Jongno 3-ga BBQ dinner without drinks: fried rice at Chowon Restaurant

Today I went to Chowon Restaurant, an outdoor tent BBQ spot on the Jongno 3-ga tent street. I picked it out of all the many restaurants along that alley because I'd read reviews saying it was good value, generous with portions, and had a great atmosphere.

Where is Chowon Restaurant in Jongno 3-ga, and when does it open?

Chowon Restaurant is at 1st floor, 30 Jongno 17-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, right next to Tapgol Park in Jongno 3-ga. It's open from 17:00 to 01:00.

Since it opens at five in the evening and stays open until one in the morning, you don't get rushed out the door the way you do at places that close early.

Outdoor tent seats and indoor seats at Chowon Restaurant

Chowon Restaurant was really packed from early evening. Looking around, I saw foreign visitors grilling pork belly happily too.

Since it's right along the wall next to Tapgol Park, the atmosphere was outdoor-tent dining at its finest.

They even set a mood lamp on every table, which made the vibe even better.

The outdoor tent seats tend to have a bit of a wait, but you can be seated right away at the indoor tables. There were quite a lot of tables inside too. And since the restroom is inside the restaurant, you don't need to go hunting for one in a different building — that was nice.

Chowon Restaurant menu and prices

Here's the menu at Chowon Restaurant (初願食堂).

• BEST SET MENU (for 2~3 people) — Pork belly set ₩53,000 (frozen pork belly 270g + beef short rib 270g), Fire hanwoo set ₩55,000 (hanwoo striploin 300g)
• Pork & Beef (pork 180g / beef 150g) — Frozen pork belly ₩18,000, frozen beef short rib ₩18,000, hanwoo striploin ₩28,000, savory beef brisket ₩20,000
• SIDE MENU — Beef tartare bibimbap ₩9,000, beef brisket doenjang stew ₩8,000, kimchi stew ₩9,000, steamed egg ₩5,000, rice bowl ₩1,000
• Drinks — Soju ₩5,000 (Chamisul/Jinro/Chum Churum/Saero), Terra ₩6,000, makgeolli ₩6,000, soft drinks ₩2,000 (Coke/Coke Zero/Sprite)
• Banchan is self-serve!
• On weekends and holidays, meal time is unfortunately limited to 90 minutes.

That's the menu at Chowon Restaurant. Gram amounts aren't listed, but the portions were genuinely huge. For the frozen pork belly, one serving comes as three strips.

Flash-frozen pork belly for two at 18,000 won a serving

Here's two servings of frozen pork belly.

A big tray came out piled high with banchan too — lettuce, bracken fern, green onion kimchi, bean sprouts, water kimchi, ssamjang, chili peppers, and garlic. A really generous side spread.

Even the water bottle was cold, fresh mineral water.

Maybe because it was the belly cut, the frozen pork belly was really tender and tasty.

There was zero gamey pork smell — it was really good.

The self-serve banchan bar: three plates of lettuce, three helpings of bracken fern

The kimchi, bean sprouts, bracken fern, and green onion kimchi eaten alongside were really tasty too.

The pork is delicious eaten plain, but the banchan are all so good that eating them together is just as great. The lettuce was really fresh and perfect for wrapping — I went back for three whole plates of it.

The bracken fern was delicious too, and since you can just grab it yourself from the self-serve bar, I went back for it three times without feeling awkward at all.

Fried rice for 5,000 won, served in a full metal bowl

Once we'd finished off the frozen pork belly, we ordered the fried rice. Staff brought it out in a big metal basin — enough for about two or three servings' worth. Ordering just one was more than plenty.

It was enough fried rice to cover the whole large grill plate.

A tip for enjoying the fried rice: leave a few pieces of the frozen pork belly aside, chop them up small, and fry them together with the rice. Mixing in kimchi and bracken fern while you fry is also delicious.

And if you spread it thin and wide on the grill and let it crisp up into a scorched-rice crust, it's even better.

Can you eat at Chowon Restaurant without ordering alcohol?

Since I visited on a weeknight and had to work the next day, I didn't order a single drink — but this is a kind restaurant that doesn't make you feel bad about it. That was my visit review of Chowon Restaurant, a tent BBQ spot I'd recommend on the Jongno 3-ga outdoor dining street.