Chuseok holiday Korean BBQ with no wait in Jongno 3-ga: Meongseokjip

There's one thing I always crave once the weather turns cool: BBQ eaten at a street-side table (야장)...♥ The season for enjoying it is honestly short — too hot in summer, too cold in winter — so a breezy fall like this one is the perfect time to enjoy street BBQ in Jongno 3-ga.

So this Chuseok holiday, while I was out around Jongno, I stopped by Meongseokjip in Jongno 3-ga. I was worried a lot of restaurants would be closed for the holiday, but it was open as usual when I visited, which made me so happy :)

In a space that mixes hanok charm with street BBQ vibes, I grilled my own meat and got a real taste of Jongno atmosphere. 🥩🍻 Because it was the holiday, there was no wait and barely any crowd, so it felt relaxed and easy — haha!

Where is Meongseokjip Jongno 3-ga Branch and how do you get there?

• 🏠 Name: Meongseokjip Jongno 3-ga Branch
• 📍 Address: 7 Donhwamun-ro 11da-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🚇 Transit: Walkable from Jongno 3-ga Station (Line 5 is closest; Lines 1 or 3 require a bit more walking)

Jongno 3-ga street seating, at its best in autumn

Meongseokjip is easy to find — walk out of Jongno 3-ga Station toward the Insadong alleys and it's right near the entrance.

Along the alley there were rows of outdoor tables set up for street BBQ! On a nice-weather day, I'd actually recommend sitting at one of these alley tables over the inside seats. During street-BBQ season these spots must get pretty competitive haha!

Inside Meongseokjip: a hanok-style dining room

The moment I stepped inside Meongseokjip, this space was what I liked most! Lush green plants mixed with warm orange lighting made for a really pretty atmosphere. 🍃 There's a big moon-shaped ornament hanging up top too, which gave it a different feel from a typical Jongno BBQ spot. Plants and lighting layered onto an old hanok structure — it let me properly enjoy that retro vibe unique to Jongno 3-ga's street BBQ scene.

Further inside, the old wood and hanok structure are kept intact. It's not an overly manufactured kind of retro — it felt naturally woven into the Jongno alleys, which I liked even more.

Just so you know, this isn't a place where staff grill the meat for you — you cook it yourself. Since a lot of BBQ restaurants these days do the grilling for you, this can catch people off guard, so it's good to know before you visit :)

Meongseokjip menu and prices

What we ordered that day was the Meongseokjip Set for ₩55,000! It's a combo set for 2–3 people made up of aged pork belly for two and flower pork collar for one.

À la carte, aged pork belly and skirt meat were ₩18,000 each, pork jowl and flower pork collar were ₩19,000 each, and there was also beef short rib meat and beef flat iron. Sides included kimchi fried rice, beef brisket doenjang stew, pork kimchi stew, and steamed egg — enough that you could fill up here without needing a second round. 😋

What comes in the 55,000-won Meongseokjip Set?

The Meongseokjip Set finally arrived♥ Thick-cut meat came out all together on one plate, and it looked hearty right off the bat. The pork belly had a good balance of fat and lean meat, and the pork collar had real thickness too. If you want to try a bit of everything, I'd say start with the combo set rather than à la carte.

Grilling the aged pork belly yourself

As mentioned, Meongseokjip in Jongno 3-ga is a self-grill spot. We laid the thick cuts on the grill and cooked them golden-brown on both sides.

With the pork belly, crisping up the outside really brought out that savory flavor, and the thickness gave it a satisfying chew. For some reason, meat eaten at a street table always tastes about 1.5 times better than eating indoors...🤭♥

Golden, crispy pork belly hahaha. Wrapping it up in lettuce felt like a solid protein boost — honestly great haha!

Once we finished the aged pork belly, we moved on to grilling the flower pork collar next haha!

People eat a lot of home-cooked food over Chuseok, but I couldn't get a train ticket and didn't make it back to my hometown this year. Still, eating meat this good made up for missing out on home cooking, at least a little haha!

The self-serve corner: kimchi, garlic and wrap greens

One more thing I liked was the self-serve corner! Kimchi, bean sprouts, green onion kimchi, garlic, lettuce wraps — everything was neatly stocked by type. When you're eating BBQ you end up constantly grabbing more lettuce or kimchi, and it was nice being able to take as much as I needed without feeling self-conscious. It was well organized overall too, so even though it's self-serve, it never felt messy. 👍

Final verdict on Meongseokjip, a Jongno 3-ga Korean BBQ spot

Meongseokjip in Jongno 3-ga was a great place to enjoy both the alley atmosphere unique to Jongno and street BBQ vibes together. Especially in nice fall weather, with the outdoor mood added in, it'd be perfect for a casual drink with friends or a meal after an Ikseon-dong date. 🍻

That said, if you prefer places where staff grill everything for you, keep in mind you have to cook it yourself here! On the flip side, if you like the vibe of grilling meat together with friends or a partner while chatting away, this self-grill style actually suits Jongno's street BBQ atmosphere really well. If you want to test your boyfriend's grilling skills, this could be a good opportunity too hahaha?

If you've been looking for a good street BBQ spot in Jongno 3-ga or a Korean BBQ restaurant near Ikseon-dong now that the breeze is turning cool, give this one a look. I want to go grill meat outside one more time before fall is over...♥ 🍂🥩

My friend and I headed to a nearby café afterward to chat and wrapped up our day there haha! There are plenty of cafés around, so it'd be easy to head somewhere for round two after eating haha!