Gimpo pork belly BBQ with free kimchi stew rice: Donpu The Grill

A midsummer return to Donpu The Grill, a Janggi-dong pork belly spot in Gimpo

It's such brutally hot summer weather, but that's exactly when you need to eat well, so I headed back to Donpu The Grill for that delicious Janggi-dong pork belly. Staff grill the meat for you, parking is easy, and the side dish and service menu spread is generous — this was my second visit, and I left satisfied all over again! Lots of families and couples were there too. With the cold AC blowing, it was the perfect environment for eating meat.

Where is Donpu The Grill and where do you park?

Donpu The Grill specializes in fire-grilled meat, meat-and-rice sets, and aged pork belly, and its Janggi-dong, Gimpo location is the main branch. If there's a wait, there are comfortable chairs set up outside.

For parking, you can use the public parking lot — the first hour is free, and additional fees are very cheap. Public parking rates in the Gimpo area tend to be low overall, and it's completely free on public holidays and Sundays, so parking is no burden at all.

And free doesn't mean it's always full — I was able to park with plenty of room to spare. That'll vary day to day, so just take this as a reference! It's right in the Janggi-dong food alley area, so it's also easy to reach by public transit and makes for a nice spot before or after a date.

Self-serve vegetable bar and dining room atmosphere

While eating you might need a blanket, deodorizer, hair tie, toothpick, and so on, and this Janggi-dong, Gimpo favorite impressed me with how thoughtfully those little things were stocked for guests.

Kimchi, pickled radish, lettuce, perilla leaves, chicory, and chili and garlic — all the things that taste great with meat — were ready at the self-serve bar. I diligently made my rounds to the bar for a bit of cardio and made sure to eat plenty of vegetables along with the meat!

It was hygienic, tidy, and kept nice and cool, which I really liked. Korean BBQ restaurants often have poor ventilation and can feel a bit stuffy, but this Janggi-dong, Gimpo food alley spot was cool, clean, and hygienic.

Handon Couple Set: what comes with the pork belly and pork neck

We ordered the Hanwoo Pork Couple Set at Donpu The Grill. It's a menu that comes with generous portions of the two pork classics — belly and neck. What's more, the owner himself came out in a crisp dress shirt and diligently grilled the meat for us, haha. All the staff were friendly too, at this Janggi-dong, Gimpo favorite. If you want octopus included, try the Donpu Family Set or the Donpu Octopus Set!

This place is already famous for its Janggi-dong pork belly on the strength of the meat alone, but they also give you wasabi mayo, ponzu sauce, steak sauce, salted hairtail guts, Maldon salt, and fresh wasabi, so you can enjoy a variety of flavors to suit your taste. Dipping the pork neck in the steak sauce especially, it tastes exactly like steak!

All kinds of sauces and side vegetables were neatly arranged around the grill!

The egg custard came out soft as pudding too!

With a side dish spread this good, it's no wonder this place is counted among the top favorites in Janggi-dong, Gimpo!

Cold jeyuk on the house

And then meat we hadn't even ordered showed up — cold jeyuk (boiled sliced pork)! It was pork cooked and chilled, and dipping it in the special soy-based sauce was so delicious. The meat was clean-tasting, tender, and soft.

Here's the plate of vegetables I brought back from my self-serve bar cardio session. Great to pair with the meat!

Pork neck and pork belly grilled at the table by staff

Our ordered menu arrived. The thick-cut pork neck came out pre-seared! Green onion and king oyster mushroom came along too!

The staff grill everything themselves, piling on minari and kimchi as they go! Since they set everything up so all you have to do is eat comfortably, this is a really appealing Janggi-dong, Gimpo favorite — I have to recommend it to anyone craving Janggi-dong pork belly!

And they even set a tiny dedicated spoon on each sauce, making it easy to portion out and enjoy — that little touch made it even better! The skilled staff grill everything to a nice golden brown while you savor the side dishes and wait.

Best ways to eat the pork: recommended combos

Once everything's grilled, you can wrap it in lettuce with various combos or just eat it plain — either way, need I say more? It's incredibly delicious!

• Pickled radish + fresh wasabi + vegetables combo
• Wasabi mayo + scallion shreds combo

I sometimes head to the Janggi-dong area to meet a friend who lives in Gimpo, and Donpu The Grill, famous for Janggi-dong pork belly, is always the place I recommend without fail!

Free stone-plate kimchi stew rice and flying fish roe steamed egg

Then a dish we hadn't ordered showed up — it's a service item, haha. It's kimchi stew with a fried egg mixed into rice, all served on a stone plate, and it was less salty than expected with great savory depth and a generous portion. It even had meat in it, despite being a free service dish!

It was delicious enough to pass as a proper menu item in its own right!

And the flying fish roe bomb egg custard was amazing too. Super generous portion and the flavor was excellent! With steam rising off it, the presentation was perfect and the taste came close to perfect too. Kids especially would love this dish!

I had a great meal of Janggi-dong pork belly, kimchi stew, and egg custard at Donpu The Grill, a Janggi-dong, Gimpo favorite! If you love meat and find yourself in Janggi-dong, Gimpo, pay them a visit — you won't regret it ^^