No-wait Korean BBQ dinner with 2hr parking near Chungjeongno: Doldam

This time I went all the way out to Seoul to meet friends. It's been a while since we all got together, so I looked for somewhere good for meat and a drink, and settled on Doldam Sutbuljip, a Korean BBQ place near Chungjeongno Station. Thick cuts grilled over charcoal — that's what I was craving.

Since everyone was driving in, parking was the top priority. This place lets you use the building's parking lot, so that's what sold me.

Location and parking at Doldam Sutbuljip near Chungjeongno

• Address: 21 Jungnim-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Subway: 2 minutes on foot from Exit 5, Chungjeongno Station (Lines 2 and 5)
• Parking: Free 2-hour parking at The Place building lot, vehicle registration required
• Corkage available, fee applies

They're open weekdays from 2pm to 2am, though I heard they sometimes close early. If you're heading over late, it's probably worth calling ahead first.

The parking lot is around the back of the building separately, so you might wander a bit the first time — we did a full loop ourselves. Make sure to register your car as soon as you sit down, since that's what gets you the 2 hours.

Thursday evening at 7pm — any wait?

We got there at 7pm on a Thursday. The place was really quiet. I'd heard it's a neighborhood full of office workers, so I was worried there'd be no seats at 7pm, but we just walked in and sat down.

Even by the time we left, there were still empty tables. Not sure if that's a Thursday thing or just how it is at that hour. If you hate waiting, this could actually work in your favor.

The dining room is quite spacious. Plenty of tables, including some suited for groups, so it looked fine for a big crowd to show up together. The next table's noise wasn't really an issue either — though that might've been because it was so quiet. It's a charcoal grill place, so brace yourself for the smell — it does stick to your clothes, no way around that.

Menu and prices

• Korean pork ribs (dwaeji galbi): ₩18,000
• Korean pork neck (mokssal): ₩18,000
• Korean pork belly (samgyeopsal): ₩18,000
• Raw rib meat (saenggalbisal): ₩22,000

We had the pork belly at ₩18,000 and the saenggalbisal at ₩22,000. For a BBQ place right in central Seoul, it felt fairly reasonable. Apparently this used to be a grilled clam restaurant, so a clam menu is still on the board — we didn't try it though.

For dessert, having milmyeon (wheat noodles) instead of the usual naengmyeon was a nice twist.

Grilling the pork belly and saenggalbisal over charcoal

We ordered pork belly and saenggalbisal — pork belly ₩18,000, saenggalbisal ₩22,000.

The meat itself was good. The pork belly was thick, and once it hit the charcoal the outside browned up nicely with that oil smell hitting you right away. The juices were still there when I bit in.

The saenggalbisal is grilled plain, no marinade, and honestly I liked it even more. You're tasting the meat itself, so if it's tough, you'd know right away — but it wasn't. It had a light charcoal aroma, and just a little salt was enough.

Banchan and the free sundubu-jjigae

The side dishes came in a good variety, but I found them a bit salty. Might just be because I eat on the bland side. So we mostly stuck to the meat and lettuce wraps. This could vary person to person, so it's worth trying for yourself.

Also, sundubu-jjigae (soft tofu stew) comes out even if you don't order it — it's complimentary. Spicy broth with egg in it, and the portion was decent too. It's not that common for a BBQ place to just give you soup like that as standard.

They also seem to run a receipt review event, though we didn't do it — too busy chatting to even notice, haha. Apparently you get steamed egg or doenjang-jjigae for it.

Is it okay to bring kids?

This time it was just friends, so we didn't bring the little ones. I looked around for a high chair or diaper-changing table but didn't see any. Since it's mostly office workers around here, it seems like it'd be a bit tricky with kids.

That said, the dining room is spacious with good gaps between tables, so a stroller could fit in fine. Since every table has a charcoal grill on it, if you do bring kids, it's worth thinking about seating — maybe an outdoor table.

Best time to go

At 7pm on a Thursday, there weren't many customers besides us. Posts on Naver mentioned the place filling up with office workers on weekday evenings, so I rushed over worried about a wait. But luckily — haha — that wasn't the case, at least on the day I went.

Since they're open late, it also seems like a decent second-round spot. Closing times vary post to post though, so definitely check before you go.

To sum up

To sum up Doldam Sutbuljip, the Korean BBQ restaurant near Chungjeongno Station: the meat was really good. Both the pork belly and saenggalbisal weren't tough and had a nice charcoal aroma. Having staff grill it for you was really convenient too. And the free sundubu-jjigae tasted quite good too! Getting 2 hours of parking is also a pretty big deal in the middle of Seoul.

One thing — the banchan was a little disappointing for my taste. And the fact that the place stayed quiet even on a Thursday evening could be read as good or as a downside. For me, sitting down with no wait was a plus.

If you're near Exit 5 of Chungjeongno Station looking for charcoal-grilled meat and a drink, this could be worth a visit.