Three friends, three pork cuts at a Jongno3-ga Korean BBQ: Cham

It was time for my regular pork belly transfusion again haha. Meeting up with friends I hadn't seen in a while, we debated where to go in Jongno and ended up at Cham Dwaejitgan Jongno Main Branch, where they grill pork belly over domestic charcoal. Meat cooked over charcoal never disappoints. It was a hearty, delicious Jongno restaurant.

Where is Cham Dwaejitgan Jongno Main Branch, and how long is the wait?

This Jongno restaurant is easy to reach — about a 2-minute walk from Exits 2 and 2-1 of Jongno 3-ga Station in Seoul. Walk around to the left of the CGV Piccadilly theater and it's on the first floor.

They're open daily from 12:00 to 23:00.

We arrived around 6pm on a Friday and there were about 3 parties waiting ahead of us. Phone reservations seem possible, but not on weekdays after 6pm or weekends after 2pm. For parking, there are public lots nearby.

Inside Cham Dwaejitgan: interior and the basic table setting

Being a Friday evening, there were a lot of company dinner groups too. Even with the big tables seating up to 16 people packed with diners, the staff still checked on every table carefully, which I appreciated. No matter how good a restaurant is, if it's too noisy you hesitate to come back — but this was at just the right level haha.

The table came set with domestic minari, kimchi, bean sprouts, along with green onion salad, lettuce wraps, and a variety of sauces. The table was wide enough to eat comfortably.

Except for the minari, all the side dishes are refillable at the self-serve bar, and you can check the origin of each ingredient too.

You order through a kiosk, and you can choose between Jirisan black pork and Boseong nokdon! The side menu was also varied, with naengmyeon (cold noodles), kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew), doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), and more.

Ordering one portion each of Boseong nokdon pork belly, collar and thousand-layer cuts

Beyond the basic salt and ssamjang (dipping sauce), there was also a spicy sauce, mushroom wasabi, and pickled garlic scapes, so we tried following the classic pork belly combos haha.

We also ordered a bottle of Cheongha, and they gave us milk thistle along with it — such a thoughtful touch haha.

We ordered Boseong nokdon cham samgyeopsal, kkotmoksal, and cheongyeopsal, one portion each haha. You could tell right away the meat quality was good. It came with this Jongno pork belly restaurant's signature potato slices along with kkwari-gochu (shishito-style peppers) and mushrooms.

The custom-made grill doesn't splatter oil, and it's shaped so vegetables can be cooked separately, which was convenient. Guaranteed delicious combos, right haha.

Staff grill the charcoal pork at your table

The staff grilled the meat for us perfectly. Since we hadn't seen each other in a while, we were busy catching up, so having everything grilled for us was really convenient.

The heat wasn't too strong, so the pork belly cooked through nicely first, then the moksal (pork collar) and hangjeongsal (pork jowl) were grilled after, letting us savor everything without rushing haha.

Crispy outside, juicy inside, not tough at all, grilled just right — the kind of thing that disappears instantly. The thick cut made the texture even better.

For the first bite, of course, we dipped it lightly in salt and wasabi. We were chatting away excitedly with friends and after one bite everyone let out a wow. There was a slight charcoal aroma and the juices burst out — so good haha.

We also wrapped some in lettuce with bean sprouts — the ratio of lean meat to fat was just right, giving it a nutty, satisfying flavor.

By then the hangjeongsal and moksal were done cooking, so we wrapped them in kimchi with mushroom wasabi too. Eating it plain with just the mushrooms, like on the right, was also delicious. I usually like hangjeongsal best, but that day the samgyeopsal was especially good haha.

The best bite: hangjeongsal on a signature potato slice

Once the meat was all grilled, they started properly grilling the potato slices. It reminded me of grilling potatoes at a pension barbecue, which was nice. The heat wasn't too strong or too weak, so the potatoes cooked through quickly.

Then we put a piece of hangjeongsal on top of the potato, added garlic, ssamjang, and wasabi, and popped it all in one bite — the crispy, nutty flavor of the potato brought out the savory richness of the meat even more than I expected haha. I want to go back just to eat this again.

Finishing with pan-fried rice and crispy scorched rice

After eating our fill, it was fried rice time haha. They fried it right on the grill plate and cracked an egg on top!

A pork belly restaurant can't get away with bad fried rice. The seasoning was just right and the rice was fluffy — a great way to finish the meal.

And since it's fried right on the grill plate, you also get this crispy scorched rice at the bottom, which disappeared in no time. The three of us women had three portions of pork belly plus one fried rice, and it was still a filling meal haha.

Is Cham Dwaejitgan Jongno worth a visit? Final verdict

On our way out, we saw the rice-husk-smoked meats stored fresh like this. You could really tell the meat quality was solid! There are many good pork belly restaurants in Jongno, but the staff were kind and the meat was delicious, so I'd like to visit again.

They thoughtfully prepared everything you'd want after a meat meal — phone charging, hair ties, mouthwash, breath mints, floss and toothpicks, and Febreze — so it would also make a great date spot. If you're looking for a Jongno meat restaurant where staff grill for you, give Cham Dwaejitgan a try.