Baby-friendly beef BBQ in Giheung: galbisal and cheonggukjang, Sowon.1

The other day I took my baby to a kids' café. On the way there, the smell of grilled galbi (short rib) shot straight up my nose!! Whoa!! Where is that coming from?!! And right then I thought, I want to eat galbi at the kids' café. The very next day!! I looked up a good galbi place and went. It's a Giheung barbecue restaurant where the beef was rich and tasty. Oh?! And there's one more reason it's great with a baby!! So let me introduce Sowon.1 Main Branch, a Giheung barbecue spot.

Where is Sowon.1 Main Branch, and what are the hours and parking like?

Sowon.1 Main Branch (소원.1 본점) is at 19 Yonggu-daero 2145beon-gil, Giheung-gu, Yongin, Gyeonggi, South Korea, and it's open 10:30–23:00. The parking lot in front is huge, so there's no parking worry.

Today's Giheung barbecue restaurant! The place is quite big and the parking lot out front is huge!! so parking was no stress at all. It's a beef specialty restaurant, but they sell pork too, so everyone can enjoy it whatever their meat preferences.

Does Sowon.1 Main Branch have a playroom?

Sowon.1 Main Branch is a large barbecue restaurant with a playroom at the back. The space is big enough for groups too.

The restaurant is pretty big, so groups are fine, and then, huh?! When I walked toward the back seats, it turned out to be a big barbecue place with a playroom. Wow, amazing!! When we visit a barbecue restaurant, checking in advance whether they have a baby chair is a must. But Sowon.1 has a playroom!!!

The moment our baby saw the playroom, we deliberately sat right in front of it, haha. Let's eat well and then go have fun later~

How was the 500g marinated galbisal at Sowon.1 Main Branch?

At Sowon.1 Main Branch we ordered 500g of marinated galbisal. We went because we'd heard the short rib meat is great value and good quality.

The reason we came to Sowon.1 was the galbisal!! I heard it's an amazing deal and the meat quality is delicious. I'd be eating it too, and I like my galbisal marinated, so I went with marinated galbisal as a personal preference. There were just two of us, so 1kg seemed a bit much, and my wife is on a diet, so we ordered a modest 500g.

This is the marinated galbisal we ate today. Loads of sesame seeds on top!! It's marinated, but the sauce isn't excessive and it all comes together richly and savory, so I was curious how it would taste.

Side dishes set up! Charcoal set up!!

Charcoal heat and the wire grill

I laid the meat on the grill. Maybe because the heat was stronger than I expected, it sizzled the second it touched the grill~~ And the wire-style grill is just right for marinated meat, since it can be grilled without burning.

I grilled it well and picked up a piece. After grilling at Sowon.1, I understood why this is a go-to Giheung barbecue place. The surface was glistening with juices!! Juices dripping, and the aroma of a well-grilled piece is no joke.

I ate it with just a little plain salt. And wow~~ the more I chewed, the more nutty richness there was. The meat was springy with a great texture too. Maybe because it's marinated, the flavor seemed even better as I chewed. On the other hand, the seasoning isn't too strong or harsh, which I love. It keeps the meat's flavor and taste while the texture stays the same!! So good.

Self-serve bar wasabi and an extra cheonggukjang

The self-serve bar at Sowon.1 Main Branch has wasabi, so I put it on salt for my meat, and partway through we ordered extra cheonggukjang (strong fermented soybean stew) and rice.

I saw wasabi at the self-serve bar too. I grabbed some right away and ate the meat with wasabi on the salt, which was tasty again. Eating piece by piece, the meat vanished in no time!! And eating meat made me want rice, so I also ordered cheonggukjang, and had a complete combo of rice, meat and stew.

500g is a lot, so it didn't all fit on the grill at once and we grilled it in two or three rounds. Maybe because the charcoal heat was still going strong the second time, it was just as good. The onion salad that comes by default was clean and nice with it too.

Sorry, baby, that Mom and Dad are enjoying the meat~ You enjoy your snack too~ We'll eat together when you're a bit bigger, haha

We tried it with various combinations of the side dishes, and since the meat is good, it was delicious whichever way we ate it.

The playroom after the meal, and plans for next time

After eating at Sowon.1 Main Branch, we spent time with the baby in the playroom and finished with coffee and a drink on the way out.

After a good meal, since Sowon.1 is a big barbecue place with a playroom, we spent a happy time with the baby there. Parents happy from the tasty meat, baby happy from the playroom!! The whole family happy!!

Full and happy, we finished perfectly with coffee and a drink on the way out. Sowon.1 is a Giheung barbecue restaurant where even the basic meat is delicious, so besides the galbisal we had today, next time I want to try the marbled wagyu flower galbi (kkotgalbisal) and more. The parking is big and the interior roomy, so it seems great for group gatherings and company dinners too.