Cheonan duck restaurant after a marathon: couple set at Ori The Chadol

Why Ori The Chadol for a post-marathon meal after the Cheonan Lee Bong-ju Marathon?

To recharge Dad after his marathon, I picked the duck at Ori The Chadol Cheonan City Hall branch (오리더차돌 천안시청점) in Baekseok-dong, Cheonan. Dad ran in the 5th Cheonan Lee Bong-ju Marathon, held at the sports complex over the weekend, and I went to cheer him on. Once he'd safely finished, we headed to Ori The Chadol for a hearty meal.

Where is Ori The Chadol Cheonan City Hall branch, and is there parking?

Ori The Chadol Cheonan City Hall branch is at 229 Sicheong-ro, Seobuk-gu, Cheonan, 1st floor, across from the Baekseok auxiliary stadium, and has its own parking lot in front. It is open daily 11:00–22:00 with last order at 20:40. The break time is 15:00–17:00, but on weekends there's no break time.

Parking right in front of the restaurant made it easy to come by car.

The entrance is covered in celebrity autographs! It was so fun to look at them as we walked in.

Atmosphere and seating at Ori The Chadol

The inside was spacious and clean overall. The tables were wide, and the private rooms are well done, so it looked good for group gatherings or company dinners. There's also a kids' zone, which makes it a decent pick for a family meal with children.

What's in the Ori The Chadol couple set for two?

The couple set was generous: 200g of duck chadol (thin-sliced duck brisket), 300g of duck jumulleok (marinated, spicy stir-fried duck), fried rice, doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) and drinks. You order and pay at the same time on the tablet, which was convenient.

Aprons are self-serve!

Side dishes and doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew)

The side dishes were set out soon after we ordered. The doenjang jjigae, part of the set, came out too, along with white kimchi, napa cabbage kimchi, pickled perilla leaves, lettuce wraps and sauces.

What's at the Ori The Chadol self-bar?

If you need more side dishes, just use the self-bar. It was kept neat and clean, which was nice to see.

• Sauces, ssam-mu (pickled radish wraps), cabbage salad, fruit cocktail
• White kimchi, pickled perilla leaves, danmuji (yellow pickled radish), napa cabbage kimchi, radish kimchi
• Water dropwort (minari), enoki mushrooms, king oyster mushrooms
• Onions, garlic, chili peppers, lettuce wraps and more

I grabbed some cabbage salad, ssam-mu and fruit cocktail, taking only a little at a time since you shouldn't leave food behind.

The doenjang jjigae was secretly a star: savory with a slight kick, so when the duck started to feel a bit rich, a spoonful left my mouth feeling clean again!

How to grill duck chadol, and how it tastes

The duck chadol comes out first. It's thin and cooks fast, so I recommend eating it the moment it looks done. A staff member showed us how to grill it at the start, and it seemed to get tough if cooked too long. It was good on its own, but even better with the doenjang sauce.

Staff stir-fry the duck jumulleok at your table

Just as we were finishing the duck chadol, the duck jumulleok arrived, and a staff member stir-fried it for us, which was so easy. They added minari and enoki from the self-bar and cooked them together.

The duck chadol was tasty, but I personally love marinated meat, so I think I liked the duck jumulleok even more. The seasoning wasn't too spicy or salty, so it was easy to enjoy.

Heart-shaped fried rice to finish

Fried rice is the only way to end a meal like this! The staff stir-fried the set's fried rice for us too, and they even made a heart out of it, haha!

I'd left some duck jumulleok on purpose, and eating it with the fried rice made it even better. It was good plain, but wrapped in a lettuce leaf it was a real treat too.

Ori The Chadol couple set in Cheonan: final verdict

I liked that the couple set lets you try both duck chadol and duck jumulleok in one go, and finishing with fried rice made it very satisfying. If you want duck in Baekseok-dong, Cheonan, I recommend visiting Ori The Chadol.