩58,000)
• Brick fresh galbi plate (Byeokdol saenggalbi hanjeopsi) 500g (₩58,000)
• Brick marinated galbi (Byeokdol yangnyeom galbi) 500g (₩58,000)
• Pork bakpo fresh galbi 150g (₩11,000)
• Pork bakpo marinated galbi 150g (₩11,000)
• Ttagwi-jjim (₩15,000)
• Gesaebi-tang, crab soup (₩18,000)
• Brick doenjang stew (Byeokdol doenjang-jjigae, soybean paste stew) (₩5,000)
• Jjagyechi (₩5,000)
• Pyeonbaek-jjim, steamed platter (₩10,000)

We ordered the brick fresh galbi plate 500g (₩58,000), the marinated pork bakpo galbi 150g (₩11,000) and the brick doenjang stew (₩5,000).

How were the side dishes and the free steamed platter?

First, the staff neatly set out side dishes like white kimchi, perilla leaves and chive salted-fish relish. Every one of them goes well with meat 👏🏻

This seasoned lettuce salad is fresh and tangy too, and with meat it just keeps going down endlessly…👍🏻

And a free steamed cypress-box platter (pyeonbaek-jjim)! It's packed with shrimp, mushrooms, bean sprouts and meat, and it was free, which is crazy, right?…🤎 It's so good with the soy-garlic sauce. Just like what you'd get at a steamed-platter specialist!

How does the 500g brick fresh galbi plate taste and get grilled?

The brick fresh galbi plate 500g (₩58,000) is beef galbi built on the Wall Street Galbi method in Bukchang-dong, Seoul, and reinterpreted in Jangjak's own way. Look at this gorgeous meat…😍 They say it's carefully calculated from aging to the moment it hits the grill, with juices that burst as you chew and deep flavor 🤎👏🏻

Staff grill it and snip off the chewy rib meat

What I liked at Jangjak Saenggalbi Jongno Main Branch is that the staff grill every piece for you. You just wait and eat comfortably, and in summer like this, not having to grill it yourself is so nice 🔥🔥

They even snipped off the chewy meat stuck to the bone, piece by piece, with scissors, so we could easily enjoy that springy, fun-to-chew cut too.

You can tell from the photo alone how juicy it is… The fat and lean are well balanced, so the juices gush out as you chew, so nutty and the flavor is the best, sob

The pickles (jangajji) served as side dishes all had a homemade touch, and eaten with the meat you could inhale them nonstop.

Fresh galbi with salt or soy-garlic sauce?

The galbi is so good dipped in salt, but the spicy-sweet soy-garlic sauce with chili peppers never got tiresome and I kept reaching for it.

Does the ₩5,000 brick doenjang stew really have crab?

The brick doenjang stew (₩5,000) has tofu, zucchini and crab, with a cool, spicy kick. A doenjang stew is a must when eating meat 🍲🍲 It's savory and salty, and with white rice it's a total rice thief.

For five thousand won I didn't expect much quality, but it even had a plump crab in it haha

What does the 150g marinated pork bakpo galbi taste like?

The marinated pork bakpo galbi 150g (₩11,000) is handmade Korean-pork (hanjeon) bakpo galbi, which is hard to find in Daegu 🐷 It's marinated pork ribs prized for the aroma and chewy texture of pork raised in Korea. They said the meat is hand-cut and scored to keep it fresh, and sure enough it was so nutty, chewy and delicious haha

The marinade isn't too strong and the meat's own nutty aroma comes through, so I was more satisfied than expected 👏🏻👏🏻

Who would I recommend Jangjak to?

If you're looking for a proper fresh galbi place in Daegu, or a spot for a date or family gathering around Jungangno, I totally recommend Jangjak Saenggalbi Jongno Main Branch in Jongno 👍🏻🔥