Balsan Station Korean BBQ with pear-basted ribs and naengmyeon

I went back to Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga Magok Branch, a place I'd enjoyed before with my family. This time too I ordered three servings of galbi (marinated ribs) with two orders of naengmyeon (cold noodles). It's close to Balsan Station and fairly large, making it easy for families to eat out here. This time I went again with the kids for dinner.

A pork rib spot near Balsan Station: Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga

Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga is quite large even from the outside. Inside, the tables have generous spacing and the whole place feels clean.

There are private rooms too, so it's a good option if you're looking for a spot for a Magok family gathering or a meal with a larger group.

I noticed this last time too — when you go to a BBQ place with kids, you end up paying attention to the seating and overall atmosphere, and this place was easy to visit as a family.

If you're looking for a large Magok BBQ restaurant or a Magok restaurant with private rooms, this one's worth considering.

The basic side dishes are mostly things meant to go with the meat — salad, shredded scallion, pickled onion, kimchi and so on. The charcoal was ready right away too.

Marinated pork ribs basted with pear juice before grilling

Again, we ordered three servings of galbi. A sign on the table noted that Ihwajeong's ribs go through 144 hours of cross-aging. And before grilling, a staff member personally poured pear juice over the ribs.

Watching the pear juice get poured straight over the big ribs caught my eye, so I snapped a photo. The ribs prepared this way then go onto the charcoal to grill.

Since it's marinated galbi, staff flip it carefully so it doesn't burn. As it browns, the meaty aroma really comes through. Once cooked, they cut the ribs into bite-sized pieces and arranged them nicely to eat with shredded scallion.

The ribs were tender and the marinade wasn't too strong. Rather than a rib with sharp sweet-salty flavor, it leans mild and soft, which is why the kids ate it well too. Piling on plenty of shredded scallion pairs nicely with it too.

I came back because I remembered enjoying it last time, and once again the whole family ate through three servings of galbi comfortably. For our family, this has become a go-to pork rib spot near Balsan Station.

Saving some galbi to eat with naengmyeon

Once we'd nearly finished the meat, we ordered two naengmyeon. It's tastier to save a little galbi rather than eating the noodles separately after the meat. This time too we kept a few pieces of galbi aside to eat alongside the cold, refreshing water naengmyeon.

The noodles come in a broth with a thin layer of ice, topped with cucumber, radish, and egg. A bite of the cold noodles followed by the marinated galbi really works well together. Coming for BBQ and finishing with naengmyeon just feels like the meal is properly complete.

The pear sherbet the kids remembered

There's one more thing at Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga that the kids remembered — the pear sherbet.

After finishing the meal, we had the cool pear sherbet too. Even after eating galbi and then naengmyeon, this still went down easily. It's sweet and refreshing with a pear flavor the kids loved, and a nice palate cleanser to have a bowl of after the meat.

This was a place where we'd eaten comfortably as a family before, so we went back, and this time again we ate well through the galbi, naengmyeon, and pear sherbet. If you're looking for a pork rib restaurant near Balsan Station to bring kids to, or a sizable Magok restaurant for a family gathering, Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga Magok Branch is worth considering.

Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga Magok Branch · 1F, Unit 1, 42 Gangseo-ro 54-gil, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, South Korea