Gapyeong dakgalbi with sweet potato sari and a 12-seat table: Jayeon

Today I want to introduce a dakgalbi spot in Gapyeong! I went on a trip to Gapyeong recently, and you know you've gotta have dakgalbi when you're there, haha. So I searched around and ended up at Jayeon Dakgalbi (자연닭갈비)! The place was really spacious and the staff were so, so kind, so I had a genuinely pleasant meal there 🩵 Let's get into this review of Jayeon Dakgalbi, a dakgalbi spot near Nami Island!

Where is Jayeon Dakgalbi and is parking easy?

Jayeon Dakgalbi is a standalone restaurant building at 1007-10 Bukhangang-byeon-ro, Gapyeong-eup, Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do. There's a large parking area in front of the building, so no need to stress about parking if you're driving.

Since it's a standalone building, it wasn't hard to find at all! You spot the building itself and go 'ah, this is it!' right away, haha.

And parking!! There's a really spacious lot in front of the building so you don't need to worry about that at all! In Gapyeong people often get around by car, so having plenty of parking really matters, haha. I liked the place already from the moment I parked, lol.

Group dining at Jayeon Dakgalbi: the 12-seat table and self-serve side bar

Inside Jayeon Dakgalbi there are 4-person tables as well as a big table seating around 12 people and a separate space for group guests. In the center of the restaurant there's also a self-serve bar for side dishes.

The interior was really spacious too! There were regular 4-person tables, a big table for several people, and even a separate space for group visits, so it looked good for family gatherings or group meals! There was even a table that could seat about 12 people together 👀

And in the middle of the restaurant there was a self-serve bar! You could grab whatever side dishes you needed yourself. And best of all it was kept so clean that I wanted to give it a perfect hygiene score, lol.

The restroom was located inside the restaurant too, with several stalls, and it was kept clean overall 👍

Jayeon Dakgalbi menu and what we ordered

The Jayeon Dakgalbi menu has two dakgalbi options — soy sauce dakgalbi and hot-plate dakgalbi — plus sides like mak-guksu, jeonbyeong, acorn jelly, and potato pancake. We ordered hot-plate dakgalbi for two with udon sari, sweet potato sari, and mak-guksu.

Fitting for a dakgalbi restaurant, there were two flavors ready to go — soy sauce dakgalbi and regular hot-plate dakgalbi — plus a variety of sides like mak-guksu, jeonbyeong, acorn jelly, and potato pancake! After some deliberation we ordered hot-plate dakgalbi + udon sari + sweet potato sari + mak-guksu!

Once we ordered, they brought out the basic side dishes neatly arranged! If you need more, you can just grab them from the self-serve bar in the middle, haha.

Hot-plate dakgalbi for two with sweet potato sari

Adding sweet potato sari to the hot-plate dakgalbi for two made for a really generous portion. At Jayeon Dakgalbi, staff stir-fry it for you from start to finish, so you can just sit back and wait.

We got the hot-plate dakgalbi for two with sweet potato sari added! Guys... isn't the portion seriously huge?! 😳

I really, really love sweet potato sari and always add it when eating dakgalbi, and here adding it gave us so much that I was genuinely happy, lol. If you love sweet potato... definitely add it like I did 🤣 And the staff kept stir-frying the dakgalbi deliciously from start to finish! Thanks to that we could just relax and get ready to eat, haha.

Mak-guksu for one

The mak-guksu at Jayeon Dakgalbi wasn't optional — it was essential. The broth was refreshing with a nutty aroma, and the noodles were springy and chewy.

Guys... the mak-guksu is not optional. It's essential. I'm serious, lol. It was really, really delicious 🤤 My friend who came with me took one bite first and her eyes suddenly went wide, lol. So I tried it right away too... and my eyes went wide as well 👀!! The broth was refreshing with a nutty aroma rising up, and the noodles were springy and chewy — genuinely delicious!

Udon sari and cheese sari

The udon sari gets added near the end once the dakgalbi is well cooked, and the cheese sari goes in the middle with the udon to melt slightly.

They added the udon sari to the well stir-fried dakgalbi near the end, haha. Stir-frying it together so the sauce soaks right into the udon noodles made it delicious too!

And that's not the end... we added cheese sari too!! Put the cheese and udon sari in the middle, melt it slightly, and it's done~!

Can you see the cheese stretching?! 😍 Adding cheese was seriously a great call, lol. Everyone, take notes. You must have cheese sari + mak-guksu!! This is the combo I tried and recommend, lol. Of course wrapping it in a lettuce wrap was delicious too! The chicken itself was really tender and the sauce wasn't too intense — sweet with a slight kick of spice, which is exactly my style 🤤

In the end we just kept eating and eating... and cleared the whole pan, lol 🩵 Not just the chicken but the sweet potato sari, rice cake sari, and vegetables were all evenly coated in sauce, so bite after bite we just kept going without realizing it, lol. Dakgalbi really needs its sari add-ins done right 🤣

Can you bring your dog to Jayeon Dakgalbi?

Jayeon Dakgalbi allows dogs. There was a dog with another table on the day we visited.

Oh, one more thing! Jayeon Dakgalbi is dog-friendly too! There was actually a cute dog there the day I visited, haha. If you're traveling with a dog, finding restaurants can sometimes be tricky because of pets, so it's worth keeping this place in mind 🐶🩵

Who should visit Jayeon Dakgalbi

• Looking for a good dakgalbi spot near Gapyeong or Nami Island
• Looking for a spacious restaurant that's easy to park at
• Looking for a place to eat as a family or group
• Traveling around Gapyeong with a dog

Today's Jjijang score, out of a possible 5: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 8 points~!