Seoul Korean BBQ near Balsan Station with private rooms: Ihwajeong

Today is Thursday! Arguably one of the toughest weekdays, so I went looking for somewhere near the office to have a good dinner and that's how I found Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga Magok-Balsan Branch (이화정갈비명가 마곡발산점), a great restaurant near Balsan Station haha. A while back I'd stopped by a Korean set-meal restaurant called Mikkodam and spotted this very upscale-looking barbecue place, and told myself I'd have to come by sometime. I finally got to visit!

Getting there from Balsan Station, and parking

Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga Magok-Balsan Branch, a barbecue restaurant in Magok, sits right by the station: take Exit 3 or 4 of Balsan Station on Line 5 and it's within about a 5-minute walk haha

We came by car, and since there's a lot that holds around 77 cars, parking was easy. If you eat there you get a stamp for 3 hours of free parking, and that's plenty of time, which was nice.

An upscale dining hall and private rooms

Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga looks upscale right from the outside haha. I'd read lots of reviews saying it's popular for birthdays and family gatherings, and I could see why! Inside, the space was wide and open, with elegant decor pieces like ceramics and pine trees, so there was plenty to look at too.

There's a main hall as well as private rooms, and the room I saw looked big enough to seat about 15 people haha. They say you can also book the whole place; private rooms take a minimum of 6 and up to 100 people, and group seating a minimum of 30 and up to 100, available if you reserve in advance.

The spoons and chopsticks come individually wrapped like this, so I was happy on the hygiene front too.

What we ordered, and the side dishes

• Marinated grilled pork (dwaeji yangnyeom-gui) 300g ₩23,000 × 2
• Mul-naengmyeon (cold noodles in chilled broth) ₩8,000
• Doenjang-jjigae (soybean paste stew) ₩8,000

We were seriously hungry, so we ordered two 300g portions of the marinated grilled pork that everyone else seemed to be ordering, plus doenjang-jjigae and mul-naengmyeon on the side.

Right after we ordered they set out the side dishes: seasoned lettuce, shredded scallion salad, salad, pickled onions and the like, all good to eat with the meat. The basic banchan (side dishes) weren't heavy-handed and had a refined feel, which I liked.

Marinated grilled pork the staff grill for you

As soon as the fire was ready, out came two portions of marinated grilled pork, 300g each. I'd naturally assumed the weight included the bone, but it was boneless, which made me think the value is incredible. They put it straight onto the charcoal, and the sizzle gets your mouth watering.

They cut the pork ribs along the grain, so we could taste each cut without losing any of the juices. On top of that, they use a downdraft ventilation system, so no smell or smoke rose up, and the fact that our clothes didn't smell of meat afterwards was another plus.

They cut it by section like this, gave it an initial sear and set it aside on a separate plate, explaining that if it stays on the grill it burns, and once the juices are gone you can't enjoy the pork ribs at their best! They also said the meat tastes best if you cut it as little as possible and only slice it on your plate right before eating.

At the first bite, we both immediately said it was delicious. It really does seem to be down to their patented aging method: they explained that the meat is cross-aged for 144 hours, which makes the texture tender and brings the savory depth to its peak.

Being marinated galbi, the meat was slightly sweet, but it wasn't an artificial sweetness; the galbi marinade is made with organic pears, so you get the natural sweetness of the ingredients. After trying it, we both went as far as joking to the staff, 'If the marinated pork ribs are this good, how good is the beef?' Totally earns its reputation as a top spot near Balsan Station!

A clean-tasting doenjang-jjigae

Next up, the doenjang-jjigae we ordered on the side haha. We got it because it's a dish that pairs well with the meat!

There was more tofu and vegetables inside than I expected, so it was a hearty bowl, and the broth was clean and mild rather than a thick, pungent cheonggukjang (fermented soybean stew) kind of thing, so I don't think it would divide opinions much.

Mul-naengmyeon that was delicious even without mustard and vinegar

The last thing we tried was the mul-naengmyeon! I picked it because cold noodles at a place that does good pork ribs have never once let me down.

Personally I'm not a big fan of mul-naengmyeon loaded with vinegar or mustard; I prefer places where the base broth itself is good. The mul-naengmyeon at Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga had a clean broth that was well seasoned on its own, so I could enjoy it without adding mustard and vinegar at all.

Free pear sorbet for dessert too

To finish, there's a pear sorbet for dessert, and since even dessert is free my satisfaction went up another notch! It felt like eating a fancy version of Tank Boy (a pear-flavored ice pop), and since I personally really love Tank Boy, I was thrilled.

A Balsan Station barbecue spot I want to come back to

Ihwajeong Galbi Myeongga Magok-Balsan Branch came to mind while I was looking for a barbecue place in Magok near the office. The exterior was so upscale I'd always wanted to visit sometime, and after this visit I'm glad I came. For one thing, the staff were so friendly that I felt looked after the whole time we were there, and the marinated grilled pork was the best I've had anywhere recently, so the next time I'm craving pork ribs I'm coming straight here haha