Wangsimni Korean BBQ: pork belly, jowl, skirt meat compared, Pujutgan

On a day we'd planned to catch up with friends near Wangsimni Station, we spent ages debating where to eat before finally settling on Pujutgan Saenggogi-jeom, a Haengdang-dong spot I'd seen come up in reviews for ages.

Since it was the first time the three of us had gotten together in a while, we unanimously agreed to forget the diet and just eat meat, so we headed out without even making a reservation.

5-minute walk from Wangsimni Station Exit 10, near Haengdang Market

It took less than five minutes to walk from Exit 10 of Wangsimni Station, so getting there was easy, and being near Haengdang Market meant plenty of locals and even a work dinner group around — very much a busy Wangsimni restaurant scene in the evening.

Since we'd left a bit early, we luckily got a table with no wait. Inside, the seating ranged from tables for 2–4 up to larger group seating, so it looked like a solid choice for both friend gatherings and work dinners.

What three of us ordered, plus unlimited side refills

As soon as we sat down we scanned the menu, which had a solid lineup of domestic pork cuts — pork belly, pork neck, pork jowl, gabrisal, and skirt meat.

There was a separate beef menu too, but we were all in the mood for pork that day, so we went big: three servings of pork belly, plus one serving each of pork jowl and skirt meat.

We'd heard that ordering just one serving per person gets you unlimited stew, noodles, and toasted rice, and once we heard that, our excitement shot up — pay for the meat and eat until you're stuffed. Unlimited side refills, seriously?!

Pork belly grilled right at the table on a cast-iron lid

The basic side dishes were neatly set out — kimchi, garlic, mushrooms, radish wraps, lettuce, perilla leaves, wild garlic greens, and fresh kimchi — and a staff member came over right away and started grilling with practiced hands.

With a place that grills the meat for you, there's no awkward staring contest over who's on grill duty — the three of us could just chat and eat, which was genuinely nice. And since it's grilled on a big cast-iron lid rather than a flat pan, the fat naturally drips down, making the meat feel less greasy and more clean-tasting.

The pork belly that came out first stood out for its thickness alone. Sizzling away on the cast-iron lid, it turned golden-brown outside and stayed juicy inside — the moment we took a bite, we all shouted, "This is legendary!"

Wrapping two pieces of pork belly with wild garlic greens in lettuce and perilla leaf, then dipping in ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste), doubled the nutty flavor. We ordered three servings of pork belly, but the three of us demolished it so fast our chopsticks never stopped.

The free doenjang stew and the size of the cold noodles

We asked for the complimentary doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), and the pot came loaded with tofu, vegetables, and even meat — the quality was so good it hardly seemed like something served for free.

It had that rich flavor that makes you crave a bowl of rice, and the three of us finished it off easily. There was so much in it that ordering just the stew alone would have been filling.

And that wasn't the end — we also added both mul-naengmyeon (cold noodle soup) and bibim-naengmyeon (spicy mixed cold noodles) as free extras, and calling it just a

dessert noodle