Lamb special-cut charcoal skewers on a Changwon date: Shashlik Masan

Shashlik Masan Branch, a Gusan-drive favorite in Changwon, grills everything over charcoal with a sea view.

• Hours: 11:00–22:00
• Closed: Every Tuesday (last order 21:00)
• Location: 7 Deokdongnam 1-gil, 2nd floor, Masanhappo-gu, Changwon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea

My girlfriend and I were driving through Gusan-myeon in Changwon today when we spotted a charcoal-grill place and ended up at Shashlik Masan Branch. We both love lamb, so the second we saw the menu we picked the lamb assortment without even looking twice haha. Shashlik originally comes from Central Asian skewer cooking, but here they've done it as charcoal-direct grilling.

Exact location and parking

It's a minute by car from Changwon Nursing Hospital, six minutes from Hyeondong Jungheung 3-cha Apartments, seven minutes from Gapo High School, and eleven minutes from Kyungnam University. Turn into the alley where you see the yellow balloon signboard and you're right there. There's a large parking lot inside, so no parking stress at all 👍 If you've been around neighborhood restaurants much, half the battle is parking, so this was genuinely convenient.

Exterior

A two-story building with a tiled roof — a pretty distinctive first impression.

The terrace has a campfire pit, a hammock, and string lights. Coming in the evening would make for great fire-gazing.

Interior

Walking in, the wooden ceiling packed with potted plants gave it a resort vibe right away.

The Gusan sea is visible through the window. The view through the blind slats was prettier than I expected 👍

There's a floor room separated by a curtain, and they had a baby chair ready too.

Even the restroom was spotless — felt like a well-managed place.

The table setting came with a mini fire pit, two sauces, pickles and olives, and seasoning powder.

Menu and prices

Pork belly/neck and chicken thigh shashlik are ₩25,000 as the base menu, and house-made raw sausage is ₩38,800. We ordered the lamb assortment charcoal shashlik (special cuts) at ₩36,800, plus added ₩18,400 more.

Trying the lamb assortment charcoal shashlik

The lamb assortment charcoal shashlik looked amazing the moment it arrived 🤤 It came already grilled over charcoal, so I had nothing to cook myself 👍

Because it was special cuts, each piece had a different texture, so the fun kept going bite after bite. No gaminess at all — just the charcoal smokiness left behind.

The rib-attached cut is best eaten by hand, dipped deep into the sauce.

The garnish was all cooked just right too — mushrooms, onion, and paprika went really well with the meat.

Grilled pineapple in the middle resets your palate. The broccoli dipped in sauce was surprisingly moreish too 😅

We ended up inhaling everything and the plate looked like this 🤣

After we finished eating, the owner brought us watermelon punch.

We ended on the sweet, refreshing watermelon note haha 👍

How it worked as a drive stop

Overall this was a perfect place to fold into a drive. Easy parking and a clean store and restroom put me in a good mood, and since everything comes pre-grilled, the conversation never had to stop for cooking duties. The owner was so friendly it made for a relaxed meal. Getting watermelon punch on top of that — no wonder they have regulars.

With up to 40 seats and a floor room, it'd work for a family dinner or a group gathering too, and they say dogs are welcome. If lamb is new to you, the pork belly/neck or chicken thigh are safe bets, but if you like lamb, the assortment is the answer. It's quick to reach from Gapo or Kyungnam University too, so if you're planning a drive out this way, it's worth a stop. I think I'll be coming back often 😊

• ① A charcoal-grill favorite on the Gusan drive in Changwon: Shashlik Masan Branch
• ② Loved that everything came pre-grilled with a great view
• ③ Easy parking and friendly service — I'll probably be back often