Jongno Korean BBQ with clothes styler, grilled kimchi: Simin Sikdang

Jongno 3-ga is a neighborhood where old-school institutions and trendy new hotspots live side by side. I love it personally, so I'm here a lot. Today I visited Simin Sikdang Main Branch (시민식당 본점), a Jongno BBQ restaurant that has held its spot in Jongno 3-ga for 14 years! When I opened the door, older folks were eating inside, and just seeing that made me feel this is a place people have been coming to steadily for a long time. After eating there, I get why it's been loved for so long. Here's my Simin Sikdang review of a Jongno 3-ga pork belly favorite. Let's go!

Simin Sikdang Main Branch: location, hours and parking

Simin Sikdang Main Branch is at 30 Donhwamun-ro 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul. It is open Tuesday to Sunday, 11:00–21:30, and closed every Monday. There is no parking, so you'll need a nearby lot (₩400 per 5 minutes).

🗒 Menu

Simin Sikdang is right in front of Exit 1 of Jongno 3-ga Station, so it's super easy to get to! It sits in a small alley just off the main road.

Simin Sikdang's atmosphere and seating

The exterior is clean, and the Hanwoo-certified (Korean pork) sign stands out. Inside, too, you can see the owner's pride in his meat all over the place!! I welcome that kind of pride.

The restaurant has two floors, so there are lots of seats, and the tables are spaced widely enough to eat comfortably. The 2nd floor can apparently be booked for groups, and judging by the seats it looks like it could hold 50 people or more. There seemed to be a reservation when I visited, because birthday party balloons were cutely set up!

It has been featured in several food-guide media outlets too, a true, true must-visit.

Worried about smelling like meat? Simin Sikdang's styler and waiting drinks

There were two services here you rarely see at regular restaurants, and one of them is a clothes styler. It can cut down the smell that clings to your clothes after eating meat, which seems especially useful in winter when you wear thick coats. The owner has great sense. Even if you don't use the styler, there's also a luggage storage service, so it's easy to use.

And this was the second service that surprised me: when there's a wait, you can have a drink while you wait, so even a long wait should feel a little more relaxed!

The 2nd floor has a mini drinks fridge, which looks handy for group reservations or private bookings. They even have slush soju that drinkers will love! You can feel they've thought about the small details so guests can settle in comfortably 🥺

The restroom is inside the restaurant and is kept very clean. There's even dental floss, which is handy if you need it.

Simin Samgyeop Half Set: what's in it and the price

The Simin Samgyeop Half Set (시민삼겹반판세트) is ₩70,000 and comes with 450g of pork belly, wagyu cheese fried rice and kimchi stew, enough for 2–3 people. I added a bowl of rice (₩1,000) to it.

• Simin Samgyeop Half Set: ₩70,000 (450g pork belly + wagyu cheese fried rice + kimchi stew)
• Bowl of rice: ₩1,000

The grill here is a stone grill whose tilt can be adjusted. They tilt it while you grill the meat, then flatten it for the fried rice. Because it's stone, the warmth lasts a long time even with the heat off, which I loved. There's also a mini burner next to it, so you can keep the stew simmering hot 👍

I wanted the full experience, from the meat to the stew to the fried rice, so I ordered the half set for 2–3 people. While I waited for the pan to heat up, a hearty spread arrived in no time.

Good-looking pork belly, mushrooms, onions and green onions, plus a variety of side dishes, kimchi and kimchi stew all came out neatly on one table.

What does house-made kimchi taste like grilled?

Maybe because the kimchi here is made in-house, when you grill it on the stone grill with the pork belly, there's none of that bland taste store-bought kimchi has, just a deep, clean savoriness! (And the color when grilled is amazing.)

They also serve a generous variety of fresh wrap vegetables 👍 It's not only lettuce: there were perilla leaves, kale, red chard, red mustard greens and more!! (Refills are available once you finish, so wrap as much as you like.)

How does Simin Sikdang's pork belly taste on the stone grill?

As the bright pink color shows, the pork belly here is in great condition, and the ratio of fat to lean meat is just right.

Cooked on the stone grill, the juices stayed in and the outside turned nice and crispy. It's so golden it looks incredibly delicious;; 🥺 One warning: once the stone gets hot, it doesn't cool down easily, so oil can splatter a lot. Grill carefully!

The meat was juicy and the tender texture was great. The nutty flavor came through well, and it was clean with no gamey smell 👍

It's delicious on top of rice, and delicious wrapped with kimchi, so I ate in a total frenzy. Seriously, definitely get kimchi refills three times. Seriously.

Simin Sikdang's kimchi stew that comes with the set

It comes as part of the Simin Samgyeop Half Set, but the kimchi stew was so full of ingredients it could pass as a main dish. Tofu, mushrooms, meat and more were packed in generously. Apparently Simin Sikdang's kimchi stew has even been named one of Seoul's TOP 5 kimchi stew restaurants. Coming just for kimchi stew at lunchtime would be a good idea too!

Once it starts bubbling like this, you can eat. Sipping the kimchi stew between bites of meat wipes out the greasiness completely.

There's plenty of meat, and maybe because it's made with the house-made kimchi, the broth is deep and rich. It's great grilled, but the kimchi in the stew is really something else..

How to make the wagyu nine-section cheese fried rice

The wagyu cheese fried rice comes served like a Joseon-era gujeolpan (nine-section platter), with 9 ingredients (wagyu, kimchi, shredded green onion, mushrooms, cheese, seaweed flakes and more) neatly arranged.

Every seat has an instruction sheet like this, so you just make it step by step while looking at it!!

• First, stir-fry the wagyu
• Add the other ingredients and fry them together
• Then add the rice and fry it well

You make the fried rice yourself. But the staff check in now and then to see how it's going and kindly tell you how to make it even tastier, so it isn't hard at all.

Finally, put the cheese on top and cover it with a rice blanket (?) so it melts well, and you're done! The cheese melts softly between the rice 🤤

With wagyu, kimchi and even bean sprouts in it, the fried rice tasted incredibly rich. In particular, the cheese stuck to the stone grill turned crispy and was delicious to the very end;;

Verdict: do I recommend Simin Sikdang Main Branch in Jongno 3-ga?

Simin Sikdang Main Branch satisfied me from the most important thing at a pork belly restaurant, the quality of the meat, and even the side dishes like the stew and fried rice were all delicious. The staff were really, really kind, and the set menu and value for money were good too, so I left happy from start to finish! If you're looking for a great pork belly place in Jongno 3-ga or want a hearty meal, I recommend Simin Sikdang Main Branch.