Shiitake wasabi with grilled black pork in Seohae, Incheon: Heukdwaeji

A Jirisan black pork spot where they grill it for you ꔛHeukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Gajeong Ruwon City Main Branchꔛ

A place in Ruwon City that grills Jirisan black pork for you

Today I visited Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul, a Ruwon City spot known for really delicious Jirisan black pork. Watching the owner use only good ingredients without holding back, I could tell this was a place truly devoted to meat and food. In particular, they offer a grilling service where they cook the meat themselves so you can taste the black pork at its absolute best — which made the meal both more comfortable and more delicious. Let me introduce this Ruwon City black pork restaurant that satisfied me not just with the meat but the food and service overall!

Location, hours, parking

• 🚇 Location: 421m from Gajeong Station Exit 6
• ⏱️ Hours: Weekdays 4:30pm–midnight, Weekends noon–midnight
• 🛻 Parking: 3M Tower underground parking (3 hours supported)

The restaurant is close to Gajeong Station on foot, so taking the subway worked out fine. For those driving, parking support is available too, so bringing a car shouldn't be a problem.

Outside the restaurant I could see meat that had been dry-aged for 7 days, and the thickness of the cuts already had me looking forward to the meal.

The atmosphere, the private room, and whether group gatherings work here

The interior overall was spacious and comfortable. The tables themselves are wide, so there's plenty of room while eating, which I liked.

Inside there's also a large private room, which would be great for group gatherings or company dinners.

Aprons were provided, and though it's not in the photos, they also have baby chairs, so it would work well for family gatherings too.

The restroom is a shared one in the building. Even though it's shared, it was clean!

The menu lineup

The signature items are Jirisan black pork neck and pork belly, plus jowl meat and pork skin. There was also a variety of side menus — from gochujang stew loaded with black pork to naengmyeon (cold noodles) and a doenjang rice bowl, giving lots of good options to pair with the meat.

Shiitake mushroom wasabi comes with the basic table setting

Here's the basic table setting. What surprised me most was that shiitake mushroom wasabi is included — it tends to be pricier, so it's rare for BBQ restaurants to provide it as standard. The owner said it pairs so well with the meat that they wanted every guest to have it.

If you run low on any side dish, you can help yourself at the self-serve bar.

They place meljeot (fermented anchovy sauce) and king oyster mushrooms right on the charcoal fire. You know charcoal-grilled meat just hits different, right?

The complimentary egg soufflé and mukbap

They also brought out complimentary steamed egg (gyeranjjim), made with 4 eggs, they said. Maybe that's why the portion was so generous and the texture so soft — it was really delicious.

They also gave us mukbap (acorn jelly in cold broth) as a complimentary dish. They said they use good-quality jelly, and no wonder — even the jelly alone tasted amazing. The broth was homemade too, and it was rich and clean, pairing perfectly with the jelly. The quality was great even for a free item, so next time I visit I'm definitely ordering mukbap for myself!

🐖 Jirisan black pork yukbaeki (two-cut combo)

Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul offers a grilling service to bring out the best flavor from the meat. Since it's cooked in a separate grilling zone, they bring the raw meat to the table first to explain the cut and its characteristics before grilling. Can you tell how good the quality is just from the photo? The pork neck was so thick that even raw, it made my mouth water 🤤

How the grilling service works

In the grilling zone, the owner grills the meat personally.

Even the thick pork neck gets grilled beautifully, like a true grilling master at work 😮

The grilling skills were seriously impressive — meat grilled by a professional really is different.

Even the thick meat cut so smoothly — they said it's not because the scissors are sharp, but because the meat itself is that good and tender!

Once the pork neck was mostly cooked, they started grilling the pork belly on the pan next to it.

Once the meat is cooked through, they bring it to the table and place it on the grill plate.

The pork belly was also cut into bite-sized pieces, so I really didn't have to lift a finger to enjoy it comfortably.

Tasting it in order: salt → ssamjang → meljeot

They told me to try the well-cooked meat first dipped in Sinan sun-dried salt. For a moment I thought I was eating beef — the meat was that tender with such good aroma 🤤

Next they had me try it with ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste). It's homemade, so it's not too salty — even dipping generously, it wasn't overwhelming and tasted great.

After that, they gave me some dipped fully in meljeot. It was the least fishy meljeot I've ever had, and it went so well with the meat, bursting with umami.

The kicker of this place: shiitake mushroom wasabi

And here's the biggest kicker of Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Ruwon City branch — the shiitake mushroom wasabi. Just looking at it, you might wonder 'is this actually wasabi?', but one bite brings a sharp wasabi kick blended with the distinct aroma and nutty flavor of shiitake mushroom — genuinely delicious. Paired with well-grilled black pork, it complemented the meat's flavor perfectly.

The pork belly was really delicious too — nicely thick, with a subtle charcoal aroma and a satisfyingly chewy texture. The meat itself was so good that dipping it in salt, meljeot, and shiitake mushroom wasabi was tastier than wrapping it in ramp greens or lettuce.

The king oyster mushrooms were also grilled just right and cut into easy bites. A well-grilled mushroom really can rival meat — the moment I bit in, mushroom juice burst out, and it was absolutely fantastic.

🥘 Black pork gochujang stew

I was curious about the thick-looking black pork gochujang stew, so I ordered it too.

There was an enormous amount of meat and vegetables inside, and I understood why it's called 'gochujang stew loaded with black pork.' It really lived up to its name 😮

They also said the rice served alongside uses suhyangmi rice. When you get the rice, smell it first — there's a scorched-rice aroma so good you could eat the rice on its own. You can really tell how devoted the owner is to the food.. 🥹

Piling the meat on top of the rice, the seasoning soaks in so well that it's an explosion of flavor 🤤

The stew broth was really rich, packed with meat, and the aroma of the pork came through strongly too. I was already full and hesitated on ordering it, but you should definitely try it!

Reference: if you reserve via Naver, they give you complimentary dessert naengmyeon.

Overall verdict

Overall, Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul in Ruwon City was really satisfying. The Jirisan black pork itself was genuinely fresh, and above all, the grilling service meant I could enjoy the meat at its absolute best without any hassle. Seeing the owner use good ingredients without holding back also made me feel how much heart goes into the food here. If you want to properly enjoy delicious Jirisan black pork, I recommend visiting Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Ruwon City branch!