Apgujeong Rodeo samgyeopsal for two, griddle-grilled: Chobeoljip

It's been a while since I posted a pork belly spot in Apgujeong Rodeo~ I suddenly craved meat after work on a weekday and rushed over with my sister. We went on a weekday evening~

Chobeoljip Apgujeong Rodeo Branch: tile-roofed exterior and outdoor seats

Chobeoljip Apgujeong Rodeo Branch had an upscale interior with an exterior that reminded me of a tile-roofed house. We'd booked ahead on Naver, so we were seated as soon as we arrived.

Inside, the seats were divided into large sections, and since it seems to have opened recently, the interior was spotless! There were indoor seats as well as a really large outdoor seating area (yajang), which made me think this would be perfect if you want to enjoy dining outdoors.

What two servings of pre-seared samgyeopsal come with

Unlike other meat restaurants, Chobeoljip's menu is made up almost entirely of meat dishes. We ordered two servings of pre-seared pork belly from among them haha. The main menu items seemed to be pre-seared bone-in pork belly and pre-seared pork belly.

Once you order two servings of pork belly, a bunch of side dishes come out — lettuce wraps, seasoned bean sprouts, whole aged kimchi, garlic, chili, wasabi, chili soaked in ssamjang, and even Chobeoljip's signature angelica pickles. Among all the sides, the seasoned bean sprouts were the real kicker!

The owner grills the pork belly on a camping griddle

As soon as we ordered the meat, they turned on the griddle — I was surprised to see a griddle you'd normally take camping set up in a meat restaurant. They preheated the griddle right after we sat down, so I figured the meat could go straight on and be ready to eat as soon as it arrived.

Look at the color on that meat~ the two servings of pork belly looked completely tender~ Since it comes pre-seared before it even reaches the table, it cooks quickly once it's on the grill haha. Unlike other meat restaurants, here the owners grill the meat for you directly — good! I always take photos when I go to a meat restaurant, and the meat looked so tender that people around me even asked where the restaurant was~ In particular, they place the aged kimchi in the middle of the griddle — you know how good kimchi grilled in pork belly fat tastes, right??

Can you see the meat sizzling as it cooks~? Looks so good, right?ㅎ I was too eager to eat, so I just quickly took a video~~

They told us that unlike other places, at Chobeoljip the meat tastes best wrapped in aged kimchi! The generous portion of aged kimchi they give you was so good~ Everything was clean and hygienic, and the tableware was new so we could eat with confidence~

Three ssam combos: aged kimchi, angelica pickles, bean sprouts

We ate Chobeoljip's pork belly by switching up the side dish combinations. The first bite was a wrap with aged kimchi, mushroom and a piece of meat — an unfailingly good combination, one that's hard to get wrong. The second was a piece of meat with angelica, whose scent reminded me of perilla leaf — it felt like a wrap even without adding lettuce~ For the third piece of meat I tried the combination of bean sprouts, aged kimchi and mushroom, and since the bean sprouts were already seasoned, everything came together nicely.

From what I tried, the bean sprout, aged kimchi and mushroom wrap combination seemed to be most my style, so I mostly ate it that way. They also gave a generous amount of lettuce, enough that you could wrap every single piece of meat and still have leftovers, so for us — vegetable lovers — this felt like a completely optimized meat restaurant.

Eating the pork belly with wasabi and kkwari peppers

And isn't wasabi the perfect match for meat? We tried it with wasabi too, and I'd recommend that combination — it cuts right through the greasiness. The grilled peppers weren't too spicy either, making them a great side to pair with the meat!!

Is Chobeoljip worth it for outdoor Korean BBQ in Apgujeong Rodeo?

Overall, Chobeoljip let us enjoy pork belly in a variety of combinations. If you want to properly enjoy outdoor seating in the fall weather, this is a place you have to visit~ These days there are lots of pretty meat restaurants, but if you want to eat meat outdoors, I'd recommend Chobeoljip Apgujeong Rodeo Branch:-)