Goseong galbi restaurant, scallion kimchi wraps: Yongchon Gogi-jip

How far is Yongchon Gogi-jip from Sokcho?

This time I visited Yongchon Gogi-jip, right on the border between Sokcho and Goseong. Its address is technically in Goseong, but it's close enough to Sokcho that getting there from Sokcho wasn't difficult at all. If you're traveling around Sokcho and heading toward Goseong, or looking for somewhere to eat in Goseong, this is a good spot to keep in mind.

Yongchon Gogi-jip Address: 20-3 Yongwon-ro, Toseong-myeon, Goseong-gun, Gangwon-do, South Korea Closed every Wednesday, open 11:00–20:00 the rest of the week. Ingredients can occasionally sell out early on a given day, so I'd recommend calling ahead before you visit. Searching for Yongchon Gogi-jip on Naver Map sometimes shows posts about ingredients running out, too.

Wide front yard, window-lined hall and group seating for 16

The first thing that caught my eye when I arrived at Yongchon Gogi-jip was the wide yard out front. Unlike a typical city Korean BBQ restaurant, the front yard was quite spacious with nice landscaping, so at first it felt less like a barbecue restaurant and more like visiting a well-kept country house. Parking and getting around felt fairly relaxed, so it seemed like a good spot for family visits too.

Stepping inside, the large windows made the whole space feel bright and open. You might picture a barbecue restaurant as a bit stuffy or smoky inside, but thanks to the big windows, the interior felt airy with little of that closed-in feeling. Especially in cool weather like this season, eating with the windows open would probably make for great ventilation and an even more comfortable meal.

There was also a space set up for group meals. With group seating and floor seating for 16 people or more, it looked like a good fit for family gatherings or visits with a larger crowd. If you're planning to use the group seating, I'd recommend booking ahead with the restaurant.

Yongchon Gogi-jip menu and ordering the marinated pork galbi

The Yongchon Gogi-jip menu includes pork galbi and samgyeopsal (pork belly), along with meal dishes and desserts. This time I ordered the marinated pork galbi, which could be considered the restaurant's signature dish. Yongchon Gogi-jip apparently uses grade-1 pork, slicing the meat to an appropriate thickness and aging it in marinade before selling it. Since they use their own recipe for the marinade, I was already looking forward to the flavor as I ordered.

Not long after ordering, the charcoal came out first. It was clean, proper charcoal, and the heat was quite strong. Marinated pork galbi can burn easily on charcoal because of the marinade, so I usually pay extra attention when grilling it — but this time the charcoal's heat was good enough that the meat grilled easily.

The best side dish at Yongchon Gogi-jip: scallion kimchi

The side dishes came out one by one. Shredded scallions, scallion kimchi (pa-kimchi), wild garlic leaves (myeongi-namul), pickled onion, white kimchi, and lettuce for wraps — all good pairings for meat.

I tried the side dishes one by one before the meat arrived, and my personal favorite was the scallion kimchi. It was tastier than I expected, and I kept reaching for it even before the meat came out. Honestly, this scallion kimchi alone could probably carry a whole bowl of rice.

Marinated pork galbi 250g: how the meat and marinade tasted

Then the marinated pork galbi I'd been waiting for arrived. When I heard it was 250g, I first thought that if it included bone, the actual amount of edible meat might not be much — but once I saw it, the meat portion actually looked quite generous.

I put the marinated pork galbi on the charcoal to grill. Since it's already marinated, I worried it might burn quickly, but flipping it carefully, it cooked through nicely with hardly any burnt spots.

I cut the well-cooked pork galbi into bite-sized pieces and tried the meat on its own first. The first thing I noticed was how tender it was. Even with a large proportion of lean meat, it didn't feel tough at all, and the marinade had soaked in well. The marinade had both sweetness and saltiness together. Rather than being an overpoweringly sweet marinade, it struck a balance of sweet and savory-salty that went well with the pork. They say it's aged with their own recipe, and eating it, I could really tell the marinade suited the meat.

Eating it wrapped with shredded scallions and scallion kimchi

This time I wrapped the pork galbi with shredded scallion and garlic in lettuce. It tasted different from eating the meat alone. The crisp lettuce and the scallion's aroma made the sweet, salty flavor of the marinated galbi feel a bit cleaner and lighter.

Adding the scallion kimchi side dish into the wrap worked well too. Personally, the aroma of the scallion kimchi matched the marinated pork galbi so well that I kept making this wrap over and over.

Finishing the meal with steamed egg custard

Partway through, steamed egg custard (gyeran-jjim) arrived too. It had a soft, fluffy texture that went nicely alongside the meat. After a while of eating charcoal-grilled meat, your palate can get a bit heavy, so pairing it with the soft egg custard made for a nice combination.

Search for good restaurants in Goseong and you'll find all kinds of places, but if you're looking for a Goseong Korean BBQ restaurant where you can eat comfortably with family or friends, Yongchon Gogi-jip is a solid option. If you're looking for a barbecue restaurant near Sokcho, or searching for the best pork galbi or samgyeopsal in Goseong, it's worth checking out. Next time I visit, I'd like to order samgyeopsal alongside the marinated pork galbi I tried this time.