Samgyeopsal restaurant in Osong, Cheongju: Risan combo platter

Hi, I'm Jang-gaemi 🐜

The weather's been getting cooler lately, so my husband and I have been taking a lot of walks after work. While walking, there was this one meat restaurant I'd been wanting to try because of the delicious smell and the open-air vibe. It's apparently a famous samgyeopsal (pork belly) spot in Osong, so we finally went this weekend!

It's Risan, located on the first floor of Osong Paragon 3! So here's my honest review of Risan, the place that's always been tempting us with its amazing smell~!

Risan's hours and how to find it in Osong

Risan is open daily from 17:00 to 23:00, with last order at 22:30. The address is 1F 108, 109 ho, 118 Osongsaengmyeong 7-ro, Osong-eup, Heungdeok-gu, Cheongju, Chungcheongbuk-do, South Korea.

Inside Risan on the first floor of Paragon 3

It's located on the first floor of Osong Paragon 3. In this cool weather, they had the doors open and it felt really open and airy! (Grilling meat while sitting here really gives that open-air dining vibe~!)

The interior overall had that upscale meat restaurant feel. The tables were also spaced widely apart and everything was kept clean and well-managed, so we could eat comfortably.

Risan's menu and what the couple ordered

They have combo menus where you can try black pork samgyeopsal, moksal (pork neck), teuksal (special cut), and more, plus single-item menus and side dishes that go well with the meat. (I'm so moved that we can finally eat black pork in Osong,,🥹)

• Risan combo (50,900)
• Black pork special samgyeopsal (14,900)
• Saero Omija (5,000)

Side dishes plus free doenjang jjigae and steamed egg

These are the side dishes that come as standard — green onion salad, muchim (seasoned acorn jelly), scallion kimchi, shredded radish, various sauces, all served really neatly💕

Doenjang jjigae and steamed egg both come free, which is such a great deal 👍🏻 The doenjang jjigae was savory and also spicy, so a bite in between eating meat totally refreshed the palate! The steamed egg was fluffy with a nutty perilla oil aroma — the ultimate combo of savory and clean 🫶🏻 (You could tell from the basic setup alone why this place is famous as a samgyeopsal spot in Osong,,,!)

Grilling the Risan combo on a stone plate

Right after the side dishes, the Risan combo arrived quickly! You could tell how fresh it was just from the visuals, right?!🫢 My husband and I both went crazy over how good the meat quality looked, haha,,,

We grilled up samgyeopsal, teuksal, moksal, and more, along with the onions, potatoes, and mushrooms that came with it~ Personally, what I liked more about Risan was that it wasn't a regular grill plate but a stone plate, so nothing burned easily! And we didn't need to change the grill plate,,,! (Just looking at these photos brings back that taste, it's torture ㅠㅠㅠ)

Once the stone plate heated up, everything cooked quickly, so we didn't have to wait long, which was great (I have zero patience when it comes to eating). Anyway, seeing that meat sizzling away,,, I think I need to go eat there again soon,,,! 🥹

The best cut of the night: black pork samgyeopsal

We tried a well-grilled piece wrapped in lettuce, and also with the jeotgal ssamjang (salted seafood dipping paste) that came with it — tried it in various ways! Since the meat itself was so delicious, it went perfectly with any sauce. Every cut was tasty, but personally the black pork samgyeopsal was really something special. It had a good balance of fat and lean meat, and the fatty part was so chewy and delicious ㅜㅜ So my husband and I ended up ordering an extra portion of samgyeopsal, haha ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

From the neat table setting to the atmosphere to the meat quality — Risan is a perfect samgyeopsal spot in Osong! If you want to feel that open-air dining vibe in Osong's 2nd industrial complex while eating delicious black pork samgyeopsal, I highly recommend Risan! haha