Pork BBQ by Seomyeon Station: yolk dip, chili pickles, bracken, Don J

Where is Don J Busan Seomyeon, and when should you go?

Don J Busan Seomyeon (돈제이 부산서면점) is a pork belly restaurant at 52 Gayadae-ro 784beon-gil, Busanjin-gu, Busan, on the 1st floor, right below Lotte Department Store in Seomyeon. It is open Sun–Thu 17:00–01:00 and Fri–Sat 17:00–02:00, and there is no parking.

• Address: 52 Gayadae-ro 784beon-gil, Busanjin-gu, Busan (1st floor)
• Hours: 17:00–01:00 (Sun–Thu) / 17:00–02:00 (Fri, Sat)
• No parking / staff-grilled meat / good-value set menus / great sides

It sits right under Lotte Department Store in Seomyeon, so it's easy to find and easy to reach. It was a delicious BBQ place, and for the first time in a while we left saying, "Let's come back."

I went on a Monday, and by the time we finished eating the place was almost completely full. If you're going on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday, I'd definitely recommend booking through Catch Table.

What did we order at Don J Busan Seomyeon?

The two of us ordered 600g of pork neck, highland kimchi stew, yeolmu (young radish greens) and meat bibimbap, and butter rice. I thought we'd finish everything, but no matter how hard we tried, we just couldn't.

What are the side dishes and sauces like at Don J Busan Seomyeon?

The standard sides are green onion salad, myeongi-namul (wild garlic pickles) and chili pickles, while the bracken, kimchi and bean sprouts are all meant to be grilled on the lid. I was surprised by how many sauces there were, and even though I'd never seen most of them before, many were far tastier than I expected.

Usually I only eat the wild garlic and green onion salad, but the chili pickles were way better than I expected. The fact that they make every side dish themselves made me like the place even more.

The combo I ate most: soy-yolk sauce + chili pickles + bracken

A sauce of pork soy sauce (I think?) topped with an egg yolk was the one I ate most with the meat. That sauce plus chili pickles plus bracken was seriously, really good. It made me want to go back just for that.

Do the staff grill the meat at Don J Busan Seomyeon?

Yes, the staff grill everything for you, so there's nothing for you to do. They also grill bracken, kimchi and bean sprouts on the cauldron lid alongside the meat.

They grill the bracken, and maybe because it's so well seasoned, it was much tastier than I expected. Definitely ask for extra kimchi and have them grill lots and lots of it. It's insanely good.

While it's grilling, deciding what to eat first is always the hardest part, haha. Next time I'll definitely ask for a little more kimchi, grilled green onion and bracken, and have them grill plenty.

Looking at these photos, I want to eat it all over again. The pork belly in particular was so good.

Cauldron-lid grilling and the staff's recommended combos

Because it's a cauldron lid, the fat and flavor are definitely better. And when the meat is nearly done, the staff explain every combination for eating it deliciously, and all of them were a real kick.

They grill the salted shrimp in an interesting way, and the combo of grilled salted shrimp, perilla leaf and chili pickles was great.

Handmade pork cutlet sauce and breadcrumbs also come out, and these were surprisingly good too. When the meat starts to feel heavy, eating it this way makes it feel like pork cutlet and brings you back to the meat.

Cramming in all the grilled vegetables, meat, green onion salad and sauces at once was really, really delicious. I'm going back again just to eat this.

Which side menu items are good at Don J Busan Seomyeon?

Like my title says, Don J Busan Seomyeon is a place famous for its sides, and the new yeolmu meat bibimbap was really, truly delicious. As we left, I said they could sell this at lunch too, it was that much my style.

Highland kimchi stew with melt-in-your-mouth meat

The highland kimchi stew is kept simmering, so the meat goes past tender into melting. I personally love this kind of kimchi stew, so it was totally my style. There was so much meat that I wondered whether the price was right.

Review-event butter rice

We got the butter rice through a review event. I liked the yeolmu meat bibimbap, but my girlfriend preferred this butter rice. It was more than a full bowl of rice, and she finished it all.

Is Don J Busan Seomyeon worth going back to?

Don J Busan Seomyeon was a BBQ place I wanted to go back to for the first time in a while. It's a BBQ place I want to visit again soon.