Galma-dong Korean BBQ in Daejeon: flower pork belly at Gildon

Gildon, a well-known spot in Galma-dong, Daejeon — the flower pork belly here was good enough to call the best meat of my life.

I was craving good meat, so this time I went to Gildon, a Galma-dong restaurant. There are so many BBQ places around, but the flower pork belly I had here really stuck with me.

That day I ordered two servings of flower pork belly and aged kimchi stew, and ended up adding mul-naengmyeon (cold noodle soup) because I wasn't quite full. At the end, I also got to enjoy a crab ramyeon from the receipt review promotion.

Gildon's banchan spread, muk-sabal included

When you order flower pork belly at Gildon, a neat spread of various side dishes comes out along with the meat. It's not just meat plunked on the table — the variety of banchan made it easy to pair something with every bite,

I especially liked that muk-sabal (cold acorn jelly soup) was included. Eating the cool muk-sabal first perked up my appetite, and it was also nice to have in between bites of meat.

How is flower pork belly different from regular samgyeopsal?

The flower pork belly finally arrived and went onto the grill. Even the shape of the meat looked a bit different from regular pork belly — it really looked as appetizing as its name suggests.

As the meat started cooking on the grill, that savory smell rose up and it was truly a hunger-inducing moment. One thing I really liked about Gildon is that staff grill the meat for you.

At a lot of BBQ places, someone at the table has to keep grilling, so you end up paying more attention to the grill than to actually eating.

Here, since they grill it for you, we got to just chat comfortably while waiting for the meat to cook. It was also great being able to eat the meat at the exact moment it was at its best.

Gildon's flower pork belly: delicious from the first bite

Gildon's flower pork belly was even better than expected from the first bite. Above all, the meat was really tender.

You could really taste that signature pork belly savoriness, and the texture was soft and non-chewy going down. The meat itself was so good that it tasted great even without piling on wraps or side dishes.

It was the kind of flavor that made you reach for one more piece right after the last, so two servings of flower pork belly disappeared fast. I say meat is delicious pretty often when I'm eating it, but this time I genuinely thought it was good enough to call the best meat of my life.

Mul-naengmyeon, the cold noodles that paired best with the pork

As I was enjoying the flower pork belly, I thought of a dish that's a shame to skip when eating meat — mul-naengmyeon (cold noodle soup).

So I ordered an extra mul-naengmyeon, and as always, the meat-and-naengmyeon combo never fails. After the meat, a bite of the cool noodles left my mouth feeling refreshed and clean.

The cold, refreshing mul-naengmyeon paired especially well after eating something as savory as flower pork belly. If you're the type who likes naengmyeon alongside your meat, I'd recommend ordering this combo.

Aged kimchi stew packed with meat

Looking inside Gildon's aged kimchi stew, it was packed with a generous amount of meat. We ordered it from the start to eat alongside the flower pork belly.

Kimchi stew is more satisfying when it's loaded with meat rather than just a tasty broth, and here the meat was so generous it went great with rice too.

Sipping the kimchi stew broth between bites of flower pork belly, the savoriness of the meat paired well with the spicy kick of the stew. Ordering the stew alongside the meat made the meal feel like a proper, complete one instead of just meat and nothing else.

Leave a receipt review, get blue crab ramyeon

Gildon gives out ramyeon as a receipt review promotion, and it's not just plain ramyeon — it comes with crab, which made it even better.

With the crab in it, the broth had that distinct seafood umami, and having hot broth after all that meat made for a solid way to close out the meal.

Even though I was already pretty full from the flower pork belly, kimchi stew, and naengmyeon, it was tasty enough that I kept eating. I left feeling like I'd eaten well right to the very end.

Is Gildon worth it for a Korean BBQ night in Galma-dong?

This time at Gildon, a Galma-dong restaurant, I started with two servings of flower pork belly and worked my way through aged kimchi stew and mul-naengmyeon.

What stuck with me most was, of course, the flower pork belly. The meat was so soft and savory that I kept thinking it was delicious, something I hadn't felt in a while,

and since staff grilled it for us, we got to eat comfortably without worrying about the grill. On top of that, with banchan including muk-sabal and a kimchi stew loaded with meat,

plus the cool mul-naengmyeon, it made for a fully satisfying meal. Finishing it off with the crab ramyeon, I really felt like I got to properly enjoy meat that day.

If you're looking for a good flower pork belly spot in Galma-dong, or just want to properly enjoy soft, delicious meat one day, Gildon is worth a visit.