Euljiro pocha-style pub with big windows and bone grill: Eulji Baektan

After work, I was looking for a spot where friends and I could have a few drinks with great snacks, and I found this place, famous for bone grill with an addictive spicy sauce and a deep smoky char: Eulji Baektan (을지백탄뼈구이)!

Atmosphere at Eulji Baektan: a good Euljiro spot for a work dinner?

Inside, the tables are neatly arranged and the soft lighting gives it a cozy pocha (Korean street pub) feel that makes you want a drink. Through the big windows you can see the Euljiro street, so it never feels stuffy. It's perfect as an Euljiro pub or a place for a work dinner.

Bone grill sizes and spice levels

The main dish, the baektan bone grill, comes in small, medium and large, so it's easy to order for your group size. I really liked that the spice can be adjusted across 4 levels (1: a little spicy / 2: Shin Ramyun-level recommended / 3: Buldak Ramen-level recommended / 4: very spicy).

Other snacks and sides besides the bone grill

Besides the bone grill, there are plenty of tempting snacks: charcoal-grilled beef brisket made with Korean beef 1++, charcoal-grilled cuttlefish, fried cuttlefish, and bone hot pot. Rice balls, noodle dishes and potato pancake are on offer as sides too, so for an Euljiro group gathering you could order a bit of everything and share.

We ordered the signature bone grill along with rice balls to go with it, haha.

The complimentary side dishes were cabbage salad, white kimchi and kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi).

How to eat the bone grill and rice balls

The rice balls here are a perfect match for the bone grill!! They're tossed generously with nutty seaweed flakes and sesame seeds, shaped into bite-size rounds, and served piled in a metal bowl.

Toss these rice balls in the bone grill's sauce, or top them with the meat, and you get a truly perfect combination.

How did the bone grill taste and feel?

The moment the baektan bone grill arrived, the deep charcoal smokiness and the sweet-spicy sauce hit my nose. Wow, can you see how it looks? T_T The smoky, saucy smell filled the whole place, haha.

Next to the main dish, a big grilled scallion sits whole like a garnish, which adds to the fun of how it looks!!

I lifted a well-cooked piece of meat high with my chopsticks.

The meat is so well simmered and grilled that with just a light touch of the chopsticks it slides softly off the bone!!!! There's no dryness at all; it's full of juice and practically melts the moment it goes into your mouth.

How to eat it with the grilled whole scallion

Cut the scallion, sweet from the grilling, into bite-size pieces and eat it with the bone grill meat to double the flavor.

Wrap a piece of that tender meat around a bit of well-grilled scallion and pop it in your mouth in one bite. The crunchy, sweet scallion with the spicy, savory meat made me exclaim out loud, haha.

Would I go back to Eulji Baektan?

If you want a proper old-school Euljiro feel and a great dish, I strongly recommend Eulji Baektan as a trendy Euljiro ("Hipjiro") hotspot, so do visit!! The tender meat, the fiery charcoal flavor and the addictive sauce are enough to blow your stress away in one go.

The space is pleasant and the mood is good, so it works for get-togethers with friends, as a date spot, or for a work dinner. Next time I'll definitely come back to try the other popular dishes, grilled or fried cuttlefish! If you want a tasty Euljiro food tour, don't hesitate to visit!