Busan hanwoo BBQ in Namcheon-dong: snowflake chuck flap, Yong Hanu

What is Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch like?

Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch (용한우 남천점) is a newly opened premium hanwoo restaurant in Namcheon-dong, Suyeong-gu, Busan. It specializes in top-grade special cuts and says it only handles the highest-grade hanwoo. Hanwoo is the best way to boost your stamina in the heat! The real summer heat hasn't started yet, but I went for hanwoo as summer prep. If we're going to eat it, shouldn't we eat the real thing? So we headed to Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch. Trustworthy 1++ hanwoo, straight into my mouth!

Where is Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch, and what are the hours and parking?

Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch is a 5-minute walk from Namcheon Station Exit 1 and is open 11:00–23:00 with no days off. Break time is 15:00–16:30, and last order is at 22:00.

• Location: 5-minute walk from Namcheon Station Exit 1
• Hours: open every day, 11:00–23:00
• Break time: 15:00–16:30
• Last order: 22:00
• Baby chairs available
• Parking: ₩3,000 covered at Daerim parking lot in front of the restaurant

There's a parking lot right in front of the restaurant. They cover up to ₩3,000! For fees beyond that, see the photo.

What are the interior and seating like?

Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch has a gold-toned interior that felt properly upscale, as you'd expect from a premium hanwoo place..! Various opening events were running when I visited.

True to the name Yong Hanu (yong means dragon), there's a huge dragon painting as soon as you walk in, hahaha 🐉

What I liked is that every seat has a partition, so it feels private! And the chairs were cushy too, haha. Since it's new, the place is fresh and clean, and with the tidy interior, the partitions and the top-grade hanwoo, I thought it would also work for company dinners or business meetings.

The kitchen is open too, so trust level up up. They also have baby chairs, so it seems good for families dining with kids!

What's on the menu, and what events were running?

When I visited, Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch had two events: free yukhoe (beef tartare) for a review, and 2 free draft beers per table! Free yukhoe for a review is already huge, but free draft beer just for sitting down.... We had to drive, so we couldn't have any. T_T What a shame.

Main menu

The main menu is super varied by hanwoo cut: galbi (ribs), sirloin, striploin, tenderloin, snowflake chuck flap, skirt steak and more. If you can't decide or want a little of everything, there are various set menus too, so you can just order a set.

Meal menu

The meal menu has haemul doenjang (seafood soybean paste stew), seafood ramen and yeolmu guksu (young radish noodles)! For the doenjang stew you can choose the size and spice level to suit your taste. It's not in the photos, but if you visit at lunchtime you can order the lunch specials.

Lunch specials

• Hanwoo white boneless short rib soup ₩12,000
• Hanwoo red boneless short rib soup ₩12,000
• Mountain-of-brisket doenjang hot pot for 2 ₩24,000
• Yukhoe bibimbap (beef tartare rice bowl) ₩15,000
• Yeolmu guksu (young radish noodles) ₩7,000

What did we order at Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch?

For the two of us, we ordered 2 portions of top-grade sirloin, 1 portion of hanwoo snowflake chuck flap, 1 portion of mixed hanwoo special cuts, and a cider.

• Top-grade sirloin ₩28,000 ×2
• Hanwoo snowflake chuck flap ₩35,000 ×1
• Mixed hanwoo special cuts ₩16,000 ×1
• Cider ₩2,000

Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch gives each person their own utensils! +1 for cleanliness. The side dishes are set out before the meat arrives. * By the way, I'd like you to know the steamed egg looks shriveled because I was very, very late that day. My companion didn't eat it and waited for me, so it sat there for over 30 minutes...

How does Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch grill the meat?

Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch grills the meat on a cast-iron pan, not over regular charcoal. They use beef fat on a Daedo-style cast-iron pan, a Maillard-reaction grilling method that maximizes the juiciness and flavor of the hanwoo... or so they say. It's Yong Hanu's own distinctive way of grilling!

Side dishes and sauces

The side dishes were green onion salad, a salad, chili and garlic, japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), white kimchi and various jangajji (pickled vegetables). I love BBQ places that serve myeongi namul (wild garlic-chive leaves)... The salad's oriental dressing was tasty, and the white kimchi and pickles weren't salty and were really good!!

