20-minute wait at Gwang-anmok Haeundae, Busan Korean BBQ: basil wraps

Gwang-anmok Haeundae Branch

Location, hours and parking at Gwang-anmok Haeundae Branch

📍Address 16 Gunam-ro, 2F, Haeundae-gu, Busan, South Korea 📍Hours 12:00 - 23:30 (break 15:00 - 16:30) 📍Parking Hyundai Parking Lot (1 hour supported)

I was out in Haeundae and stopped by 'Gwang-anmok' Haeundae Branch for dinner!

How long was the 7pm wait?

It's a popular BBQ place these days, so it was already full by 7pm. I put my name down on CatchTable and waited about 20 minutes haha. There are waiting seats on the first floor, and right next door there's a fish cake shop too, so it was nice to look around while waiting.

Apparently there's a lunchtime perk too — if you order a set menu, stone-pot bibimbap and doenjang-jjigae (soybean paste stew) come included, so visiting for lunch seems like a great idea too!

What we ordered for two, and the prices

• A Set (for 2) ₩57,000
• Pudding steamed egg ₩4,500
• Doenjang sul-bap ₩8,000

We ordered the A Set, pudding steamed egg, and finished with doenjang sul-bap. The A Set comes with 370g of anmok-sal (pork jowl) and 130g of special pork belly!

Asado grill pre-searing

The meat isn't grilled fresh at the table right away — it's pre-seared first, on a huge grill by the entrance called the 'asado grill.' Apparently it slowly applies the heat and smoke of charcoal, keeping as much moisture in the meat as possible while adding a subtle smoky flavor 🤤

Alternating dry-aging and wet-aging

And Gwang-anmok's meat aging was next-level 🤩 They alternate dry-aging and wet-aging, using only fully aged meat, which means the amount they can prepare each day is limited!

The table setting and side dishes

The table setting overall was clean and neat, with all sorts of pickles, house-made anchovy salt, chimichurri, and basil for wraps — lots of sides with Gwang-anmok's own character, so it was fun mixing and matching them with the meat 🤭

The pre-seared meat was grilled again right at the table by staff. So we didn't have to worry about timing the grilling and could just chat comfortably while eating it at its best 😊

Even just visually, the meat looks like great quality, right! 🥹

Eating it, the juices were still moist and, maybe because of the aging, the flavor of the meat felt really rich ❤️

And with the set menu, butter-grilled vegetables come along too. Corn, mushrooms, potatoes, tomatoes and more — having one alongside a bite of meat cut the richness and paired well with it!

The best combo: basil wrap + chimichurri

And the tastiest thing, the basil wrap 💚 The staff recommended putting chimichurri on fresh basil and eating it with the meat!!! This combo was truly insane 🥹 The fragrance of the basil plus the fresh tang of the chimichurri really brings the meat's flavor to life.

Pudding steamed egg

The pudding steamed egg was, true to its name, really jiggly and soft like an actual pudding 🥚✨ It had a melt-in-your-mouth feel like chawanmushi, giving it a charm different from regular steamed egg.

Finishing with doenjang sul-bap

And after the meat, of course you finish with doenjang-jjigae! We swapped it for doenjang sul-bap instead. With cheongyang chili in it, it had a spicy kick that was clean and refreshing.

The portion was pretty big too, plenty for two to share, and you can apparently choose the spice level!

The atmosphere

The restaurant was very spacious and comfortable, with room extending far back so there was no cramped feeling — great for a relaxed meal 👍 Probably because it's Haeundae, there were quite a few foreign customers too!

The rich flavor of aged pork with a subtle smoky note, plus fresh basil and chimichurri on top — Gwang-anmok had a charm quite different from a typical BBQ place ❤️ I could really feel why it's popular enough to have a wait. A place I'd love to visit again!