Add-on-only pork jowl at a Ruwon City, Incheon BBQ: Heukdwaeji

Last weekend I went to Costco Cheongna and got hungry, so I looked hard for a good BBQ place nearby.

While reading reviews I found one saying it reminded them of black pork they had on a trip to Jeju Island — this is the real deal!!! — so I rushed straight over.

A black pork place that beats Jeju black pork...? Curious where it is?! It's a place called "Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul" (black pork brothers).

Apparently it's already a very famous restaurant in Paju,, why did I not know about this until now 🥲 Let's get into the review!

Where Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Ruwon City is and when it opens

Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Gajeong Ruwon City Main Branch is located at 15 Yeomgok-ro 464beon-gil, 1st floor, Units 101, 102, 103, Seohae-gu, Incheon, South Korea. It's open weekdays 16:00-24:00 and weekends 12:00-24:00, with last order at 23:00.

• 📍Address: 15 Yeomgok-ro 464beon-gil, 1st floor, Units 101, 102, 103, Seohae-gu, Incheon, South Korea
• ⏰Hours: Weekdays 16:00-24:00 / Weekends 12:00-24:00 (last order 23:00)
• 🔖 Free parking available, local currency accepted, corkage allowed

Inside Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul: the room seating

Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Gajeong Ruwon City Main Branch has private room seating in the back, so it works well for family meals, work dinners and other group gatherings. Since I'd made a reservation beforehand, the owner had already set up the table for me, so we could start eating right away :)

As soon as you walk in, you see the grill zone where the owner personally grills the meat — this is where you get meat delivered to you already infused with smoky flavor. How great is it not to have to grill your own meat at the table on such a hot summer day..🤣

The menu, and why pork jowl and pork skin are add-ons only

The pork menu is broadly made up of

• ✔️ Jirisan black pork 3 servings (neck + belly)
• ✔️ Jirisan black pork 2 servings (neck)
• ✔️ Jirisan black pork 1 serving (belly)

That's the lineup, but the interesting part is that pork jowl, pork skin, and boneless chicken feet can't be ordered on your first order — they're only available as add-on orders!

I was curious why, and I heard from the owner that it's because they use really high-quality meat, so if they took orders for those from the start there'd be no margin left for them ..💦

We ordered the Jirisan black pork 3-serving menu.

Side dishes: meljeot anchovy sauce and shiitake wasabi

As soon as we ordered, they brought out meljeot (fermented anchovy sauce) and king oyster mushrooms first — interestingly, this place uses briquette charcoal. Doesn't that meljeot look delicious?!

Lettuce, cabbage wraps, shredded cabbage, wasabi, wild garlic leaf with lettuce, salt, garlic, napa cabbage kimchi, and dressed chives all showed up as side dishes — and the shiitake wasabi was the real kicker here :) Oh, and the side dishes don't stop there!!

Free steamed egg and acorn jelly soup

They told us there was a complimentary item, and then out came fluffy steamed egg and acorn jelly noodle soup (mukbap)! The acorn jelly noodle soup was such a welcome sight to cool off from the summer heat, and the tangy broth really woke up the appetite. The steamed egg was soft too, pairing perfectly with the meat.

Jirisan black pork, charcoal pre-grilled by the owner

As I mentioned, at this place you don't grill the meat yourself — the owner pre-grills it directly over charcoal and then brings it to the table. Before grilling, they showed us the quality of the meat, and it looked genuinely thick and delicious (drooling already..)

The meat we received is kept warm using the residual heat of the briquette charcoal, so we could eat it warm from start to finish, crispy outside and juicy inside.

I dipped a piece of the grilled meat straight into salt and tried it — it had good thickness so the juices burst out, with a satisfying chew and great natural flavor. You could really feel the owner's pride in the meat, and it was clear how much care went into the aging period and grilling order — you could taste all of that in the finished meat :)

Black pork gochujang jjigae (red pepper paste stew)

Honestly, gochujang jjigae (spicy paste stew) was a somewhat unfamiliar dish to me, but the owner recommended it as going well with the meat, so I ordered it right away 🙊

As soon as it came out, I was shocked by how much black pork was in the gochujang jjigae,, the broth was spicy and thick, perfect for mixing with rice, and it wasn't greasy so my chopsticks kept going back. The day I got sucked into the world of gochujang jjigae..⭐

Is Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Ruwon City worth a visit?

I could immediately understand why that review said eating black pork in Jeju reminded them of this place. You could feel the owner's love and pride for the meat, and even taste it..!

Even my parents, who don't know much about meat, said on the way home, "Wow, that place's meat really was delicious." Game over right there..ㅋㅋㅋ

If you're looking for a black pork spot in Ruwon City that works for work dinners, dates, or family gatherings, I strongly recommend Heukdwaeji Hyeongjedeul Gajeong Ruwon City Main Branch!!