There's whole-grain mustard, as you'd expect at a beef place! I think it's the first time I've seen whole-grain mustard at a beef grill rather than a steakhouse. With the salt set on our small plate and all the sauces, we could enjoy beef, which gets tiring fairly quickly, in lots of different flavors for a long time.

How is the top-grade sirloin at Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch?

The top-grade sirloin (₩28,000) at Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch was tender enough to break the prejudice that sirloin is tough. Here it is, my 1++ hanwoo!!!!! The color of this meat is killer....... You could tell at a glance it was good meat! My boyfriend, the beef expert, marveled the moment he saw it.

First, two sirloins and one snowflake chuck flap. Isn't the marbling beautiful? Hanwoo really is different... I ate hanwoo at Yong Hanu and caught the "hanwoo is on another level" disease 🫨🫨🫨 Sirloin on the left, snowflake chuck flap on the right. Seriously, look at that color of the meat.....???? It's like it's showing us in person what A++ hanwoo is, and I got dizzy... 😵‍💫

Ready to eat. I ordered a soda and they even brought a cup of ice, nice touch, I'm praising this place. Let's grill the sirloin. Grilling top-grade hanwoo sirloin on a cast-iron pan, today I don't envy Mansour (a famously rich sheikh) at all... And for 1++ hanwoo, the portion isn't small for the price!

The meat sizzling away deliciously... Nothing stuck to the cast-iron pan at all, so it was really easy to grill!

A well-cooked piece of sirloin with wasabi and myeongi namul, nom. Honestly I'm not a big fan of sirloin because I had the prejudice that it isn't tender, but my boyfriend likes it so we ordered it, and what's this..? Can sirloin really be this tender.........? One bite and my eyes went wide with surprise. I've never had sirloin this tender. I guess I like sirloin... 1++ hanwoo is on another level.

They also put this stone plate..? on top of the cast-iron pan, so even the cooked meat doesn't cool down and stays delicious to the end. See it sizzling? It's only good when it's hot, right?

Is the snowflake chuck flap at Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch a must-order?

The hanwoo snowflake chuck flap (₩35,000) at Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch was the dish I fell for most that day, and I recommend it for how it melts in your mouth. Ah, here it is, the snowflake chuck flap I fell for, explosive looks and even crazier taste 🤤

It looks so good, right... Even now, writing this blog, my mouth keeps watering and the chuck flap from that day keeps floating before my eyes.. T_T This won't do, I need to eat hanwoo again.

You have to eat the snowflake chuck flap. It just melted in my mouth!!! So tender and clean-tasting, the kind of flavor that makes you lose it. The juices burst out too......

Is the mixed hanwoo special cuts plate good value?

The mixed hanwoo special cuts at Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch were discounted from ₩22,000 to ₩16,000 when I visited, and that day they prepared eob-jin-sal (brisket). For 1++ hanwoo at ₩16,000, this is excellent value!!

I think this was the fattiest of the three cuts we ate that day? The meat is just so beautiful. Looks alone, and it's over.

This one also just melted in my mouth... My boyfriend, who likes fatty cuts, ate it with great gusto. He lost himself inhaling the juices bursting in his mouth! The texture of the brisket.. was really, really good.... Hanwoo is on another level.

After we finished, they gave us candy and a yogurt drink, so dessert was done happily too!

Overall verdict on Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch

Yong Hanu Namcheon Branch is a place I'd recommend to anyone who wants 1++ hanwoo with guaranteed taste and quality, even if it costs a bit. We can't eat hanwoo often, but when we do, I think we should eat good-quality meat properly, and in that respect Yong Hanu was very, very satisfying! When you go hunting for budget beef, you often end up with something neither here nor there, so if you're willing to invest a little for guaranteed taste and quality, I highly recommend Yong Hanu. Once you taste 1++ top-grade hanwoo, you may never be able to eat ordinary beef again...

• Taste ★★★★★
• Comfort ★★★★★
• Price ★★★☆☆
• Friendliness ★★★★★