Marinated prime rib at Ingye-dong BBQ house in Suwon: Jipbul Taebaek

Why a mother and daughter chose an Ingye-dong BBQ house the day the braces came off

My daughter finally got her braces off, haha. When she first started wearing them, I honestly wondered when this would ever end, but time really does pass. Last week she had them removed at a dental clinic in Ingye-dong, and as she walked out I really wanted to treat her to a good dinner after all that time she'd put up with them.

She'd probably been careful about what she ate the whole time so as not to strain her teeth, so the day the braces came off felt like the day to eat meat properly, haha. So the two of us headed to Jipbul Taebaek Suwon Ingye Branch on Nahyeseok-gil in Ingye-dong. I'd heard the raw prime rib (usaengalbi) was great, so we went straight there right after the dental appointment — but unfortunately the raw prime rib was already sold out. T_T It was disappointing not to get to try it, but the marinated prime rib we ordered instead turned out so delicious that, in the end, it became a really satisfying mother-daughter date in Ingye-dong.

Where Jipbul Taebaek Suwon Ingye Branch is and what the room feels like

Jipbul Taebaek Suwon Ingye Branch is a straw-fire grilling specialist in Ingye-dong, Paldal-gu, Suwon. It's close to Suwon City Hall Station and Nahyeseok-gil, so it's a great option when you're looking for a place to eat in Ingye-dong, or a spot for a date or a get-together.

There are so many restaurants in Ingye-dong, but deciding on a menu with your kid isn't always easy. Especially that day, since it was a celebration for the braces coming off, I wanted something a bit more special than usual. Prime rib with a straw-fire aroma sounded perfect, so I chose Jipbul Taebaek Suwon Ingye Branch.

Raw prime rib sold out: ordering the marinated prime rib instead

The dish we originally wanted to order was raw prime rib (usaengalbi). But it was sold out. T_T So instead of the raw version, we ordered the marinated rib.

Prime rib (udae-galbi) is meat trimmed in a long shape following the curve of the cow's rib bone, so it looks quite different from regular galbi right from the start. Seeing the meat clinging to those big rib bones, I felt like we'd picked exactly the right menu for the day the braces came off, haha.

Jipbul Taebaek's signature method is searing the meat with straw fire first, then grilling it once more over charcoal. For the prime rib, they use the 6th–8th rib flower rib meat cut. They sear it briefly over straw fire that reaches around 1,000 degrees, locking in the juices while adding a subtle straw-smoke aroma.

Is the marinade on Jipbul Taebaek's prime rib too strong?

Since it wasn't the raw prime rib but the marinated version, I worried a bit that the sauce flavor might overpower everything. But that worry turned out to be needless. To cut to the conclusion, the marinated prime rib was incredibly good, haha. It was good enough that the disappointment of missing out on the raw prime rib faded almost immediately.

It was great eaten plain, and since the marinade was already built in, it was easy to enjoy without needing any extra pairings. More than anything, since this was right after my daughter got her braces off, just watching her eat meat freely without worry made me happier than I expected.

Marinated galbi can taste great for the first few bites but get overwhelming as you eat more if the sauce is too strong. But because the prime rib itself has more presence than regular galbi in terms of thickness and size, and with the added aroma from the straw-fire grilling, it felt noticeably different from the usual marinated galbi. When I go out with my daughter, we usually just run our errand and head straight back, but that day we got to sit and eat dinner slowly, chatting about all kinds of things, and I loved that.

How the staff grilling service works

Thick prime rib is hard to time right when grilling it yourself, but Jipbul Taebaek Suwon Ingye Branch offers a grilling service where staff cook the meat for you, so we could relax and enjoy the meal without worrying about the grill.

The four sauces built on Taebaek's local flavors

The sauces served with the meat were also a bit different from a typical BBQ place. Jipbul Taebaek serves black sesame salt and a seed soy meat-broth sauce that evoke a coal mine, along with angelica pesto and neungi mushroom pesto. I found it pretty fun that the sauces captured a sense of Taebaek's regional identity.

Even with the same marinated prime rib, the flavor mood shifts depending on which sauce you pair it with. Taste the meat plain first, then try adding each sauce one by one — you can enjoy quite a few different combinations that way.

Grilled kimchi and bracken under the prime rib

My daughter's favorite kimchi and bracken (gosari) fern were also grilled along with the meat. They especially laid the crisp, well-cooked bracken on the grill underneath the meat — the bracken turned out nutty and crisp, and since the meat itself never touched the grill directly, it never burned, so we got to eat every last bite warm and delicious. My daughter, who always loves grilled kimchi and bracken, was even happier about them than about the meat, haha.

Finishing with bibim naengmyeon and a last bite of rib

You can't skip bibim naengmyeon (spicy cold noodles) as a finish after marinated meat, haha. So around the time we'd nearly finished the marinated prime rib, we ordered an extra bibim naengmyeon. The spicy-sweet sauce blended well with the noodles and tasted great on its own, but topping it with a last piece of the prime rib we'd saved made it a truly perfect combination.

After the warm, sweet marinated meat, the spicy, cool bibim naengmyeon left my mouth feeling refreshed and clean. If you order the marinated prime rib, be sure to save a piece or two of meat and eat it together with the bibim naengmyeon.

What comes with the meal: the side dish spread

The basic side dish spread was more varied than I expected. Along with potato salad and japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), we got green onion kimchi, radish kimchi, pickled lettuce, and other side dishes that paired well between bites of meat. Since marinated prime rib can leave a lingering sweetness in your mouth as you eat, the tangy, crunchy side dishes were great for resetting the palate every so often.

Verdict on marinated prime rib at Jipbul Taebaek Suwon Ingye Branch

Jipbul Taebaek Suwon Ingye Branch is a BBQ restaurant on Nahyeseok-gil in Ingye-dong where you can enjoy prime rib and straw-fire grilling. Highly recommend it if you're looking for a date spot or a family dinner place near Suwon City Hall Station!! We didn't get to try the raw prime rib we originally wanted since it was sold out, but the marinated prime rib we ordered instead was so good that I'm still recommending this place as a must-try in Ingye-dong's Nahyeseok-gil.