Seomyeon charcoal BBQ taste test, fresh vs marinated ribs: Gilchon

Today's spot is a Seomyeon favorite in Busan — a pork rib restaurant called Gilchon Sutbul Galbi Seomyeon Main Branch.

Why Gilchon Sutbul Galbi over the other BBQ places in Seomyeon

I was craving pork ribs while looking for good restaurants in Seomyeon, Busan, so I headed to Gilchon Sutbul Galbi Seomyeon Main Branch. There are so many BBQ places in Seomyeon that it's always hard to pick one, but this time I chose somewhere I could try both fresh ribs and marinated ribs. It kept popping up as a place people go back to whenever I searched for Seomyeon pork ribs!!

Gilchon Sutbul Galbi Seomyeon Main Branch is just a 2-minute walk from Exit 8 of Seomyeon Station, so it's easy to get to by public transit.

Fresh and marinated ribs at 5,900 won per 100g: what we ordered

At this Seomyeon BBQ spot, both fresh and marinated ribs cost ₩5,900 per 100g regardless of type. We ordered one plate of fresh ribs, one plate of marinated ribs, and cheese fried rice!!

What side dishes come with the ribs at Gilchon Sutbul Galbi

The side dishes came out in a nice variety — potato salad, marinated mushroom and garlic scapes, shredded scallions, lettuce wraps, pickled onion, baek-kimchi (white kimchi), myeongi wasabi (wild garlic leaf with wasabi), shrimp sesame oil sauce, and myeoljeot.

While waiting for the fresh pork ribs, I read through the restaurant's guide on how to enjoy Gilchon Sutbul Galbi best!! Turns out writing a Naver review gets you a free egg soufflé!

Fresh pork ribs: thin-sliced and clean-tasting

The fresh pork ribs came out first!! With no marinade, you could really taste the clean flavor of the meat. Grilled over charcoal until golden brown, there was a subtle smoky char to it too. The potato and chives that came alongside got grilled up as well. From the reviews, it looks like they swap in minari (water dropwort) in spring!

Personally, the fresh ribs were sliced thinner than I expected, so anyone who likes thin-cut meat would probably love it!! I tried it with the shrimp sesame oil sauce and with the baek-kimchi too. The baek-kimchi is made with barley, and it was seriously delicious, ugh.

Marinated ribs after the grill swap: sweet and savory

After finishing off most of the fresh ribs, we put the marinated ribs on the grill too. They actually swapped out the grill plate for us! As the marinated ribs cooked, that sweet marinade smell started rising and it made me want rice. It was a mellow, sweet marinated pork rib flavor! Personally I liked the marinated ribs even more than the fresh ones haha.

Finishing with cheese fried rice at Gilchon Sutbul Galbi

So we ordered the cheese fried rice to finish..haha After eating meat, you always crave some carbs!!! My friends and I debated doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) but went with cheese fried rice instead. It was basically kimchi fried rice with cheese added! Just the familiar flavor you'd expect..!! Loved that there was a lot of cheese.

If you're looking for good restaurants in Seomyeon, Busan and craving pork ribs, I'd recommend giving Gilchon Sutbul Galbi Seomyeon Main Branch a try!