Guwol-dong beef restaurant: 6,000-won jingalbisal add-on, Sip Sam Dae

I usually like beef and meat in general, but somehow I'd never had ugalbi (bone-in beef short rib) before! I'd seen photos of that big chunk of meat still attached to the bone and always wanted to try it, and this time, visiting Sip Sam Dae in Guwol-dong, I finally got my first taste of ugalbi.

Where is Sip Sam Dae in Guwol-dong, and what are its hours?

Sip Sam Dae is located at 32 Injudae-ro 623beon-gil, 1st floor, Namdong-gu, Incheon, South Korea. Hours are Mon–Fri 11:30–22:30, Saturday 16:00–22:00, and Sunday 18:00–22:00.

Premium Ugalbi A Set plus the 6,000-won jingalbisal add-on

What we ordered that day at Sip Sam Dae was the Premium Ugalbi A Set, and since I wanted a bit more beef, I added jingalbisal for ₩6,000! Since it was my first time trying ugalbi, I was curious how different it would be from regular beef, haha. And best of all, the set already came with doenjang sul-bap included, which was a nice bonus.

The side dishes were laid out neatly. They even cut the scallion salad into bite-sized pieces with scissors for us — so thoughtful!

What does Sip Sam Dae's ugalbi look like when it arrives?

Finally, the ugalbi arrived! Finally, the meat arrived! Seeing the ugalbi for the first time, the visual really was different from regular beef. With a big chunk of meat still attached to the rib bone, it felt like I was really eating meat, haha. Ugalbi comes from the beef rib section, grilled with the meat still on the bone, which is said to give it that deep, rich rib flavor.

Staff grill the beef ribs at your table

And best of all, the staff at Sip Sam Dae grill the meat for you! At most BBQ places, you're too busy grilling to really talk, always worried it'll burn — but here, the staff handled the grilling themselves, so we could just relax and eat.

They even removed the big bones by hand while grilling,

and cut everything into bite-sized pieces, so all we had to do was enjoy eating, haha.

How to build a lettuce wrap with ugalbi

And of course, no meat meal is complete without ssam (lettuce wraps)! 🌿 Putting a piece of meat on lettuce with the scallion salad and other sides, then eating it in one big bite, was a treat in itself. Beef dipped plain in salt or sauce is delicious too, but wrapping it like this added the crunchy texture of the vegetables, making the rich meat flavor feel a bit cleaner. Ugalbi in particular has a strong, rich flavor on its own, so wrapping it gave it a whole different feel! I also tried wrapping the jingalbisal, and paired with the scallion salad, the combination was pretty great, haha.

Jingalbisal vs ugalbi: how the two cuts taste

Jingalbisal had a different feel from ugalbi. While ugalbi had that strong, savory flavor characteristic of rib meat on the bone, jingalbisal was a bit lighter, with the juiciness and tender texture typical of beef coming through nicely.

Eating just one cut for too long can get a bit repetitive, but switching between ugalbi and jingalbisal, with their different flavors, actually made the meal more enjoyable. Jingalbisal in particular tasted better when not overcooked — keeping it moderately cooked kept the juices alive.

Finishing with the doenjang sul-bap included in the set

Last but not least, doenjang sul-bap! After eating our fill of meat, we finished up with the doenjang sul-bap (soybean paste rice). And here's another thing I loved — the staff had picked off the leftover bits of meat still clinging to the ugalbi bones and cleanly added them into the doenjang sul-bap. Not letting any scrap of meat left on the bones go to waste, and turning it into this dish, was a nice little treat, haha.

After eating meat, I always somehow end up craving doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) or something with broth, and since the set already included doenjang sul-bap, there was no need to think twice. Eating the savory doenjang broth together with rice was the perfect way to close out the meal after all that meat.

With bits of ugalbi meat mixed into the savory doenjang broth, it had an added richness that made it feel different from a regular doenjang jjigae! Eating warm broth with rice after all that meat was really the perfect way to wrap things up. It was my first time trying ugalbi, and in the end, I ate every last scrap off the bones and finished off the doenjang sul-bap without leaving anything behind. 😋