Paju Korean BBQ with a kids' playroom and private rooms: Hyowonga

This is the story of Hyowonga, a Paju pork galbi restaurant with private rooms good enough for a formal family meeting (sangkyeollye).

We took a weekend lunch trip out to Paju, Gyeonggi from near Geomdan New Town~ While looking for a place to eat lunch in Paju, I found Hyowonga, a Paju pork galbi spot our babies absolutely devour! It was our first visit with the babies, and the inside was so spacious, comfortable and really clean! Such a great restaurant to visit with little ones. Lots of people were enjoying lunch there — group dinners, relatives, gatherings, family outings, you name it! There are also private rooms, which would be perfect for a formal family meeting too! The parking lot really does have 60-plus spaces, but it was almost full so we barely found a spot~ Being a popular place, the galbi was so good we ended up ordering more mid-meal! We left completely stuffed. Recommending this to anyone looking for a sangkyeollye restaurant or galbi restaurant in Paju :)

Inside Hyowonga: are there private rooms for an in-law meeting?

The inside of Hyowonga is huge! Even though it's a galbi restaurant, it felt really comfortable and clean. It can seat over 250 people, with group seating and private room spaces available. There are several private rooms, which would be perfect for a quiet meal or for anyone looking for a galbi restaurant for a sangkyeollye.

Also, looking at the photos, there's something different from a typical BBQ place! Usually there's a ventilation duct hanging from the ceiling to pull the smoke up, right? Here it seems like the smoke gets pulled out from below instead! It made talking with my husband and the babies over the meal so much more comfortable, love that!

Can you bring kids to Hyowonga? The playroom and kids' cinema

One reason Hyowonga, a Paju pork galbi spot, is great to visit with babies is that it has a playroom and a kids' cinema! The playroom is for kids age 10 and under.

When I checked out the kids' cinema, they were playing old Dooly the Little Dinosaur, which I used to love as a kid haha. The grown-ups get to eat galbi in peace while the kids enjoy the playroom and cinema — a great spot to eat with babies in Paju!

Hyowonga menu and prices

Hyowonga's menu in Paju includes Hyowon beef assorted platter ₩112,000, Hyowon beef raw galbi platter (750g) ₩109,000, Hyowon beef raw galbi (260g) ₩38,000, Hyowon beef king galbi (330g) ₩34,000, Hyowon handmade pork galbi (250g) ₩20,000, Hyowon handmade seasoned grill (320g) ₩19,000, plus beef, pork, lunch specials, meal items, and sides — a place where you can enjoy both beef and pork galbi!

Hyowonga also runs its own birthday table event! It's for customers celebrating a birthday or occasion that month. No same-day reservations, and it requires an order of grilled meat for 6 or more people — worth keeping in mind! We ordered 3 servings of Hyowon handmade pork galbi (250g), a dessert doenjang jjigae, 3 bowls of rice, and Saero soju.

Two orders of handmade pork galbi, doenjang jjigae and the side dishes

At Hyowonga, a Paju sangkyeollye restaurant, we first ordered 2 servings of Hyowon handmade pork galbi, and the side dishes came out so generously! Japchae (stir-fried glass noodles), pickled onions, pickled perilla leaves, seasoned crab, and cheongpomuk (mung bean jelly) — the quality of the side dishes felt like a proper Korean course meal.

The dessert doenjang jjigae is ₩3,000, and it was so tasty, with a rich, savory flavor! There's also a self-service bar, so we could freely grab extra lettuce and other wraps if we ran low, which was even better.

We grilled 500g of the handmade pork galbi first, and there was almost no smoke, cooking beautifully over the charcoal. Hyowon's handmade pork galbi uses top-grade domestic ribs, making it tender and juicy. Even though it's marinated, the meat felt incredibly fresh, like top-grade pork. The ribs had just the right thickness, and grilling to a golden brown with that charcoal aroma looked so delicious! Looking at these photos again makes me want to eat it all over again haha.

How does Hyowonga's marinated pork galbi taste?

The handmade seasoned pork galbi at Hyowonga, a Paju room-style galbi restaurant, was seriously so delicious!! Juicy meat with a sweet-salty marinade soaked deep in, giving it real savory depth! And the charcoal smokiness mixed with the meaty aroma, crispy outside and moist inside — a flavor that keeps making you want more!!

Our babies really, really enjoyed it. Eating it alongside the savory doenjang jjigae, with garlic and lettuce wraps, the soju just kept going down easy haha. And even the kimchi was really good. All the side dishes were tasty too, we finished every one. The charcoal pork galbi was so good we added one more serving. Ended up eating 3 servings total haha. My husband said it was so good too and scraped his rice bowl completely clean haha.

Hyowonga events, location and opening hours

Hyowonga in Paju also runs various events~ takeout discounts, review events, birthday events and more. The review event gives out marble ice cream! The kind of ice cream babies really love haha.

A Paju restaurant near Geumchon Station and Geumneung Station! It's spacious and comfortable, great for group gatherings, dinners, and formal family meetings. The seasoned galbi was so good that I'm planning to come back next time for the beef. Had such a delicious weekend lunch^^ Recommending Hyowonga to anyone looking for a pork galbi restaurant in Paju, a Geumchon restaurant, or a Paju room-style galbi place :)

• Location: 203 Jungang-ro, Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do (formerly Seowon Galbi)
• Hours: Mon–Sun 11:00–22:00 (last order 21:00)