Hapjeong Korean BBQ, pork belly kept warm on a wire rack: Ijjok

What kind of Korean BBQ restaurant is Ijjok Kimchi Samgyeopsal in Hapjeong?

Ijjok Kimchi Samgyeopsal (이쪽 김치생삼겹살) is a fresh pork belly restaurant on the basement level of Dongmak-ro 3-gil, near Hapjeong Station. The staff grill the meat for you and cook aged kimchi right in the pork fat. It was a really satisfying pork belly spot in Hapjeong! I've been to so many famous samgyeopsal (pork belly) places, but this was the first in a while where I thought, "Wow, THIS is real pork belly!"

The meat was in great condition, not too fatty but full of juice, and I gasped at the very first bite. The aged kimchi grilled in the pork fat was a real treat. And since the staff grilled the meat for us, we could eat it at its best without any effort.

Opening hours and location near Hapjeong Station

Ijjok Kimchi Samgyeopsal is open 17:00 - 23:00 and closed every Sunday. It is at 20 Dongmak-ro 3-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, on the basement level.

How to enjoy the pork belly at Ijjok

The wall also explains how to eat the meat well. Note that when it's busy, staff may not be able to grill for you, depending on the situation.

Ijjok Kimchi Samgyeopsal menu and prices

There are set menus for 2 to 4 people, and you can also order à la carte! Fresh pork belly is ₩16,000 per serving, 180g.

Side dishes and sweet-and-sour scallion salad

The basic side dishes were neat and just right to eat with meat!

The seasoning on the scallion salad (pajeori) was especially good, sweet and sour and perfect with pork belly.

Fresh pork belly for two and a whole head of grilled aged kimchi

For the meat, we ordered 2 servings of fresh pork belly à la carte!

The fresh pork belly looked fresh just by eye and had a lovely color. It was cut to a good thickness and the meat-to-fat ratio looked just right~ Once the pork belly goes on the grill and the fat starts to come out, the staff lay a whole head of aged kimchi on top, and this was the real deal!

Then the staff started grilling in earnest. The pork belly turned golden, the fat ran, and with the sizzling sound and the savory smell spreading, it was really hard to wait.

And of course a glass of soju, which pork belly can't go without.

How did the staff-grilled fresh pork belly taste?

The moment of the first bite of nicely cooked pork belly

The meat was cooked at its best: full of juice but not overly fatty, and savory the more I chewed. It was so satisfying that I naturally thought, "This is what fresh pork belly is!"

Pork belly kept warm on a wire rack, with potatoes in the gap

The cooked pork belly was placed separately on a wire rack over the grill so it wouldn't burn, so we could eat it warm down to the last piece, which I liked. And in the spot where the pork belly had been, the staff grilled potatoes.

Wraps with aged kimchi soaked in pork fat

The kimchi was perfectly ripe too, sour with a deep savory flavor,

and wrapping a piece of pork belly with the fat-soaked aged kimchi in lettuce for one big bite was so, so good.

The scallion salad added a crunchy texture too, keeping the savoriness of the meat while cutting the greasiness, so it was a combo that kept me eating.

The potatoes set on one side of the grill earlier had soaked up the fat from the pork belly and turned golden, crisp outside and fluffy inside.

It was a pork belly place I really enjoyed for the first time in a while: fresh meat, nicely ripened aged kimchi, and the careful grilling service, everything was satisfying.

Inside Ijjok Kimchi Samgyeopsal

The inside isn't huge, but it's cozy, and with the space split into left and right sides it felt less cramped than expected, so we could eat comfortably. The owner was friendly too, so it was a restaurant where I felt good the whole meal.

If you're looking for a proper fresh pork belly restaurant near Hapjeong Station, I definitely recommend giving it a visit!