Jongno 3-ga Korean BBQ: 140 people ahead, 2.5-hour wait, Tapgol

As the weather cools down these days, I keep thinking about eating outdoors in the evenings. Indoor dining is nice too, but in weather like this, grilling meat outside with a shot of soju is exactly right, so I've been hunting down outdoor grill spots lately.

And when it comes to outdoor grilling, Jongno is the name that comes up! This time I visited Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch, which is really hot right now in Jongno 3-ga. If you're looking for a good BBQ restaurant in Jongno 3-ga, or want frozen pork belly in a proper outdoor-dining atmosphere, I'd strongly recommend this place.

What I especially liked is that the usual Jongno 3-ga outdoor grill strip has people constantly walking right past your table and the seats are often cramped, but here that chaos is much less, which personally worked in its favor.

Best of all, it's not just some seats that are outdoors — the whole place is set up as an outdoor grill space, so there's no need to compete or jostle over which table gets you outside.

Where is Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch, and when is it open?

Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch is located at 111 Supyo-ro, 1st floor, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea. It's about a 5-minute walk from Exit 5 of Jongno 3-ga Station, so it's convenient to reach by public transit.

⏰ Hours are daily from 5pm to 1am.

There are plenty of outdoor grill restaurants in Jongno 3-ga, but I personally liked this location for a specific reason. When people think of Jongno 3-ga outdoor grilling, they usually picture the alley crowded with street tents first — and over there, huge numbers of people pass by constantly and the tables are packed close together, so it can get pretty chaotic. Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch, though, sits slightly off the main grill strip, right by the stone wall of Tapgol Park, so there's relatively less of that constant foot-traffic feeling.

So I could still feel that distinct outdoor-grilling atmosphere while eating a bit more comfortably. On an evening with weather this good, eating frozen pork belly in a spot like this is honestly the best.

The menu is as shown in the photo. They sell the Tapgol Set (good for two), flash-frozen pork belly, flash-frozen pork collar, flash-frozen duck roast, sides, and more. If you're looking for a frozen pork belly spot near Jongno 3-ga Station and want to enjoy outdoor grilling at the same time, both the location and vibe should suit you well. Parking is difficult in Jongno, so I'd recommend the subway over driving.

How long is the weekend wait at Tapgol Gongwon?

If you're planning to go, honestly, the wait matters more than the food here. The weekend wait in particular is something you need to brace yourself for.

They open at 5pm, and I arrived around 5:40pm on a weekend. I figured that even a bit late, an hour's wait would be fine — but I checked the waitlist at the entrance and was genuinely shocked. There were over 140 people ahead of me.

I even wondered if I'd misread the number, but on a nice weekend, people had already piled up in huge numbers. In the end, I waited about two and a half hours that day before getting in.

Looking at recent reviews, even on weekday evenings there have been waits of around 50 parties, and on weekends the outdoor tables reportedly fill up fast right after opening. So if you're planning a weekend visit, I'd recommend heading over earlier rather than timing it for the 5pm opening.

If I go again, I think I'd head to the restaurant around 4pm, put my name on the tablet waitlist out front first, kill time nearby, and come back around opening time. If you casually show up after 5pm like I did, you might end up waiting for hours just like me. Especially on a nice Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, more people flock to outdoor grilling, so it's easier on your nerves to treat it like an opening rush. Having gone at 5:40pm and waited two hours, I'd really recommend sorting out the wait in advance.

One upside, though, is that there are a lot of outdoor tables set up. Since it's not a restaurant where only a handful of seats are outdoors, once you're in, there's no need to fight for an outdoor spot all over again. Because of that, even after the long wait, my satisfaction once I was actually seated was pretty high.

Eating 3 servings of frozen pork belly, steamed egg and kimchi fried rice

After finally waiting about two hours and getting in, I ordered 3 servings of frozen pork belly, steamed egg, rice, and kimchi fried rice.

Waiting since daytime just to eat dinner at night... 🥹 I ordered 3 servings of frozen pork belly, steamed egg, and kimchi fried rice.

The basic banchan: bracken fern, kimchi, bean sprouts, green onion kimchi, kimchi. Salt, ssamjang, salted squid, wasabi. All the tableware is set on the table, and banchan refills are self-serve!

The 3 servings of meat came out in an earthenware bowl, which I thought was cute. The meat is frozen, cut to a thickness that's neither too thin nor too thick — just right — and the pieces are large, so one cut gives you a generous portion.

First the meat goes on the grill, a sprinkle of pepper~ Right from this point the mood and atmosphere were so good that I forgot about the two-hour wait.

Lay it all out on the grill at once and cook it with the bracken fern, bean sprouts, and kimchi, and you get that distinct flavor of frozen pork belly eaten outdoors. It didn't feel like eating something especially special, but rather the whole mood — sitting outside on a nice evening with pork belly and a drink — was what made it good.

So personally, I think this is a place you go not just for the food, but to enjoy the food together with the outdoor-grilling atmosphere. In short — that feeling where eating good food in a good-mood setting just makes you happy.

The steamed egg was also nice to eat in between bites of pork belly, and ordering rice to go along with the meat rounded things out perfectly.

And of course, last comes the kimchi fried rice. Fried up with the leftover kimchi and pork fat from the grilled meat, it's a dish you'd regret leaving without trying. Even after 3 servings of meat plus steamed egg and rice, I still had room for the kimchi fried rice.

Why Tapgol Gongwon stands out among Jongno 3-ga outdoor BBQ spots

Personally, if you're looking for a good frozen pork belly restaurant near Jongno 3-ga Station, I'd recommend Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch. And the biggest reason I'd recommend it is, again, the seating.

I waited and got in late myself, but the crowds passing by were also clearly people who wanted to eat here. If you visit the outdoor grill strips around Jongno 3-ga, you'll often find that the atmosphere is good, but people constantly walk right past your table, or the tables are packed tightly into a narrow alley. Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch feels relatively less that way.

Being a bit removed from the busy main alley, it doesn't feel as chaotic, and eating meat beside the stone wall of Tapgol Park made for a surprisingly nice atmosphere. Most of all, since the seating itself is laid out entirely as outdoor grilling space, there was no need to worry about which table you'd have to grab to eat outside.

With weather like this these days — a bit warm during the day but cooling off nicely by evening — this is exactly the kind of place you should go to. It's great for grilling pork belly and kimchi with a group of friends over drinks, and it's also a nice option for a date if you want something a bit different from a typical restaurant.

That said, weekend waits are genuinely long, so I wouldn't recommend showing up in the evening with no plan. You might end up like me, arriving at 5:40pm to find over 140 people already waiting ahead of you. If possible, the best approach is to arrive around 4pm, put your name down for the wait, explore the area nearby, and come back in time for opening. As long as you handle the wait properly, the atmosphere alone is genuinely satisfying.

If you're looking for somewhere to go for outdoor grilling in Jongno with this nice weather, I'd recommend it as a Jongno 3-ga BBQ restaurant, a frozen pork belly spot near Jongno 3-ga Station, or a solid Tapgol Park-area restaurant. Personally, even after a 2-hour wait, this is a place I'd want to visit again while the weather's still nice.