Dunsan-dong BBQ with kimchi jjigae and pudding steamed egg: Imdaejang

Galleria-area Daejeon favorite, Dunsan-dong pork belly / Dunsan-dong grill house.

Where is Imdaejang Daejeon Dunsan Branch, and where do you park?

Today's review is Imdaejang Daejeon Dunsan Branch, a Galleria-area favorite in Daejeon. Walk past the big GS25 convenience store at Galleria Timeworld and turn into the alley on the left — it's right there, in the same building as Yi Sun-sin Sogukbap. With 2 hours of free parking at the Nokwon Building's underground lot, this is a Dunsan-dong grill house you can visit without any parking stress.

What we ordered at Imdaejang

I ordered the pork belly platter along with Korean-pork kimchi jjigae, steamed egg, and fried rice. Not just the main meat but the side dishes too were all delicious, so I'd recommend ordering a variety. Even just the main dish alone is plenty filling.

Personally, the soft, pudding-style steamed egg was a total hit for me, both in looks and taste. And the rice fried in the meat's fat at the end was the best.

Inside and outside the Dunsan-dong restaurant

A sleek-looking grill house. The seating is sofa-style, which is convenient, and seeing so many young customers made me think it already has a loyal following.

Open the door marked 'House of Pork' and you're greeted by a cozy wood-toned interior — it feels like stepping into a warm mountain lodge. All the staff were friendly, and since the meat comes already grilled, it's easy to eat.

They're also running a big review event. Write a Naver receipt review and get your choice of a free pork skin platter or a stew. Just scan the QR code and write a review — available once per table, so be sure to take part.

Imdaejang menu and prices

At Imdaejang Daejeon Dunsan Branch, a Galleria-area favorite, the menu boards are hung on both walls where you can see everything at a glance. Orders go through the tablet, but it was nice to be able to browse the full board first. The main grilled platter sets come in medium or large depending on party size, featuring pork neck, pork belly, and pork skin. If you just want pork belly or pork neck alone, you can order the pork belly platter or pork neck platter. Pork belly, pork neck, thin-cut belly, pork jowl, and pork skin are also sold à la carte.

The side menu includes fried rice, two kinds of stew, and two kinds of noodles — and apparently the real way to enjoy Imdaejang is with the sweet-and-tangy bibim guksu (spicy mixed noodles) eaten alongside a piece of meat, which sounds like the noodles are the real trick. I only saw this after ordering, so I went with stew, steamed egg, and fried rice for my sides instead. But the stew was genuinely delicious too, so no regrets.

Samgyeop hanpan: aged pork belly grilled for you

The pork belly platter is sized for 2–3 people. Doesn't that golden-brown sear look irresistible? It comes with myeoljeot (salted anchovy sauce) and sides of bean sprout scallion salad, grilled kimchi, minari (water dropwort), garlic, and enoki mushrooms.

Crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. The grilling service is fantastic! It's grilled fresh once you order, so it takes about 15 minutes according to the menu. The stew arrived first, so by the time I finished that, the juicy pork belly platter was already ready.

Even eaten plain with no sauce, this aged pork belly is clean and savory.

Personally, the bean sprout scallion salad was delicious. There's no self-service bar; if you need more side dishes, just order more through the tablet and staff bring them quickly. Lettuce wraps aren't included by default, but you can add them if you want.

This myeoljeot is something else. Not too salty, so I kept dipping into it. Salty, savory myeoljeot with pork belly — no need to say more, it's the best.

And you know fragrant minari pairs perfectly with pork belly, right? I personally love minari a lot. Whoever first thought of eating it with minari deserves an award... thank you.

The basic sides include 3 sauces, salt, roasted bean powder, and a special ssamjang. It's delicious dipped in the savory bean powder, and just as good dipped in salt. The chewy pork belly paired with salt was also really nice. It's also great piled onto lettuce wraps with plenty of ssamjang.

Korean-pork kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew)

I debated between the two side stews — beef brisket doenjang jjigae and Korean-pork kimchi jjigae — and went with the kimchi one. It's packed with tender, well-cooked meat. The well-fermented kimchi pairs perfectly with the stew — chef's kiss. The broth is spicy and refreshing, the kind that could cure a hangover.

It's the kind of stew that demands a bowl of rice. Since I planned to order fried rice after finishing the main dish, I didn't add rice — it was still good without, but I think next time I'd order the stew together with the fried rice order. (Honestly I ate the meat so fast that even after the fried rice arrived, the stew was still warm when I got to it, haha.)

Meat-fat fried rice and pudding-soft steamed egg

Last up were the fried rice platter and steamed egg I'd ordered. Topped with a single soft-fried egg, it looked so pretty I had to take a photo!

It was evenly seasoned, and being fried in the meat's fat gave it a savory richness — an absolutely can't-miss dish. I can't pass on fried rice. Be sure to order it after finishing the meat — this one's a must!

And one more dish I really liked — the pudding! I mean, the steamed egg, haha. It looks just like pudding, and it's genuinely so soft it practically melts in your mouth. If my stomach had allowed it, I would've ordered a second one — it was that soft and delicious.

Soft-serve dessert and the meaning behind the name Imdaejang

Anyone who always makes room for dessert? At Imdaejang Daejeon Dunsan Branch, a Galleria-area Daejeon favorite, you get one cup of soft-serve ice cream per person for dessert. It had a slightly sherbet-like texture — a soft, sweet, milky ice cream with a bit of crunch.

'Imdaejang' is a compound of the characters for 'entrust,' 'in place of,' and 'excellence,' meaning roughly 'handled excellently on your behalf.' Everything is prepared from start to finish, so all we have to do is enjoy it. Just sit down, order through the tablet, and they'll prepare everything from side dishes to the main dish with care.

You'll find Imdaejang Dunsan Branch by turning into the alley past the GS25 next to Hollys, on the left. They offer a 2-hour free parking voucher for the building's underground lot, so if you're driving, take advantage of it!

Private rooms and group bookings can be arranged with advance inquiry.

If you're looking for a Dunsan-dong favorite, a Dunsan-dong grill house, and you'd rather skip the hassle of grilling it yourself or hate the smell clinging to your clothes and hair, I recommend Imdaejang Daejeon Dunsan Branch, where full grilling service is standard. It's a Galleria-area Daejeon favorite conveniently located near Galleria Department Store, with no regular closing day and open even during Chuseok holidays — perfect for family gatherings or work dinners. Thanks for the meal!