Slushie self-serve bar at Girin Samgyeopsal, a Paju Korean BBQ spot

Yadang Station restaurant, Yadang food spot, Yadang Station samgyeopsal, Girin Samgyeopsal

"Girin Samgyeopsal" 📍 1102 Gyeongui-ro, 1st floor, units 110 & 111, Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea ⏰ Daily 16:00–23:00

Girin Samgyeopsal near Yadang Station: pork belly and soju with old classmates

Hi, this is Ttohyeon! Today I'm here to tell you about Girin Samgyeopsal, a pork belly restaurant near Yadang Station in Paju. I'd always noticed the cute giraffe statue whenever I passed by, so this time I combined a reunion with old classmates with some drinks and BBQ, haha.

My cute classmate Ruran asked me to take a photo, so here's one in front of the giraffe outside Girin Samgyeopsal.

Where is Girin Samgyeopsal, and is there parking?

Girin Samgyeopsal is close to Yadang Station, so it's easy to reach by public transit, and there's a basement parking lot in the building too, so driving there worked out fine. The interior was pretty clean, and the tables weren't cramped together, so it seemed like a good spot for family dinners or group gatherings too.

What we ordered: pork belly, pork neck and doenjang sulbap

That day we ordered two servings of pork belly and one serving of pork neck. And on top of that, we also got doenjang sulbap (soybean paste rice soup)!

The self-serve bar at Girin Samgyeopsal, slushie machine included

Girin Samgyeopsal has a self-serve bar so you can easily grab more side dishes if you run out. And nicely enough, there's even a slushie machine set up there.

Three sauces served with the meat

There were three sauces served with the meat, each with a different flavor, so you could pick whichever suited your taste. First was the handmade scallion salt — a special salt with scallion flavor added, and dipping the meat lightly in it gave a clean but savory boost. Then there was the secret sauce, which added a whole different feel when eaten with the meat. And finally, the secret meat sauce too!

Personally, I liked that the meat itself was delicious, but being able to pair it with so many different sauces was a huge plus. Honestly, there wasn't a single combination that day that wasn't good :D

Finally, here's the pork belly and pork neck that came out. Doesn't the color of the meat already look amazing?

How do you grill on the cast-iron pan?

The meat is grilled on a cast-iron pan, and maybe because the pan is thick, I loved watching it cook, plus the golden-brown look of the pork belly was already appealing.

Apparently the key to really enjoying the cast-iron grill at Girin Samgyeopsal, a well-known BBQ spot in Yadang, is to heat the pan thoroughly first, then place the meat on it, and wait without flipping it too often until one side turns golden brown!

After cooking one side thoroughly and flipping it, the outside came out golden brown while the inside kept its juices intact — really delicious. And on one side of the cast-iron pan, we also grilled some kimchi and bean sprouts together with the meat.

When the kimchi gets grilled in the meat's fat, well, need I say more. Putting grilled kimchi on top of a piece of pork belly, I just kept reaching for more. It wasn't just grilling meat on the cast-iron pan — grilling kimchi and bean sprouts alongside it added a whole extra layer of fun.

Minari on the house

While we were eating, the owner also gave us some minari (water dropwort) on the house. We grilled the minari on the same pan as the meat, and eating it together with the pork belly gave a totally different vibe. Eating just meat the whole time can get a bit greasy, but the fragrant minari was great for switching up the palate every so often.

The nicely golden-browned meat was delicious wrapped in lettuce, and also really tasty dipped in Girin Samgyeopsal's own three signature sauces, a well-known BBQ spot near Yadang Station. I think we really finished it all without leaving a single piece behind.

Ending the meal with doenjang sulbap

I always like to order at least one rice dish when eating BBQ, so this time I went with doenjang sulbap.

Taking a spoonful of the broth in between bites of meat really worked well, as expected. It even comes with rice mixed in, so it's great as a finishing dish after the meat, and also good as a side to go with drinks.

The hot doenjang (soybean paste) broth was generously loaded with vegetables, tofu, and mushrooms. Instead of digging in right away, letting it sit for a bit so the rice grains soaked up the doenjang made it taste even better.

Is Girin Samgyeopsal worth it for a Paju group dinner?

That day, I got to properly enjoy delicious meat and drinks with old classmates I hadn't seen in a while. With the meat grilled golden brown on the cast-iron pan and all the different sauces to pair with it, I never got tired of it and enjoyed every bite until the end. Finishing off with the doenjang sulbap made for a satisfying, filling end to the meal. If you're looking for a place to eat pork belly or pork neck near Yadang Station, Girin Samgyeopsal, a well-known local spot, might be worth a visit.