Mild braised short ribs at a Gasan Digital Complex restaurant: Gim

I was trying to figure out dinner around Gasan and got a craving for something spicy and Korean, so I headed to Gim Myeongtae Spicy Braised Short Ribs Gasan Branch. The name has "spicy braised short ribs" built right into it, so I was curious what it would actually taste like. It felt like the kind of Gasan Digital Complex restaurant I'd think of whenever I wanted a solid, filling meal.

Gim Myeongtae Spicy Braised Short Ribs Gasan Branch Address 132-1 Gasan-ro, Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, South Korea, 1st floor Hours Daily 10:00–22:30 (last order 21:50) Takeout discount, reservations, groups, WiFi, separate restrooms, packaging, delivery, parking available (up to 3 cars)

Where is Gim Myeongtae Gasan Branch, and where do you park?

This Gasan Digital Complex restaurant is easy to find — just walk a bit behind the Hyundai Outlet across from Gasan-dong Community Center. Parking is available too: up the sidewalk block on the right side as you face the store, up to 3 cars.

Inside Gim Myeongtae Gasan Branch and the self-serve bar

Visit before 3pm and you get hotpot rice as a free extra.

Inside, the place was much bigger than it looked from outside. The tables were spaced comfortably apart, so there was no cramped feeling next to neighboring tables, and it seemed like a good spot for a group visit too. Besides the spicy braised short ribs, there's braised pollock and various other Korean dishes, so it also seems like a nice place for a family meal.

There was a self-serve banchan (side dish) bar set up on one side, and I honestly loved this. If you run out of side dishes, no need to flag down staff — just go grab as much as you want.

Ordering the spicy braised short ribs (small) at mild spice level

The name says spicy braised short ribs, but the menu is more varied than you'd expect — spicy braised short ribs, braised pollock, cuttlefish dishes, rice soup, bibimbap, and more, so there's plenty to choose from depending on your taste. We ordered the spicy braised short ribs (small). And importantly — the spice level is adjustable! I tend to lose the actual flavor of food when it's too spicy, so this time I picked mild.

What side dishes come with the meal?

Before the main dish arrived, quite a variety of side dishes were laid out first: bean sprout soup, corn salad, pickled onions, stir-fried fish cake, pickled radish, and seaweed. Since the braised short ribs are the star, naturally a lot of the sides were there to cut through the spice in between bites.

Free hotpot rice for visits before 3pm

We came for lunch and got the hotpot rice as a service item. If you come before 3pm, you get to eat this wonderfully fluffy hotpot rice, and it was such a nice bonus.

How spicy is the mild braised short ribs, really?

The spicy braised short ribs finally arrived. Ribs and bean sprouts piled generously in red sauce — the visual alone was pretty appetizing the moment it hit the table. The meat comes already cooked, so you just keep it gently simmering at the table as you eat.

We ordered the mild version, and even though the name "spicy braised short ribs" had me a little tense, it turned out less intimidating than expected. I won't say it's guaranteed fine for absolutely everyone who can't handle spice, but it wasn't so spicy that it kept me from actually enjoying the food, so I ate comfortably.

The meat was more tender than I expected, so it wasn't hard to pull the meat off the bone at all. The sauce didn't feel like it was just coating the surface — it blended well with the ribs, in a flavor that naturally made you want rice.

Cheese rice cake and glass noodles are included

Cheese rice cake and glass noodles are included with the spicy braised short ribs as standard. It's a bit of a letdown when a braised ribs broth doesn't have glass noodles, but here you don't need to add them separately, which was great. A bite of meat followed by a slurp of glass noodles — they go so well together.

It's also nice to mix a bit of the sauce into your rice and top it with a piece of rib, or wrap rice and meat together in seaweed. With so many different banchan, you can keep switching up the combinations even while eating the same braised ribs, so it never got old to the end.

And to finish — sungnyung (scorched rice tea) from the hotpot rice~~ so good.

Another great meal today :)

Gim Myeongtae Spicy Braised Short Ribs Gasan Branch is a place not just for people who love spicy food, but also for those who've hesitated over braised ribs because of the spice — it's relatively easy to visit here. On a day when you're craving a hearty Korean meal in Gasan, especially a spicy braised ribs dish with a proper bowl of rice, this is the kind of Gasan Digital Complex restaurant that'll come to mind again :)