Bangi-dong Seoul grill house with a Korean pork sampler: Yukmong

The weather's been properly autumn lately, so staying home felt like a waste, haha. So I took a walk around Seokchon Lake in Jamsil and then, after all that walking, headed to Yukmong Bangi Direct Branch in the Bangi-dong food alley — known as a go-to Seokchon Lake date spot where you can enjoy both grilled meat and raw fish!

Yukmong Bangi Direct Branch is a fresh, recently opened Seokchon Lake date-restaurant. Since it's a directly operated branch, you get the same quality as other Yukmong locations, so I visited with confidence!

Where Yukmong Bangi Direct Branch is, and where to park

Yukmong Bangi Direct Branch, a Seokchon Lake favorite, sits in the Bangi-dong food alley. There's space right in front for about 2–3 cars, though it's not exactly spacious, so at busy times I'd recommend public transit or parking at a nearby public lot.

True to its name, Yukmong Bangi Direct Branch is a Songpa Korean BBQ restaurant that's serious about meat — you can enjoy domestic Korean pork alongside snowflake-marbled Korean beef here! And it's not just meat: they also serve seasonal raw fish, so I'd recommend it for Bangi-dong work dinners too.

Opening hours and how to reserve

Yukmong's hours on weekdays run from noon to midnight, with a break time from 3 to 5pm. On weekends it's noon to midnight with no break, so you can come whenever suits you for meat and a drink!

Yukmong Bangi is a massive Korean BBQ restaurant occupying an entire building from the basement to the 2nd floor, so it's easy to book for large gatherings, family get-togethers, or small parties too. I reserved ahead through Catch Table, haha.

Seating floor by floor: hall, 40-person group room, basement private rooms

The 1st floor has regular table seating, while the 2nd floor has quite a large group setup that can hold up to about 40 people — plenty for a company dinner or a big gathering. The atmosphere, from lighting to table settings, is upscale, so I'd recommend it if you want to enjoy meat without smelling like it afterward.

And the basement floor is entirely private rooms, so it's great for meeting-the-parents dinners, wedding invitation gatherings, or family meals where you want some privacy!

Room seating comes with an added room charge. For large groups, they can open and close the partitions between rooms to combine them into one space, haha.

I ate in the 1st-floor hall, haha — with only 4–5 tables, it was a good spot to enjoy a quiet meal. After ordering, they first set out seasonal side dishes and various sauces.

What's on the menu at Yukmong Bangi

Along with the special menu, Yukmong — a Bangi-dong raw-fish-restaurant date spot — also has seasonal sashimi, tasting plates, and doraji (bellflower root) seasoned crab, so seafood lovers can enjoy it too.

For beef, there was snowhwa (snowflake) galbi and galbi meat with marbling described as snow-like, plus flower sirloin, beef tartare, and yukhoe (raw beef). For pork, there's the mixed set that lets you enjoy snowflake pork neck, galbi belly, and whole outside skirt all at once, and they even sell a 'Shrek Galbi' available only at the Bangi branch...!

The side dishes were all winners too...! The moment I saw caviar cheese egg custard on the menu I ordered it right away, haha. The fried radish greens kimchi stir-fry, the signature doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), and Yukmong's own minari bibim guksu (herb noodles) are must-tries.

They also stock most drink categories, from soju and beer to wine, so it's a solid pick for a Seokchon Lake BBQ get-together.

The side dishes and dipping sauces that come free

Each side dish and sauce came with a little explanation, so it was fun to eat knowing what everything was. If you leave a Naver photo review, you can get a free chadol hangover ramyeon or beef tartare — worth a try!

You could choose to your taste from fresh wasabi, a Southeast-Asian-style fish fusion sauce, ssamjang, pickled ginger, and salt.

They also served the classic seasoned crab that's practically a rule at good restaurants, haha. Totally delicious, ㅠㅠ

The Korean pork sampler set, grilled at your table by staff

I ordered Yukmong's signature hanpork mixed set first — a perfect amount for two people. It comes with thick snowflake pork neck, galbi belly, whole outside skirt, and the signature doenjang stew.

All the meat gets grilled tableside by a staff member on Yukmong's special grill plate.

They said the flat grill plate lets them adjust doneness per cut for optimal flavor. They grilled the snowflake pork neck first, then the whole outside skirt, then the belly, in that order.

They turned the thick pork neck this way and that, locking in the juices.

One bite and — seriously, crispy outside, tender inside, the softest pork neck I've ever had, ㅠㅠ. The place that shattered my belief that pork neck is always dry!

Signature doenjang stew and caviar cheese steamed egg

The signature doenjang jjigae served alongside is another Yukmong side dish you can't skip. It comes in a big earthenware bowl, brimming and savory, haha, packed with vegetables, meat, tofu, and bean sprouts — perfect with meat, and perfect as a hangover cure too!

And the caviar cheese egg custard — seriously, if you don't order it just from the visual alone, that's a crime, folks...! The custard is loaded with a bomb of savory cheese and caviar on top.

So savory and salty, it went perfectly with the meat, haha. I would have regretted it if I hadn't ordered it.

Whole skirt-side pork, galbi pork belly, and minari bibim guksu to finish

The chewy whole outside skirt — a special cut you don't see much these days, haha — had really great chew to it.

To finish, they grilled the tender galbi belly. As a fat lover, I have to say — it melts in your mouth the moment you bite it, almost like beef, ㅠㅠ. Delicious on its own with wasabi, and even better with pickled onions — total rice thief.

And finally, the minari bibim guksu, fragrant with minari! The noodles sit somewhere between chewy jjolmyeon and somyeon, tossed in a moderately spicy sauce loaded with minari — genuinely so good, ㅠㅠ. Best of the best.

I recommend Yukmong as a Bangi-dong raw-fish-restaurant date spot! Next time I'll bring my parents along.