Staff-grilled pork belly and marinated ribs at Gogi Salon, Hongdae

Gogi Salon's location and hours

Address: 서울 마포구 월드컵북로6길 60 1층 좌측 Hours: Mon–Fri 11:30–23:00 Break time: 15:00–17:00 Saturday: 17:00–23:00 Last order: 22:00 Closed Sundays

That day, I wanted to fill up on something solid before heading off to a hobby class, so I stopped by Gogi Salon, a well-known BBQ spot near Hongdae Station.

It's about a 6-minute walk from Exit 2 of Hongdae Station toward Yeonnam-dong, so it was easy to get to by subway.

Reservations and group bookings are possible, so if you're planning to visit with several people, I'd recommend calling ahead.

There's no dedicated parking lot, so if you're driving, I'd suggest using a nearby public parking lot or checking with the restaurant before you go. That said, there was a spot right next to the store when we visited haha.

What the atmosphere was like

The interior was dark and calm, with sofa seating along the wall as well as regular tables.

Rather than the loud, bustling feel typical of BBQ places, it leaned more clean and relaxed — it seemed like it would work fine for dates, friend gatherings, or work dinners.

Every table had its own ventilation duct, and the tables weren't packed too tightly together, so it was comfortable to eat there.

Menu and prices

The meat menu ranged from pork cuts like raw pork belly, flower pork neck, and skirt meat, to beef cuts like flower meat, rib fingers, and seasoned beef short ribs.

The raw pork belly was ₩16,000 for a 160g serving, and because the cuts came out so thick, the portion actually looked quite generous when it arrived — I first thought it was closer to 180g.

If you want to try several types, the set menus also looked like a good option.

The meat set includes 2 servings of flower pork neck, 1 serving of raw pork belly, and either bibim guksu (spicy mixed noodles) or janchi guksu (noodle soup) for ₩51,000, while the salon set includes 2 servings of flower pork neck, 1 serving of pork neck ribs, and noodles for ₩52,000.

On weekdays at lunch there are separate lunch sets too — seasoned grilled pork ₩11,000, beef brisket ₩12,000, kimchi jjigae ₩10,000 — so it seemed like a decent option for office workers nearby to grab lunch.

Side dishes and condiments

After ordering, side dishes came out to eat alongside the meat — lettuce wraps, salad, pickled peppers, pickled cucumber, and more.

Condiments like wasabi, salt, and whole grain mustard were set out separately on the table, so we could add whatever suited our taste.

It was nice being able to switch up the condiment for each bite of meat. I tend to dip everything in everything, so having a variety of sauces got me a little excited.

Staff-grilled raw pork belly

A staff member grilled the meat for us from start to finish.

Along with the thick pork belly, they also put on potato, king oyster mushroom, and garlic — we didn't have to grill anything ourselves, just wait until it was cooked to the perfect point, which was convenient.

When you grill it yourself, you end up burning the meat while talking or someone has to hold the tongs the whole time, but here we could just focus on eating and chatting.

And the quiet MVP here was the potato and king oyster mushroom grilled alongside the meat!

The potato, soaked in pork fat and cooked golden brown, was crispy outside and fluffy inside, and the king oyster mushroom was moist — dipped lightly in salt, it was delicious.

The pork belly, cut into bite-sized pieces, was golden brown outside and juicy inside.

The meat was thick enough to have a good chew to it, and the ratio of fat to lean meat was solid, giving it a nice richness.

But honestly, the best part was piling plenty of meat on the grill and picking off pieces one by one — it felt amazing. Meat really isn't a food you should ration.

Seriously, piling the meat on high and eating without holding back just feels amazing haha

At first I just dipped it lightly in salt or wasabi, and after that I wrapped it in lettuce with rice and ssamjang (dipping sauce), one wrap at a time.

Adding pickled radish to the wraps cut through the richness, so I kept going.

Every wrap felt precious, so I only took a quick photo before it went straight into my mouth.

Adding doenjang jjigae and rice

Eating all that meat made me want something with broth, so I added doenjang jjigae and a bowl of rice.

The doenjang jjigae wasn't heavily seasoned or spicy — it was on the milder side, which made it a great match with the meat.

It had a generous amount of tofu and vegetables in it, and at ₩2,000 it was an easy add-on.

Spooning a bit of doenjang jjigae over rice made me realize how much I would have missed it if I hadn't ordered it alongside the meat.

Complimentary bibim guksu from the review event

When I visited, I was able to get a complimentary bibim guksu (spicy mixed noodles) by taking part in a review event.

The event details may change, so it's worth checking when you visit.

I figured the complimentary portion would be small, but a proper bowl of bibim guksu came out, piled generously with vegetables and seaweed flakes. Normally it's ₩5,000 as a standalone order.

I was already full from the meat and rice, but seeing the bibim guksu somehow made room appear again. Whatever, just eat it.

The bibim guksu was tangy and spicy, which paired well with the meat.

Between wrapping meat and rice in lettuce, mixing in some bibim guksu cut through the richness and revived my appetite.

I especially liked wrapping a bite of meat around a bit of the noodles. Meat and noodles really do taste better together than separately.

What the pork neck ribs tasted like

Next came the pork neck ribs.

The big piece of meat laid whole on the grill looked great just from the sight of it. Nice.

Seasoned meat can burn quickly if you let your guard down for even a moment, but the staff kept coming back nonstop to flip it and check on it.

They kept flipping it often so the sauce wouldn't burn, and cut it into bite-sized pieces for us, so we just got to sit back and eat the finished meat.

As it browned over the charcoal and the sauce's aroma rose up, even though I was already pretty full, my chopsticks kept reaching for more.

While the pork belly we ate earlier had a savory, clean flavor, the pork neck ribs had a sweet-savory sauce flavor, so I didn't get tired of it even by the end.

Final thoughts

We finished up with one big lettuce wrap of rice and pork neck ribs.

Between the pork belly, doenjang jjigae, bibim guksu, and pork neck ribs, I ended up eating way more than someone who just wanted a light meal before a hobby class should have.

It was convenient having the staff grill everything for us, and overall I was satisfied with the thick cuts of meat plus the potato and king oyster mushroom.

I especially appreciated how carefully they kept an eye on the seasoned ribs so they wouldn't burn.

If you're looking for a Korean BBQ restaurant near Hongdae Station where staff grill for you, or a good spot for a group gathering, Gogi Salon seems like a solid pick. I feel like I'll be back.