Charcoal-grilled Korean BBQ set near Sindaebang Station: Wanyuk

I've been craving pork belly lately, so I looked up meat restaurants near Sindaebang Station and ended up at Wanyuk Sindaebang Branch on Nangok Intersection!!

Location, hours and parking at Wanyuk Sindaebang Branch

Wanyuk Sindaebang Branch is located on the 1st floor of 1471 Nambusunhwan-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul. It's right on the main road at Nangok Intersection, so it wasn't hard to find, and it's a solid pick if you're looking for a meat restaurant near Sindaebang Station.

It's open weekdays 11:30–23:00 and weekends 12:00–23:00, with a break time on weekdays from 14:30–17:00, so keep that in mind!

There's also free parking behind the building, which made it convenient to visit by car.

Menu and prices — pork belly 180g for ₩17,000

Wanyuk mainly serves pork grilled directly over charcoal. The signature dish is pork belly, 180g for ₩17,000, and you can also choose from other cuts like pork neck and skirt meat, plus set menus that let you try several kinds of meat at once.

Interior atmosphere and seating

Once inside, the restaurant turned out to be bigger and cleaner than I expected. The tables weren't crammed together, and there were seats for larger groups too, so it seemed like a good spot not just for a date but for a family meal or a work dinner near Sillim or Nangok Intersection!

Ordering the Wanyuk Value Set and cheese charcoal fried rice

What I ordered that day was —

• Wanyuk Value Set ₩39,000
• Cheese charcoal fried rice ₩4,500

So I went with the meat-plus-fried-rice course!! I had made a reservation, so everything was already set up when I arrived!

First, kimchi and various vegetables to grill on the pan alongside the meat were set out.

Staff grill the meat over charcoal and bring it to you

This place is a bit different from a regular BBQ spot — instead of grilling at the table yourself, staff grill the meat over charcoal and bring it out to you! They show it to you, take it back, grill it, and bring it back out. Apparently the name 'Wanyuk' actually means fully cooked meat!

Shredded green onion and self-serve side dishes

Shredded green onion comes out as a default side to eat with the meat! Extra side dishes can be grabbed easily from the self-serve bar, so things like lettuce, shredded green onion, and kimchi — the ones you keep reaching for while eating meat — can be refilled without hesitation!

Personally, I thought the yuzu ssamjang (dipping sauce) was really good haha

The vegetables were kept fresh too

Kimchi and vegetables grilled in house-made lard oil

At Wanyuk, the meat is grilled separately over charcoal, but at the table you can grill the vegetables yourself until golden brown. Grilling vegetables alone without meat can feel a bit lacking, right? What was surprising is that they also give you house-made lard oil, so you can grill the kimchi and vegetables in it and get that same savory flavor as if they'd been cooked in meat fat.

The pig-shaped thing in the photo is the fat!

After grilling the vegetables for a bit, the meat arrives~ Since you don't have to grill it yourself, no one person is stuck being the busy grill-master — you just eat comfortably as soon as it comes out, which was really nice.

The taste of charcoal-grilled meat

Maybe because it's grilled directly over charcoal, the outside of the meat had a tempting smoky flavor while the inside stayed juicy.

It's delicious with just a light dip in salt, and adding a bit of wasabi makes it clean and not greasy at all!

The doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) that came with it

You can't have meat without a hot soup on the side haha. The doenjang jjigae that came with the meal was great to sip between bites~

With a savory soybean paste base and ingredients like tofu and vegetables inside, having a spoonful between bites of meat felt like a palate reset! Especially paired with the smoky charcoal-grilled meat, the savory, salty flavor of the stew went even better.

Finishing with cheese charcoal fried rice

It felt like it would be a shame to end with just meat, so I ordered the cheese charcoal fried rice to finish. At a Korean BBQ restaurant, you've got to finish with fried rice to feel properly satisfied!! The savory, salty fried rice with cheese added on top became much smoother and richer in flavor. It comes shaped like a charcoal briquette, and you can either have it cooked right on the pan with the meat, or get it served on a separate plate like we did!

We got it on a plate and then put it back on the hot stone plate lol. If you like cheese, I'd recommend finishing with the cheese charcoal fried rice instead of a basic side!

If you like cheese, I recommend finishing with the cheese charcoal fried rice

The cheese stretches beautifully, and mixing in the leftover vegetables and meat while frying it up is the best!

Final thoughts

Since staff grill the meat over charcoal themselves and all you have to do at the table is keep it warm and eat it with vegetables, this was a place where I could enjoy the whole meal without any hassle from start to finish. If you're near Sindaebang Station or Nangok Intersection looking for a pork belly restaurant or a charcoal-grill BBQ spot where you don't have to grill it yourself, Wanyuk Sindaebang Branch is worth a visit.