Pork one-geun set with dwitgogi at Gwangju BBQ Sangnok Hoegwan

A retro-vibe meat restaurant where you can grill a whole geun (about 600g) of pork by cut, including the special parts, all over charcoal!! I went to Sangnok Hoegwan Yeontan-gui Gwangju Taejeon branch~

Where is Sangnok Hoegwan Yeontan-gui Taejeon Branch, and is there parking?

There's a wide parking space right in front of the restaurant, so free parking is easy~

• Hours: 13:30–24:00
• Address: 350-6 Hoean-daero, Gwangju-si, Gyeonggi-do

Stepping inside, I felt that comfortable, lively atmosphere unique to meat restaurants. It was the day before Chuseok, so I expected it to be quiet, but seeing it fully packed made me realize just how popular it is.

It's a comfortable place for a casual meal with friends or family, and also works well for a bigger group eating together. Being a charcoal-grill place especially gives it a different atmosphere from grilling on a regular griddle.

The menu: pork and beef, plus gopchang and seafood

Sangnok Hoegwan Yeontan-gui Taejeon Branch serves pork and beef of course, but also gopchang (grilled intestines) and seafood, so you can basically eat anything you're craving. The seafood options are fan mussel, scallop, abalone, live octopus, and sea squirt.

We ordered the pork one-geun so we could taste a variety of cuts, and got to try pork jowl, neck, belly, and skin among other special parts, all evenly across the board^^

Doenjang jjigae for 2,000 won is too good to skip

The doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) is only ₩2,000, so we ordered it along with rice haha. A spoonful of rice with grilled meat, then some warm doenjang soup on the side, makes for a really filling meal haha. At this price, I'd say just order it, no question~

Grilling the pork one-geun, from dwitgogi to pork skin

That triangle-shaped meat is called dwitgogi (rear meat). Dwitgogi is off-cut meat from parts like the bone-attached flesh or head meat, and it's popular for its chewy texture~

The rear meat and pork jowl are so fatty that flames kept flaring up haha.

Each cut had a slightly different texture, so it was fun picking through them one by one.

The pork jowl in particular had a springy, chewy texture, and the pork skin grilled golden brown was a real treat too. You're supposed to dip it in soybean powder, but I forgot that day haha.

Why the pickled lettuce beats a plain ssam wrap

The crisp pickled lettuce was so good you don't even need a lettuce wrap~ It tastes similar to a scallion sauce, sweet and tangy and really delicious.

Grilling pineapple from the self-bar

There's also a self-bar set up, so you can grab whatever extras you need yourself.

Ever since our kids grilled pineapple with meat while camping, they ask for pineapple every time we eat meat~ So one of the reasons we keep coming back to Sangnok Hoegwan Yeontan-gui Taejeon Branch is that you can grab pineapple from the self-bar and grill it right alongside the meat.

The kids love it so much that in the middle of eating meat they'll shout "let's grill some pineapple!" and go get it themselves. Grilled together with meat, it turns sweet and warm and really tasty.

I wonder what cut this is lol. Not really sure haha. Going purely on the vibe, it tasted kind of like heart^^;

Watching the charcoal briquettes: a first for the kids

Kids these days rarely get the chance to see real charcoal briquettes in person, so they didn't quite know what it was. When they asked "what's this?", I explained that charcoal briquettes used to be the fuel people used for heating homes and cooking food.

Grilling meat while getting an up-close look at real charcoal turned into a different kind of experience for the kids than just seeing it in a book or photo. Haha.

We grabbed a few pieces of lettuce and perilla leaves too and wrapped up bites of everything haha. Not sure if this one's pork neck or a steak cut... haha.

Maybe because it's thick, the juices were still locked in.

When they gave it a thumbs up saying it was delicious, mom felt proud^^

Ending the meal with the free slushie

We put the last of the pork belly on the grill and also tried the slushie. The slushie is offered for free, so it was a nice cool drink to finish the meal with. Wrapping up after all that meat with a sweet, cold slushie made the kids really happy^^

If you're looking for a good samgyeopsal or pork restaurant in Taejeon-dong, or a place where you can enjoy several special cuts together, Sangnok Hoegwan Yeontan-gui Taejeon Branch is worth a visit. Had another delicious meal today :)