Late-night pork neck, Bucheon Korean BBQ restaurant: Cham Dwaejitgan

Lately, when I go out for meat, I find myself looking for places where they grill it for you rather than ones where you do it yourself, haha. This time, while looking for somewhere to have dinner in Sinjung-dong, I visited Cham Dwaejitgan Bucheon Sinjung-dong Branch, which kept coming up for pork belly in Bucheon’s Sinjung-dong. The restaurant was spacious and the staff grilled the meat for us, so it was great for a relaxed meal with friends! Best of all, it is close to Sinjung-dong Station, so the location was also nice for having a drink or two.

Cham Dwaejitgan Bucheon Sinjung-dong Branch: location and a late visit

It is on the first floor at 68 Jungdong-ro 262beon-gil, Wonmi-gu, Bucheon, Gyeonggi, South Korea. From Exit 3 of Sinjung-dong Station, head toward Lotte Department Store and you will arrive in no time on foot, so it is convenient by public transportation too. It is currently listed as open 24 hours, making it a good option when you want meat late at night. Hours and break times can change, though, so I recommend checking before a late visit!

Spacious seating that worked for group gatherings

I was surprised by how spacious it was as soon as I walked in. The tables were not cramped together, and there were seats for larger groups, so it seemed like a good pick not only for get-togethers with friends but also for a work dinner. There are plenty of seats, so it looked suitable when you have plans with a lot of people in Sinjung-dong. Amenities listed include reservations, group seating, high chairs, Wi-Fi, phone charging, and free corkage.

Side dishes, sauces, and the self-service bar

Another thing I liked was that it was not just meat on its own—there were really lots of things to eat with it. Scallion salad, bean sprouts, garlic stems, kimchi, and assorted vegetables all came out together.

There were also several dipping sauces, such as ssamjang (savory soybean paste dip), salt, wasabi, and spicy sauce, so even with one kind of meat, I could keep changing up the combinations. Especially when you eat meat, you tend to keep reaching for only a few side dishes, but there were so many here that I found myself trying every single one, haha.

I was told that vegetable side dishes, except minari (water parsley), can be refilled at the self-service bar.

Charcoal-grilled pork belly cooked by the staff

Now for the meat! Cham Dwaejitgan uses charcoal and says it adds aroma through rice-husk smoking, and the smell of the meat really hit as soon as it went onto the grill. The most convenient part was that the staff grilled the meat themselves.

At a Korean BBQ restaurant, one person is usually constantly busy grilling, but here the staff watched how it was cooking and grilled it for us, so we could just talk, wait, and eat. This must be why I keep looking for Korean BBQ places that grill for you these days, haha.

The combination of grilled kimchi and bean sprouts

The grill was also a little different from a typical one; they say it is a handmade grill designed to reduce oil splatter. Pork belly releases a lot of fat, so tables and clothes can be a mess afterward, but it felt like they had thought about that too. You can grill things like kimchi and bean sprouts alongside the meat, and putting them together on a piece of pork belly was, of course, a fail-proof combination... It was good with just a touch of salt, while wasabi or garlic stems gave it another feel, so I kept eating it in different combinations.

Personally, when I go for pork belly in Bucheon, the meat itself matters, but I also pay close attention to whether there are lots of side dishes, whether I do not have to grill it myself, and whether the restaurant is not too small.

Cham Dwaejitgan had all three, so it was especially nice for visiting with a group.

Hehe, especially wrapped with this potato, it was perfection, hahaha.

It was also so nice to be able to grab more from the self-service bar without feeling self-conscious, and it was delicious, so we ended up ordering pork neck too, haha. Hehe, once you have eaten all that meat and are full...

Finishing with steamed egg and fried rice

We finished with fluffy steamed egg. And of course, we had to have fried rice too, right? I recommend getting extra kimchi and minari before eating it!

If you are looking for somewhere to recommend for a dinner plan with friends or a work dinner in Sinjung-dong, this could be worth a visit :)

Convenience items, even after the meal

They also have useful items for your meal, such as phone charging, disposable aprons, and children’s tableware, plus dental floss and mouthwash products to use afterward, so it felt like they had paid attention even to these little details! There are so many Korean BBQ restaurants in Sinjung-dong that it can be hard to choose, but if you are looking for pork belly in Bucheon’s Sinjung-dong and want a place where the staff grills the meat, that is close to the station, suitable for a group, and open late, Cham Dwaejitgan seems like a good choice. There are several kinds of meat too, so if pork belly alone feels like a shame, I also recommend ordering pork neck, cheongyeopsal (thinly layered pork belly), or black pork five-layer belly together!