Jongno 3-ga Korean BBQ duck roast from Naju for two: Tapgol Gongwon

These days the evening breeze gets a little cool and I suddenly want to grill meat outdoors haha. So while looking for a place near Jongno 3-ga where I could really feel that outdoor-dining (yajang) vibe, I ended up visiting Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch.

This place mainly sells frozen pork belly, along with pork neck, duck roast, and beef brisket, but once I actually went, I realized it's not just about the menu — the outdoor atmosphere is a huge part of the appeal. The proportion of outdoor seating was way bigger than I expected too. Honestly you could say almost the whole place is outdoor seating lol.

What is the outdoor yajang atmosphere like at Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch?

Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch is the kind of place where you sit at outdoor tables in an alley near Tapgol Park in Jongno 3-ga and grill your own meat. When you think of Jongno 3-ga, the food-stall street outdoor seating usually comes to mind first, but the vibe here felt quite different. With the stone-wall scenery and the lighting added on top, it felt less like eating at a regular BBQ place and more like coming out to Jongno for a proper night out with drinks.

When I visited, there were quite a few people sitting at the outdoor tables, and that atmosphere was really great. Eating meat indoors with the AC blasting is nice too, but on a day with decent weather, grilling meat outside just hits different haha. You hear the meat sizzling on the grill, the chatter from the next table, and people passing by.

That said, it's not all chaotic food-stall energy — the lighting and surroundings are decorated pretty neatly, so photos came out quite nicely too. So if you're looking for a Jongno 3-ga BBQ restaurant while also wanting that outdoor-dining mood, this was a pretty solid choice.

Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga menu and prices

The menu includes frozen pork belly for 18,000 won, frozen pork neck for 19,000 won, frozen duck roast for 18,000 won, beef brisket (chadolbagi) for 20,000 won, and beef brisket doenjang stew for 7,000 won. There's also the Tapgol Set, letting you try several meats at once — pork belly, pork neck, and duck roast — for 55,000 won.

After thinking it over, I ended up ordering two servings of frozen duck roast plus a beef doenjang stew.

Flash-frozen duck roast: thin slices served in a clay jar

When the duck roast arrived, it came thinly sliced and served in a small earthenware crock.

Apparently this duck roast isn't just regular frozen duck — it's made from Grade 1 fresh duck produced in Naju, South Jeolla Province, that's then flash-frozen?! Just looking at the menu, I figured it would be a bit different from a typical grilled duck, and grilling it in person confirmed that thin, flash-frozen meat has its own fun, fast-cooking quality.

Once you lay the duck roast pieces on the grill one by one, they sizzle away and a savory smell rises up — and somehow it tastes even better eating it outdoors lol.

Duck itself has a decent amount of fat, so when grilled the surface browns up nicely and brings out a savory flavor. It's not too thick, so it cooks quickly, and once lightly browned it wasn't chewy at all — quite tender to bite into.

The duck's distinctive smell wasn't overpowering either, so I think even people who aren't huge fans of grilled duck could enjoy this without much hesitation.

Side dishes served with the duck roast

Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch serves side dishes that go well with meat — kimchi, bean sprouts, bracken, green onion kimchi, seasoned radish, salted seafood, and more. With this kind of meat, it's more fun to throw the kimchi, bean sprouts, or bracken onto the grill along with the meat rather than just eating the meat plain.

I tried grilling the duck roast until browned and eating it together with the side dishes — with crunchy or tangy flavors sneaking in between bites of the fatty meat, I kept reaching for more. Being outdoors while grilling somehow made me eat even more than usual lol.

Is the 7,000-won brisket doenjang stew worth adding?

The beef brisket doenjang stew is 7,000 won, and since I almost always order doenjang stew when eating meat, I ordered it right away. It came out bubbling in an earthenware pot, and with the beef brisket mixed in, it had a richer, more savory flavor from the meat than a regular doenjang stew. There was tofu and vegetables in it too, which made it nice to take a spoonful of broth in between rounds of meat.

With the doenjang's signature savory depth combined with the fat rendered from the brisket, the broth was a bit thicker and heavier. Still, it didn't feel too heavy or greasy, so it paired well with the meat.

Especially while eating the duck roast, the savory flavor of the meat itself just keeps going, and taking a spoonful of hot doenjang stew broth right then completely resets your palate. If there had been rice, I definitely would've finished a whole bowl lol.

So if you're looking for a Jongno 3-ga BBQ restaurant, I'd recommend ordering a stew like the beef doenjang stew alongside your main meat rather than just meat alone. Grilling meat outdoors while also having a hot stew on the side was a really good combination. This place felt like somewhere you're meant to enjoy not just for the food, but for the fun of eating outdoors.

How many outdoor seats are there, and what fell short?

What I especially liked was how much outdoor seating Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch actually has. I thought, 'Isn't it just a few outdoor tables while calling itself an outdoor BBQ spot?' but that wasn't the case at all — the whole restaurant is basically built around outdoor seating, and the atmosphere was fantastic haha.

So this would suit grabbing drinks and meat with friends in Jongno 3-ga, or finding a casual dinner spot in the evening. On a nice-weather day, there's no need to go looking for an indoor BBQ place — sitting outside grilling meat is fun in its own way. Especially once the lights come on and it gets dark in the evening, the atmosphere seems to come alive even more, so visiting during that time would really let you enjoy the full outdoor-dining feel.

Since it's mostly outdoor seating, the place is very weather-dependent, and during popular hours there could be a wait haha. I ended up eating frozen duck roast with beef doenjang stew this time, but next time I'd like to try the frozen pork belly or pork neck too.

The menu isn't concentrated on just one type of meat, so if you visit with a group, everyone can pick out what they want to order. And honestly, on evenings with weather this nice, you just can't resist an outdoor seat like this haha. If you're looking for a place to eat meat in Jongno 3-ga and want to fully enjoy grilling outdoors rather than the usual indoor BBQ spot, Tapgol Gongwon Jongno 3-ga Branch was pretty solid.

Especially among Jongno 3-ga BBQ restaurants, if the outdoor atmosphere matters to you, this is definitely one to remember. Sitting there grilling meat and taking spoonfuls of hot beef doenjang stew, it really felt like enjoying a proper evening out in Jongno haha.