Icheon charcoal pork galbi after a Gangwon vacation: Neul Gogi Jip

On the way home from a summer vacation in Gangwon, we were tired from the trip and stuck in traffic, so we decided to fill our stomachs properly with charcoal-grilled meat. That's how we ended up at Neul Gogi Jip Icheon Main Branch (늘고기집 이천본점) in Icheon, Gyeonggi.

Location and parking at Neul Gogi Jip Icheon

This is the home of a Korean cuisine master, packed with 30 years of meat-research know-how, and it's easy to reach if you're coming down from Gangwon on Gyeongchung-daero. It sits in the building right next to Icheon Barun Hospital, so it's easy to find.

• Address: 2543 Gyeongchung-daero, Icheon-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Hours: daily 11:00–21:30 (last order 20:30)
• Parking: the private lot in front of the restaurant is roomy and pleasant, with space for 30+ cars.

It's close to Icheon Hi-Mart, Happy Mart, Lotte Castle and Miranda Hotel, and about 10 minutes by car from Seolbong Park, Simmons Terrace and Termeden, so it works nicely as part of an Icheon outing!

The exterior has a big sign, plus banners announcing a Grand Prize from the Speaker of the National Assembly and the owner's titles as a Korean food master and grand master certified by the Korean Food Forum. With a tradition going back to 1994, there's even a Blue Ribbon sticker on the entrance door.

Atmosphere, rooms and group seating

Inside, a clean, modern interior greets you with the phrase "Nature ages it, time makes the flavor. Always comfortable, always a meat restaurant." The tables are spaced widely, and with rooms for 6 to 26 people and group seating for up to 120, it's a fine place for a family meal or a gathering.

Thanks to the ventilation system at each table, you can eat comfortably without worrying about smelling like meat.

Side dishes and the self-serve salad bar

After we ordered, a full spread of neat side dishes from the master's kitchen arrived: japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), yangnyeom gejang (spicy marinated crab), kabocha squash salad, tofu tangsuyuk (sweet-and-sour style), yeolmu mul-kimchi (young radish water kimchi), a fresh salad and assorted jangajji (pickles). It felt like a traditional hanjeongsik (Korean set-course) restaurant rather than a meat place.

In the middle of the restaurant there's a self-serve salad bar where you can help yourself to fresh wrap vegetables and side dishes, stocked with house-made pickles, seasonal namul (seasoned greens) and fresh vegetables.

How does the nuruk-salt-aged marinated pork galbi taste?

Now for today's highlight: the marinated pork galbi arrives. Neul Gogi Jip says it ages its meat naturally with patented nuruk salt (made with nuruk, a Korean fermentation starter) to bring out the juiciness and flavor, and even before grilling the meat looked moist and deeply seasoned. A staff member skillfully grills it until golden on a hot charcoal grate.

The charcoal aroma soaks right into the meat, and the tender chew is superb. It isn't too sweet or harsh; the gentle savoriness of the marinade and the juices balance well. That refined Icheon galbi flavor that kids would love too!

Finishing with brass-bowl mul naengmyeon

After the meat, we ordered naengmyeon (cold noodles). The mul naengmyeon came in a brass bowl with icy broth and a generous topping of yellow egg strips. The deep, clean broth washed away the sweetness of the galbi and left us refreshed. Save one piece of galbi, wrap it in the noodles and eat them together: meat-wrapped naengmyeon!

Free soft serve for dessert

On the way out, the dessert corner has a free soft serve machine. We piled soft, sweet milk ice cream onto a crisp cone, and it was a thoughtful dessert touch that the kids absolutely loved.

Wrapping up

Neul Gogi Jip Icheon Main Branch, our finale to the Gangwon vacation, is an Icheon galbi restaurant serving a great meal built on 30 years of know-how and a Korean food master's care. It has a large, convenient parking lot, a comfortable dining room, hanjeongsik-style side dishes and a self-serve salad bar, nuruk-salt-aged galbi with excellent juiciness and flavor, and a thoughtful free ice cream dessert. If you're planning an Icheon trip, or want a hearty, tasty meal on the road, I recommend it as an Icheon restaurant and meat spot.