Weeknight soju and pork belly at a Uijeongbu BBQ: Cheonpo Hoegwan

I had plans in Uijeongbu a few days ago and was stuck deciding what to eat, so I went with meat — it's hard to go wrong there! I'm the type who can't walk past a place with pork belly smells wafting out while hungry... guilty as charged.

This time I went to Cheonpo Hoegwan Uijeongbu Main Branch near Uijeongbu Station. Cheonpo Hoegwan isn't just a place to grill pork belly plain — you grill kimchi and minari (water dropwort) together with it, which had me even more excited.

Where Cheonpo Hoegwan Uijeongbu Main Branch is, and when it opens

• 📍 21 Beomgol-ro 145beon-gil, Uijeongbu-si, 1F
• ⏰ Daily 11am–11pm
• 🅿️ Parking for 3 cars in front of the restaurant
• ⚠️ Naver reservations available (up to a day ahead)

Cheonpo Hoegwan Uijeongbu Main Branch is well positioned for anyone coming from the new town side near Uijeongbu Station. I visited on a weekday around 7:30pm, prime dinner time, and the place had a pretty lively atmosphere.

BBQ places can be rough when they're too cramped or tables sit too close — you hear every word from the next table and your clothes end up smelling like smoke. Here, though, it definitely felt like a proper meat-eating spot while still being comfortable overall. I could see this being a solid choice for dinner with friends, after-work gatherings, or drinks.

Cheonpo Hoegwan menu and prices

• Pork belly ₩16,000
• Beef rolls ₩17,000
• Kimchi cheese fried rice ₩3,000

That day I ordered three servings of pork belly. What really got me was that minari, pickled scallions, and kimchi come standard on the grill — grilling them together with the meat sounded like it would be delicious.

What comes free: side dishes and beef tartare

The basic side dishes were solid too — there was salt and doenjang (soybean paste) to dip the meat in, and

the minari-kimchi pancake and beef tartare (yukhoe) came as standard side dishes! It wasn't frozen tartare — it had real texture to chew on, which paired nicely with a pre-meal soju.

Frying your own minari-kimchi pancake at the self-serve bar

You grill the minari-kimchi pancake yourself at the self-serve bar, but there were clear instructions so it wasn't hard at all! There are two types of pans — I used the one on the right. I think the left pan would make the pancake come out nice and round, haha.

First, pour a generous amount of cooking oil into the pan. If there's too little oil, it can stick to the pan, ugh. Once the pan is properly heated, pour the batter in. Then just grill it until golden brown, being careful not to burn the minari-kimchi pancake.

You can just leave the empty bowls up on top!

The flip is the make-or-break moment when frying a pancake, and I boldly nailed it on the first try, haha. So proud! The minari-kimchi pancake was cooking up nicely. Once it's about done, just plate it on the tray up top and bring it back to your table. Minari-kimchi pancake: done!

How thick the pork belly is and how to grill it

Back at the table, the pork belly had arrived and my friend was diligently grilling away lol.

But wow, the pork belly was really thick. A lot of other BBQ places serve it thin enough that you feel like you need to eat two pieces at once to feel satisfied, but here it was genuinely thick, and the chew was a joy.

Once you've cut the meat into bite-sized pieces, you just flip it occasionally so it doesn't burn. This is honestly the kind of visual that makes you crave a shot of soju lol. The savory smell rising off the pork belly mixed with the scent of minari,

and that night, there was no way I wasn't having a drink... A cold shot of soju with meat is impossible to resist. I kept flipping the minari too so it wouldn't stick in the middle,

and this is the uroeng (mussel) ssamjang — not too salty, more on the savory side, and I think it'd even be good just mixed into rice.

How pork belly tastes with grilled minari and kimchi

I mixed everything together and dipped the meat in it! I tried a piece of meat on its own first — golden and crisp on the outside, moist inside, with that distinct pork belly savoriness coming through clearly.

From the second bite on, I wrapped it with minari, and the fragrant flavor of minari really did cut the richness of the pork belly just enough — it's the kind of combo that keeps you reaching for more. I already like minari, so this pairing was especially my thing, haha.

Grilling the kimchi along with it brings out a tangy, salty note, so a piece of meat + kimchi + minari together turned out to be the best bite. Meat is always good on its own, but it always tastes even better with something to pair it with.

And then there was the five-color bibim noodles we got with a Naver coupon — the portion was genuinely huge... enough to fill up two people..! It wasn't just noodles either — with all the different vegetables it looked really pretty and appetizing.

It was sweet and tangy and didn't get soggy — delicious. Good to eat alongside the meat too.

Final verdict: who Cheonpo Hoegwan suits

The clear standout at Cheonpo Hoegwan Uijeongbu Main Branch was being able to grill minari and kimchi right alongside the meat. With pork belly, the first 3–4 pieces are great, but at some point it starts to feel a bit rich — that's when a bite of minari lightens things right up!

And as you can see from the photos, as the meat cooks the minari wilts down too and its aroma rises, so visually it's pretty mouthwatering as well. I think that's why people searching for Uijeongbu pork belly end up searching for minari pork belly too.

There are honestly so many options near Uijeongbu Station when you're deciding on dinner — budae jjigae, meat, bars, you name it. But on a day like this, when you just want pork belly, Cheonpo Hoegwan hit the spot.

• Anyone who likes the minari and pork belly combo
• Anyone who enjoys grilled kimchi
• Anyone looking for a comfortable spot to eat meat with friends
• Anyone looking for dinner in the new town area near Uijeongbu Station

If you're near Uijeongbu Station wondering what to eat tonight, how about Uijeongbu pork belly grilled together with minari?