Seocho Korean BBQ after work with Buldak noodles: Gyodaepae

A chilled Korean pork belly specialist after work near Gyodae Station

I usually do not make plans for weekday evenings. My stamina is just not what it used to be, so I am exhausted even when I only go home after work. But I made an after-work plan for the first time in ages and visited Gyodaepae (교대패), a great restaurant in Seocho. Its address is 23 Seocho-daero 48-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea, and it was less than a 10-minute walk from Gyodae Station.

Here is the exterior of Gyodaepae, a specialist in chilled fresh Korean pork belly sliced thin. It is run by a meat master with 22 years of experience, so I figured the meat quality would speak for itself.

Gyodaepae is open Monday through Saturday from 11:30 AM to 11:00 PM, with last orders at 10:30 PM. There is a break from 3:00 to 5:00 PM, and it is closed every Sunday.

Retro interior, self-service bar, and tablet ordering

This is the inside of Gyodaepae. Even on a weekday evening, there were lots of office workers. There were tables outside too, so you could enjoy meat with that outdoor late-night dining feel. We ate inside, where the interior had a retro look.

You can use the self-service bar for any banchan (Korean side dishes) you need more of. It was kept very tidy. Now, let me show you the menu.

Gyodaepae also had value set meals that let you try several dishes. For domestically produced Korean thin-sliced pork belly, I thought the prices seemed pretty reasonable too.

Once we sat down, I spotted the black pepper. Thin-sliced pork belly or frozen pork belly really does taste better with a sprinkle of black pepper. We could order from the tablet at the table, so we ordered two portions of chilled fresh thin-sliced pork belly and Saero soju, then received steamed egg through a review event.

Chilled fresh thin-sliced pork belly with excellent basics

Let me show you the basic sides first. There was kimchi that would be delicious grilled, radish salad that I kept reaching for, wraps and ssamjang (savory dipping paste), bean sprouts, and shredded scallions.

They brought a dipping sauce for the thin-sliced pork belly and siraegi doenjang-guk, soybean-paste soup with dried radish greens. I absolutely loved that the soup came as a basic side without having to order it separately, haha.

Our two portions of chilled Korean thin-sliced pork belly arrived. Look at that color on the meat. Pure gorgeousness. Now that the meat was here, the soju had to come too, right? Bring it on!

Because it was thin, it was practically cooked as soon as it hit the grill. We had met after work and were starving, so I loved how quickly it cooked.

We placed the cooked meat on top so it would not burn. Between talking and eating, even ten mouths would not have been enough. First things first: food before sightseeing, so we filled our stomachs before getting into the chatter.

Maybe because it was chilled Korean pork belly, I could taste the juices even on its own. We dipped it in the sauce, ate it with the sweet-and-tangy shredded scallions, and of course the drinks went down very easily.

How delicious is kimchi grilled in pork fat? I seriously loved this pork belly restaurant near Gyodae Station. We made wraps with it too. Since the meat was so good, the drinks went down very easily.

Buldak 볶음면 corn cheese and fried rice, too

This is the steamed egg we received through the review event. It was free, but is it okay for it to be this fluffy? Since I had work the next day, I made sure to eat plenty of steamed egg too.

Gyodaepae has great instincts not only with its mains but also with its sides. Buldak 볶음면, spicy stir-fried noodles, with corn cheese? Need I say more.

I sometimes grill thin-sliced pork belly with Buldak 볶음면 at home too. When my mouth gets suitably rich and greasy, I cool it down with Buldak? One more bottle, please. As expected, it was so delicious.

I felt like I was about to burst, but I had read a blog post saying the fried rice was delicious. Well, then I had to eat it. It came topped with a fried egg and gim, roasted seaweed flakes.

It was savory, and adding chopped leftover kimchi and meat made it even better. Gyodaepae near Gyodae Station had chilled Korean thin-sliced pork belly, loads of retro charm, and seriously delicious sides—I recommend it~