Sangju BBQ restaurant by Sangpan Reservoir: makchang at Soine Sikdang

Hi, this is Dooljeori (두더지). I was passing by nearby when I saw a place selling samgyeopsal and makchang, so I stopped in. Here's my honest review of Soine Sikdang, a pork BBQ spot in Modong-myeon, Sangju, right across from Sangpan Reservoir. Let's go!

Where is Soine Sikdang and when is it open?

• Address: 경북 상주시 모동면 웅산로 386 소이네식당 (386 Ungsan-ro, Modong-myeon, Sangju-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea)
• Closed: none — open year-round (*open as usual during Chuseok holiday)
• Hours: daily 11:00–21:00
• Baby chairs: yes
• Parking: yes (*there's also an unmanned café next door)

Parking at Soine Sikdang

A restaurant really needs a big parking lot, and Soine Sikdang delivers — the lot is huge. No parking worries at all.

What the restaurant looks like from outside

Soine Sikdang has a long, horizontal building. If you call ahead to reserve outdoor tables, you can even eat outside.

How big is the dining room inside?

Soine Sikdang's dining room is really spacious. It works well for family gatherings, group meetups, work dinners, or even savings-club meetings.

The window seats have full-glass panes, so it feels really open.

Wide-open view. It's a shoes-on restaurant. Every chair has an anti-noise cushion attached, so you don't need to worry about chair-scraping noise. There's also a really big TV inside.

Facilities: baby chairs and restrooms

They have baby chairs / kids' chairs. The restroom is located outside the restaurant!

Soine Sikdang menu and prices as of September 2026

• Soine Assorted Platter 600g — ₩43,000 (assorted platter: knife-cut samgyeopsal, mokdal, hangjeongsal)
• Hanwoo-style thin-sliced samgyeopsal 130g — ₩8,900
• Knife-cut samgyeopsal 130g — ₩9,900
• Jirye black pork mokdal 130g — ₩9,900
• Hangjeongsal 130g — ₩12,900
• Whole makchang 150g — ₩9,900
• Side doenjang stew — ₩3,000

Pretty decent meat prices, right?

Stews and rice dishes

• Rice — ₩1,000
• Pork kimchi stew — ₩10,000
• Pork jjaglee (thick stew) — ₩10,000
• Songju mul naengmyeon (cold noodles in broth) — ₩7,000
• Songju bibim naengmyeon (spicy mixed cold noodles) — ₩7,000

Apparently a lot of lunchtime guests order mainly from the meal menu. The kimchi stew and jjaglee both sound delicious.

Side dishes you can add

• Steamed egg — ₩3,000
• Ramyeon noodle add-on — ₩1,500

Alcohol and soft drinks

Soju, makgeolli, Cass beer, draft beer, and soft drinks.

Draft beer at a countryside BBQ restaurant?

A restaurant that serves draft beer! If I'd come with friends, I definitely would've had a glass.

The assorted platter set

The set menus include meat + stew + alcohol + drink.

Where the pork comes from

Please check the origin labeling posted.

Ordering one serving each of samgyeopsal, moksal, hangjeongsal and makchang

There were three of us. Since we wanted to try a bit of everything, we ordered one serving each of samgyeopsal, mokdal, hangjeongsal, and makchang.

The basic table setting and banchan

Seasoned bean sprouts, green onion kimchi, kimchi, fernbrake, shredded scallions, lettuce wraps, and more.

Sesame sauce, ssamjang (thick soybean-chili paste), and myeoljeot (fermented anchovy sauce). Among the pork BBQ places I've visited lately, very few offer myeoljeot, so I was really happy that Soine Sikdang gave us some.

This is gochu-mul (chili water) or gochujang-mul, something every Gyeongsang-do local knows — you spoon a little onto plain white rice and mix it in.

A warning: one side dish is seriously spicy

If you like spicy food, give it a try, but if you're spice-sensitive, skip it. My mom spat it out the second it hit her mouth, but I love spicy stuff so I ate it up happily, heh.

The self-serve bar

Side dishes like fernbrake and bean sprouts can be refilled at the self-serve bar.

How did the pork taste?

Time to grill, let's go. The grill plate is tilted so the fat drains really well. They cook the bean sprouts and fernbrake right on the grill too, along with the meat. So tender.

The center of the grill, where the flame touches directly, has the strongest heat, so we moved the makchang — which needs the longest cooking time — to the middle. We also grilled kimchi and green onion kimchi alongside the meat.

True to its reputation as a samgyeopsal specialty spot, the samgyeopsal was, obviously, delicious. The mokdal was tender too. The hangjeongsal had that nice crunch and was great as well — it wasn't drenched in fat, but had a good balance of meat to fat! The makchang, grilled until crispy, was nutty and tasty.

Makchang dipped generously in myeoljeot or ssamjang is so chewy and delicious.

The grilled green onion kimchi is the standout

Make sure to grill the green onion kimchi along with your meat. It's sweet-savory with an umami explosion — pairs so well with the meat.

Doenjang stew ₩3,000 and rice ₩1,000

My mom likes to eat meat together with rice, so I ordered her the side doenjang stew right away. It has that refreshing, savory doenjang taste. Since it's a side dish, the portion is just right for two people after eating meat.

Songju mul naengmyeon ₩7,000 to finish

My dad and I went for the cold noodles! You can choose tangy or spicy flavor. To keep the meal flowing without interruption, I'd recommend ordering the side dish right when the meat's almost done grilling — order it then, and it arrives right around when you finish the meat!

Meat calls for mul naengmyeon (cold noodles in broth).

The portion of mul naengmyeon is generous — maybe because it counts as a meal menu item. Mixed with a splash of vinegar and mustard, it was so refreshing and delicious. The cold, tangy broth swept the oily coating from all that meat right off our palates. We were too full to finish the noodles, but we drank every bit of the broth. Order the mul naengmyeon, people!

We don't like it too loud, so we came a bit earlier than the dinner rush on purpose. By the time we finished eating, it was right when the real dinner hours were kicking in and more guests started coming in.

Dessert at the self-service café next door

There's popcorn by the entrance, haha. You can grab some popcorn on your way out after eating.

Oh, and there's an unmanned café right next to the restaurant. It's bigger than you'd expect.

Café menu and prices

• Americano — ₩2,000
• Café latte — ₩3,000
• They also have tea and ade

Thanks for the meal~

Who should visit Soine Sikdang in Sangju?

Modong Ranch, which has animals, is nearby too, so this could be a good spot for families visiting with kids. The owner and staff were all kind, and the spacious dining room is a big plus. The meat prices are also great value, haha. If you're looking for a good samgyeopsal restaurant around Modong-myeon, Gongseong-myeon, or Chupungnyeong-myeon in Sangju, I recommend Soine Sikdang.