Dangjin BBQ buffet with cheese-dipped galbi: Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi

While traveling in Dangjin, I went looking for a good meal and ended up at a BBQ place. Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi, famous for its all-you-can-eat deal, turned out to have a branch in Dangjin! Today I'm introducing Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi Dangjin Gijisi Branch (명륜진사갈비 당진기지시점), an all-you-can-eat BBQ restaurant in Dangjin, Chungnam.

Where is Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi Dangjin Gijisi Branch, and where do you park?

The restaurant is on the 2nd floor of a building at 6275 Seohae-ro in Sigok-dong, Dangjin. You can park for free in the large lot near the building.

If you search for the Gijisi branch and head there, you'll see a big building. Go up to the 2nd floor and Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi is right there. The sign is visible from far away, so it was easy to find.

No parking registration needed, which made it easy to use.

Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi Dangjin menu and prices

The unlimited pass is ₩21,900, the same price on weekdays and weekends. On weekdays you can also order a lunch special, which isn't all-you-can-eat.

• Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi unlimited pass: ₩21,900
• Lunch special 1: 200g marinated galbi, kimchi stew or soybean paste stew (choose one), self-bar access, ₩12,900
• Lunch special 2: 200g marinated galbi, mul naengmyeon or bibim naengmyeon (cold noodles, choose one), self-bar access, ₩14,900

The lunch special seems great for people who want a reasonable amount of meat. Even though it's a lunch special, you can still use the self-bar, so the value is really good.

What is the dining room like?

The interior is modern and clean, so the meal felt relaxed. The place is spacious with big tables, so it would work well for gatherings of any size or a family meal out.

What's on the Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi self-bar?

Besides unlimited meat, you also get the self-bar, so it's a place where you can eat plenty. The meats on offer included pork belly, pork neck, pork galbi, eel and pork skin.

Free soda and unlimited draft beer

There's a self-serve machine where you can drink unlimited soda at no extra charge. You can also use the ice box next to it to make your drink even colder.

Draft beer is unlimited once you pay for it. If you want beer, pay the extra and enjoy as much as you like.

Self-bar food, from lettuce wraps to bun cha (Vietnamese noodles)

The neatly kept self-bar had a wide variety of food.

Wrap ingredients for ssam (wrapping meat in leaves) were laid out tidily. Beyond those there was tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), assorted fried foods, japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), cheongpomuk muchim (seasoned mung bean jelly), french fries and more. Just the self-bar alone would be filling, right?

With the lunch special you only get 200g of meat, but since you can use the self-bar, a self-bar like this makes it a really good deal. If you live nearby, the unlimited pass is great, and the lunch special would be easy to use often too.

It's my first time at a self-bar with bun cha (Vietnamese noodles with grilled pork)! Bun cha at a self-bar, wow! So many different dishes to try, right?

There were also fresh options like salad and fruit pudding, plus morning rolls for dessert, so there was food for every age. Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi felt like a good fit for visiting as a family.

How good is the meat on the unlimited pass?

I wanted to fully enjoy the galbi at Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi, so I went with the unlimited pass (₩21,900). I grilled pork neck, marinated galbi, marinated eel and pork skin, in that order, over charcoal.

At a BBQ place the meat has to be good above all, right? The meat I brought from the self-bar looked fresh, so it passed the looks test. The charcoal was set up when I ordered. Grilling over charcoal made me think the meat would taste even better.

First round: charcoal-grilled pork neck

I started with the fresh, tasty-looking pork neck. Vegetables were set out too, so it was nice to grill them together.

Can you feel the freshness even in the photo? Eat it yourself and you get that freshness as is. Even though it's all-you-can-eat, they don't just put out any old meat.

While the meat grilled, I got wrap ingredients and side dishes ready to eat. With tasty sides to nibble while the meat cooked, the wait never got boring.

Marinated galbi dipped in the free cheese

After a good amount of pork neck, I brought out the marinated galbi. Galbi is the main event at Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi, after all. It looked just as fresh as the pork neck.

If marinated galbi is too salty or too sweet I can't eat much, but the galbi here is nicely salty-sweet, so I could eat a lot.

Dipping the galbi in the cheese they gave as a freebie was a real treat too. I wondered whether cheese and galbi would go together, but the rich cheese flavor with the galbi was just plain amazing. I really recommend the cheese and galbi combo!

Marinated eel on the charcoal grill

They had eel too. It was well prepared and marinated like the galbi, so it was tasty. With good seasoning and good prep, I think kids could eat it well too, not just adults.

Galbi wraps with green onion salad and soybean-powder pork skin

I'd been dying to eat the galbi, and I can't count how many times I wrapped it with pajeori (shredded green onion salad). I'm more of a perilla leaf person than a lettuce person, and they had plenty of perilla leaves, which was great.

To finish, chewy pork skin! The self-bar had kongnamul-style roasted soybean powder for dipping, so I got to enjoy the pork skin properly. From the self-bar to the meat, it felt like I got more than a meal's worth.

Receipt review prize-draw event

At Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi Dangjin Gijisi Branch, if you write a receipt review you can take part in a prize draw board. Good value for the meal and a gift on top! It sounds like a really fun meal. Enjoy a tasty meal and join the event.

If you're looking for an all-you-can-eat BBQ place in Dangjin, Chungnam that's good for a family meal, I recommend Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi Dangjin Gijisi Branch. With bognal (the hottest days of summer, when Koreans eat hearty food) coming up, you're probably wondering what to eat. Visit Myeongnyun Jinsa Galbi and enjoy a healthy meal with lots of different food. 🧡