Pyeongtaek Korean BBQ restaurant with 144-hour pork galbi: Ihwajeong

Ihwajeong Charcoal-Grilled Pork Galbi near Manse-ro

We visited right at the dinner rush~ Since it has such a reputation as a great meat spot around Sosabeol near Manse-ro, there were already quite a few diners inside! Luckily, the restaurant was so spacious and pleasant that we were seated straight away without waiting.

On the wall, there was a 40-year story said to hold a maternal grandmother's love for her grandson, along with the story of pears and the restaurant's meat philosophy: a careful second round of alternating aging for 144 hours. They use natural pear for a subtle sweetness rather than an artificial sugary flavor, so I was already feeling very confident before the grilling even began 👍

Here is what I ordered at Ihwajeong Charcoal-Grilled Pork Galbi (이화정 숯불돼지갈비)! Two servings of 2 cm-thick marinated pork grill at ₩17,000 each, plus one serving of 144-hour alternating-aged marinated pork galbi at ₩19,000.

Neatly served banchan like a Korean set meal

Not long after we ordered, banchan (Korean side dishes) began filling the table one after another~ Even though this is a meat restaurant, there was such a varied, neatly presented spread that it felt like we had come to a Korean set-meal restaurant! From fresh salad and potato salad to japchae (stir-fried glass noodles), sangchu geotjeori (seasoned fresh lettuce), spicy-tangy shredded radish, seasoned vegetables, and pickled onions, every dish was substantial and one I kept reaching for. My chopsticks barely got a break as I picked at the japchae and salad before the meat cooked. 😊 As soon as the sides were set down, I immediately understood why Ihwajeong Charcoal-Grilled Pork Galbi is called a Sosabeol favorite in Pyeongtaek, haha.

Among all those side dishes, the utterly overwhelming one was this yangnyeom gejang (spicy marinated raw crab)...♥ The blue crab was so full of meat, I almost couldn't believe this quality came as a basic side dish, and the house sauce was sweet-spicy and totally addictive..! It was so good that I kept piling the crab meat onto spoonfuls of rice, and before I knew it, it was gone... I nearly ended up ordering another plate for an extra ₩8,000 👍 If you come here, adding the crab is essential!! Highly recommended!

2 cm marinated pork and 144-hour aged galbi

First, we plopped two servings of the 2 cm-thick marinated pork grill onto the hot charcoal grate! Deep cuts ran closely through the thick meat, letting the charcoal aroma soak right into the middle.

I immediately picked up a beautifully browned piece and tried it... Maybe because it contains natural pear, a pleasant subtle sweetness spread through it without any artificial, overpowering flavor, while the juices burst out! The texture was so tender and soft, and it was a perfect pairing with the geotjeori, haha. Once I tasted it, I understood why people call this a Sosabeol meat favorite in Pyeongtaek..

We polished off the marinated pork in no time, then put one serving of the 144-hour alternating-aged marinated pork galbi on the grill so the momentum wouldn't stop! Since it is truly a great Sosabeol meat restaurant, it was a cut with a real rib bone attached, and even the look of it was on another level.

The seasoning had aged deeply into the center, so every bite was nutty, rich, and wonderfully meaty..♥ I even diligently gnawed every chewy bit of galbi meat from the bone at the end!

Final thoughts after two people finished three servings of meat

The two of us completely cleared a huge spread of three servings of thick meat, rice, and extra crab, haha. The meat quality was excellent, and its subtle savory depth meant we enjoyed every last piece without getting tired of it. With varied menu choices, neat banchan, and a spacious, comfortable dining room, I thought it would also be great for family meals, gatherings, or company dinners~ If you are looking for properly charcoal-grilled galbi around Manse-ro or Sosabeol in Pyeongtaek, you should definitely stop by! We ate so much it felt like we had filmed a meat mukbang :)