Newly opened Gueui Korean BBQ: sweet pumpkin wrap bar — Sanggu's
In short
Sanggu's Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal Gueui Branch is the new Gueui–Gangbyeon location of a cauldron-lid pork belly restaurant well known in Jayang-dong, in Gwangjin, Seoul. Two diners shared a half plate of pork belly, grilled it on the cauldron lid with minari (water dropwort), kimchi, bracken fern and bean sprouts, added enoki mushrooms and sweet pumpkin from the self-serve wrap vegetable bar, and finished with cheese steamed egg and fried rice. Although Sanggu's Gueui Branch had only just opened, it was nearly full on a weekday evening, and both the meat quality and the sides were satisfying.
Good to know
- What we ordered
- Half plate of meat (plenty for two), cheese steamed egg, fried rice, beer
- Table setup
- Kimchi, bracken fern and bean sprouts pre-set on the cauldron lid, with minari (water dropwort)
- Wrap vegetables
- Self-serve bar with chilled lettuce, perilla leaves, enoki mushrooms, chili peppers and sweet pumpkin
- Menu
- Half-and-half set, plus pork belly, pork neck, jjondeuk-sal (chewy pork cut) and more
- When we visited
- Weekday evening; so busy that arriving a little later would have meant a wait
as written by the visitor on Aug 6, 2026
I heard that Sanggu's Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal, already pretty famous in Jayang-dong, opened a new branch by the river, so I went to check it out. Honestly I figured it'd be quiet since it just opened, but even on a weekday evening the place was packed. If I'd arrived just a little later I might have had to wait. It seemed like word had already spread around the neighborhood.
I usually think most samgyeopsal (pork belly) places are pretty similar, but meat grilled on a cauldron lid just has a different vibe from the start. I was curious whether there was really a reason it's so popular in Jayang-dong, so I went to see for myself. Here's my honest review after eating there.
Sanggu's Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal Gueui Branch
A half plate for two — is it enough?
At Sanggu's Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal Gueui Branch, the two of us ordered a half plate of pork belly, and to cut to the chase, it was plenty for two people. The moment we walked in, the smell of grilling meat filled the air, and that scent alone was enough to bring our appetite back to life.
We ordered the half plate and the portion turned out to be quite generous. When it first arrived I thought, "Will this really be enough?" but once we started grilling and eating, it turned out to be plenty for the two of us.
I also liked that minari (water dropwort) came alongside the meat. As soon as we sat down, kimchi, fern and bean sprouts were already set on the cauldron lid. Watching food come out so fast even as customers kept streaming in, it seemed like a place with a really good turnover rate. Thanks to that, we didn't wait long after ordering before we could start grilling.
Meat quality and fern grilled alongside it
The pork at Sanggu's Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal was tender with no gamey smell, satisfying from the very first bite. The fern grilled to a golden brown on the cauldron lid was something I'd recommend trying without fail.
The meat quality was quite good overall. It was tender with no gamey smell, satisfying from the first piece. Personally I prefer eating meat with vegetables rather than on its own, and this place let us grill minari, kimchi, bean sprouts and fern right alongside the meat, which I liked even more. Thanks to that, we didn't get tired of it even by the end. The fern especially is a must-try — it turned golden brown on the cauldron lid and soaked up the pork belly fat, making it genuinely delicious.
A self-serve wrap veggie bar, even sweet pumpkin
The wrap vegetables at the Gueui/Gangbyeon branch are self-serve — you grab as much refrigerated veggies as you want. Beyond lettuce and perilla leaf, they even had enoki mushroom, chili pepper and sweet pumpkin ready to go.
The wrap vegetables were run as a self-serve bar, and being able to take as much refrigerated veggies as we wanted actually made things more convenient. Beyond lettuce and perilla leaf, they had enoki mushroom, chili pepper and even sweet pumpkin, so we could mix and match to our taste. The vegetables were pretty fresh too, which made eating them with the meat more enjoyable. Personally I was even more satisfied being able to just take what we needed.
The amount of minari included in the set was also quite generous. There were two of us, and it came out in enough quantity that we couldn't finish it all — no need for an extra order.
Menu lineup, and jjondeuk-sal to try next time
Sanggu's Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal sells more than just the half-and-half set — there's pork belly, pork neck, jjondeuk-sal (a chewy cut) and more, so it might be worth ordering according to your preference. We only tried the basic set and were still satisfied, but if I come back, I definitely want to try the jjondeuk-sal.
Beer, cheese egg custard, and fried rice to finish
We also properly enjoyed the essential trio when eating meat. We had a beer alongside, and ordered cheese egg custard plus fried rice to finish — every single one was satisfying. The fried rice especially had that flavor that kept going down even when we were already full, so we ended up cleaning the plate.
Even for a chain, the meat quality, service and management level can differ a bit from branch to branch. In that sense, Sanggu's Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal Gueui Branch was fully satisfying.
The meat quality was good, the vegetable spread was generous, and the side dishes didn't fall short either. If you're looking for a good samgyeopsal spot nearby, it seems worth a visit at least once. The meat quality was satisfying, and eating it alongside minari, fern and kimchi made it more memorable. It's been a while since I thought, "I should come back again," about a barbecue place.
Where it is
444 Achasan-ro, 1st floor, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, South Korea서울특별시 광진구 아차산로 444 1층
