Bucheon Korean barbecue restaurant for kimchi noodle soup: Mungteong

A popular pork belly spot near Sinjung-dong Station

I visited Mungteong Bucheon Sinjung-dong Branch, a pork barbecue place that is famous for its long waits. I had heard so much about how good the meat was, and since there was one near Sinjung-dong Station, I finally went!

They say you get service based on however long you wait!

• 20 minutes or more: 1 canned drink
• 30 minutes or more: 1 bottle of alcohol
• 1 hour or more: pork skin or sausage
• 2 hours or more: a fist-sized portion of pork

It gets absolutely packed by dinnertime, but thankfully, because I arrived right when it opened on a weekend afternoon, I could eat at a leisurely pace. Guests started coming in around the time we finished. The retro atmosphere and familiar old songs playing inside gave me a little moment of nostalgia 😊

I reserved in advance through Naver Booking, and there was a name card set out on the table. That thoughtful touch made me feel so good.

The side dishes include shrimp salt, barley ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste dipping sauce), shiitake wasabi, pickled radish wraps, green onion kimchi, napa cabbage kimchi, and pickled gungchae (stem lettuce).

The jumeok-gui platter and menu selection

There are sets that include stew and pork skin or sausage, plus large platters, single platters, and individual portions. The large or single platters let you try an even mix of different cuts, so they are good value.

Mungteong jumeok-gui platter ₩45,000 / Kimchi noodle soup ₩6,000

Write a Naver receipt photo review and you get a bottle of alcohol for free, so do not miss it~! There are notes on the best way to eat and grill the meat, making them fun to look over while you wait for it.

The jumeok-gui platter is 500g and comes with four cuts in an even assortment: flower pork neck, pork neck, pork shoulder, and pork belly.

Clockwise from the upper left are pork belly, pork neck, pork shoulder, and flower pork neck.

The surprise of thick pork neck grilled by the staff

A staff member grills almost all of the first round, and you grill the remaining meat yourselves. The heat is incredibly strong, though, so it cooks quickly and is easy to grill.

Doesn't it look beautifully golden? The meat is so thick that even long slices stay nice and chunky.

Mungteong's pork comes from pigs raised in Jirisan with plenty of intramuscular fat, and they say it tastes best at 80% cooked—so I took it off the grill and gave it a try!

I usually prefer pork belly and five-layer pork belly, but trying the pork neck at Mungteong changed my mind. It was so tender that I wondered, Is this really pork neck, or is it pork belly? It still had just the right bite, and I could really appreciate what pork neck has to offer.

How to eat it with barley ssamjang and myeoljeot

Mungteong's sauces were especially delicious, and one of them was the barley ssamjang. Unlike ordinary ssamjang, it is not salty even when you dip generously! It was tasty enough to eat just dipped in ssamjang without even wrapping it in lettuce.

The shrimp salt is mixed with breadcrumbs, so it is crunchy and not salty even when you use plenty. It is definitely different from regular salt. I liked it enough to want to buy some separately 👍🏻

We finished grilling the rest of the meat, too. The custom-made aluminum grill does not stick, and the meat cooks quickly.

The myeoljeot (fermented anchovy sauce) was much more delicious than I expected! I normally do not eat myeoljeot elsewhere, but Mungteong's version has just the right savory depth and brings out the meat's flavor even more. Adding sliced chili peppers made it great for topping each bite 😋

Icy kimchi noodle soup and a slushy finish

This is the kimchi noodle soup we ordered because we wanted a little something more while eating the meat. The first impression is striking, with its vivid red broth, young radish kimchi, and cucumber.

The broth had thin ice crystals, a rich kimchi flavor, and incredibly chewy noodles. One sip of the cool, tangy broth is perfect for cleansing your palate.

I had a proper final finish with the slushy set out by the entrance. It was nice to have a cool slushy without needing to go out and buy ice cream.

Mungteong is a pork barbecue place you can trust 🐽 It is a great restaurant for sharing a drink over thick, springy meat in a comfortable retro atmosphere.