Gopchang grill near Daerim Station: mixed set and beef heart, Gimga-ne

My go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-go-to spot, Gimga-ne Gopchang Gui Daerim Station Main Branch (김가네곱창구이 대림역본점).

Why I've been a Gimga-ne Gopchang Gui regular for 5 years

Gimga-ne Gopchang Gui Daerim Station Main Branch is a gopchang favorite near Daerim Station that has been around for more than 15 years, and I've been coming here for 5 of them. Daerim is a great meeting spot! And if the plan is gopchang, we always meet at Gimga-ne.

It was popular even when I first visited, but these days you need to be ready to wait because it's always packed. That day a friend suddenly said let's eat meat, so I said then come to Gimga-ne, and I ran over straight after work!

Getting to Gimga-ne Gopchang Gui from Daerim Station, and a booking tip

Gimga-ne is a 3-minute walk from Daerim Station, and if you book through Naver there are events like extra gopchang or drinks, so be sure to grab those! There's a bus stop right in front too, so it's easy by public transport. Really a great place to meet up.

Where do you park at Gimga-ne Gopchang Gui near Daerim Station?

There's room for 2 cars in front of the restaurant, and there's also a space beside the building. If the spots in front are full, use the nearby park parking lot and you can get 1 hour of parking fee covered.

Atmosphere, seating and group bookings at Gimga-ne

The round tables make it easy for a bunch of people to gather around gopchang, and you can book for groups of up to 40 through Naver. It's a 15-plus-year favorite, so lots of neighborhood locals come, and it's popular enough to be bustling all the time.

Open-air seats when the folding doors open

This is why I love Gimga-ne! On nice days they open the folding doors and you get that open-air street-drinking feel. The best, honestly.

Floor seating with shoes off

There's also a section where you take your shoes off and sit on the floor. It has 3 tables, so it's great for group gatherings too!

Gimga-ne Gopchang Gui menu and the best order for 2

The menu has gopchang, garlic gopchang, daechang (large intestine), makchang (abomasum), beef heart, mixed gopchang and pork belly, and if you add ramyeon or fried rice as sides, the portion is just right. My recommended order for 2 people: 2 servings of mixed gopchang, 1 extra serving of beef heart, and 1–2 servings of fried rice.

It's really a combo recommended purely by my own taste, haha.

How to eat gopchang the right way

Don't touch the grill until the server (이모님, literally "auntie") gives you the go-ahead. Don't mix the gopchang with the vegetables, and keep cooking it over low heat. That's how it tastes best!

The side dishes are carrot, garlic, chili pepper, ssamjang, dongchimi (radish water kimchi) and pickled radish.

What comes in the mixed gopchang at Gimga-ne, plus the sauces

The mixed gopchang at Gimga-ne has pure gopchang, daechang, beef heart and beolyang (tripe), with gopchang taking up about half the grill. Heart and gopchang are my favorites, and the ratio is just so my taste... and it's full of gop (the creamy fat inside)!!!

You get 2 sauces per person. Dip the heart in sesame oil sauce for a nutty bite, and dip the gopchang, makchang and daechang in the jang (soy-based dipping sauce) so they don't feel greasy. The jang has chili powder and chili peppers but it isn't spicy, just cuts the richness, so feel free to dunk generously.

They pre-grill it for you in the kitchen, so you just cook it a bit more on the table grill and eat right away. Saw the how-to-eat tips above, right? Don't mix the chives, enoki mushrooms and potatoes all together; just pick them up alongside as you go.

What order should you eat mixed gopchang in?

Once the server gives the word, pick up your chopsticks and eat in this order: heart → gopchang / makchang / daechang. Heart and makchang get tough if cooked too long, so I recommend eating them quickly!

A glass of soju with gopchang, but if you don't eat the heart right away it burns like this, so eat it immediately!!! The last piece of heart was hidden under the chives, so it burned.

How makchang, gopchang and daechang taste, with vegetables on the side

The makchang, gopchang and daechang at Gimga-ne are all chewy and delicious. The daechang especially: dunk it in the sauce and it isn't greasy at all, and you really taste its nutty richness.

The seasoned chives, and the enoki mushrooms cooked soft in the gopchang fat~ and the well-cooked potatoes too... ah, so happy, right?

Finishing with extra beef heart, fried rice next time

When you order extras like fried rice, the staff take the grill away and bring it back neatly set up with the new dish. After the mixed gopchang I added 1 serving of heart as a drinking snack, and it's salty-sweet, a great way to finish!

I'm supposed to have the fried rice too, but I was full that day so I skipped it. Go try Gimga-ne Gopchang Gui Daerim Station Main Branch! The end~