Grilled mackerel set at Daejeon barley rice spot Baengnyeon Boribap

Every time I drove past Sintanjin, this huge building always caught my eye — Baengnyeon Boribap! I kept telling myself I'd go someday, and I finally made it there in person haha.

Where is Baengnyeon Boribap and is there parking?

Baengnyeon Boribap is a barley rice set restaurant located at 358 Sintanjin-ro, Wa-dong, Daedeok-gu, Daejeon. Its biggest perk is the spacious parking lot haha. You can't see it in the photo, but there's even more parking on the left side!

Baengnyeon Boribap is a Korean restaurant near Sintanjin, Daejeon, where you can get great value barley rice. But barley rice alone would be a bit plain, right? (Would it?) There are lots of barley rice set options so you can pick to your taste~ This is a Daejeon Korean restaurant everyone, young and old, will love.

Inside Baengnyeon Boribap: is it good with kids?

Baengnyeon Boribap has a waiting room and baby chairs, so it's easy to come as a family. If there happens to be a wait, you can sit comfortably in the waiting room, which I really liked~

The interior is also super clean, so it's nice to bring your parents along too : ) Plus, the staff are incredibly kind. It's been a while since I visited a restaurant this friendly, and it made me so happy!!! haha

With baby chairs available, this place is a big recommendation for families! There's also a pork cutlet menu that will win over kids' and toddlers' taste buds, making it great to visit with children~ At this point, is there really any reason not to come here for a family meal?

There's also an à la carte gamjatang (pork bone stew) too~ But when you say Baengnyeon Boribap, you think of the barley rice sets! Let's go take a look at the types of barley rice sets~~

Baengnyeon Boribap set menu and prices

• Mugeunji cheonggukjang + barley rice + mackerel set ₩14,500
• Mugeunji cheonggukjang + barley rice + jeyuk set ₩14,500
• Mugeunji cheonggukjang + barley rice + pork cutlet set ₩14,500
• Siraegi bone soup + barley rice + mackerel set ₩14,900
• Siraegi bone soup + barley rice + jeyuk set ₩14,900
• Black soybean noodle soup + barley rice + mackerel set ₩14,500
• Black soybean noodle soup + barley rice + jeyuk set ₩14,500
• Kids' barley rice set (ages 5-9) ₩6,500
• Mugeunji cheonggukjang + barley rice set ₩11,000
• Black soybean noodle soup + barley rice set ₩11,000
• Siraegi bone soup + barley rice set ₩11,900

We went with set No.1 (mugeunji cheonggukjang + barley rice + mackerel set, ₩14,500) and set No.3 (mugeunji cheonggukjang + barley rice + pork cutlet set, ₩14,500) haha. Picked mackerel and pork cutlet for something good for the body~! The pork cutlet is made with hanwoo-grade Korean pork (handon), and lots of reviews say it's delicious, so my picky-eater picked the cutlet~~ There are lots of side dishes to pair with too, so keep that in mind haha.

How the self-serve banchan bar works

At Baengnyeon Boribap, you bring the barley rice on a large plate at your table and add the mix-in ingredients yourself from the self-serve bar. Isn't the variety of banchan (side dishes) incredible...? Stir-fried eggplant, radish salad, stir-fried zucchini and more — I loved being able to pick according to my taste. The radish salad in particular was so delicious~ haha

Both white rice and barley rice are available! Once you order, they bring you barley rice first~ If it's not enough while eating, you can just go add more yourself.

I only scooped a little of each so as not to waste any, but with so many kinds, the plate still ended up completely full haha.

How the mugeunji cheonggukjang and mackerel set taste

Baengnyeon Boribap's mugeunji cheonggukjang has aged kimchi mixed in, which made it even tastier!

It sits somewhere between cheonggukjang and doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), so even people who don't like cheonggukjang should be able to enjoy it easily haha.

Into the barley rice that came with it, I added the banchan from the self-serve bar along with gochujang (red chili paste) and sesame oil and mixed it all up~!

The mackerel was grilled beautifully golden brown too! It even came with a slice of lemon haha.

There were also wrap greens, so I made a wrap with barley rice and mackerel haha. Take a bite of mugeunji cheonggukjang alongside it and it's a perfect match : )

Was the Korean pork cutlet set worth it?

This is the mugeunji cheonggukjang + barley rice + pork cutlet set I ordered! I was surprised by how big the portion of cutlet was haha. The owner told me to go easy on the barley rice since the cutlet is delicious ^^

One bite in, I understood why~ Made with Korean pork (handon), it was even tastier and clearly not cheap meat!! Even though it's not a dedicated cutlet restaurant, it had zero off-flavor and was crispy yet tender!! It's also available à la carte, so order the cutlet the kids love haha.

Sungnyung (toasted rice tea) and what comes after the meal

Baengnyeon Boribap also has sungnyung (scorched rice tea), misugaru (roasted grain powder drink), and dessert snacks ready. I love sungnyung, so it was a nice palate cleanser at the end haha.

And last but not least, misugaru and dessert snacks to enjoy 🤍 Such a satisfying meal at Baengnyeon Boribap in Wa-dong. My mom loved it too since it was healthy but filling~~ If you're looking for a great Korean restaurant in Daejeon, I recommend Baengnyeon Boribap~~!