Goyang Korean BBQ: ogyeopsal lunch at Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu

A review of the samgyeopsal I had with my dad at Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu for lunch.

A dumpling restaurant serving ogyeopsal? What we ordered at Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu

Hi everyone :) I went to Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu for lunch with my dad, just the two of us. As the name suggests, this place is famous for mandu jeongol (dumpling hot pot) and hand-cut noodle soup — I'd known about it for a while and kept thinking I should visit someday.

But weirdly, that day I wanted meat more than dumplings haha, so after talking it over with my dad we decided to order two servings of samgyeopsal instead.

What Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu is like at 1pm near Jeongbalsan Station

We visited around 1pm, a bit past the usual lunch rush, but there were still quite a lot of people. I guess good places stay busy even past peak lunch hours. The inside had more customers than I expected, so the atmosphere was pretty lively.

We found a table and ordered two servings of samgyeopsal.

Which side dishes come with the ogyeopsal

After ordering the meat, the side dishes got set out one by one — a nice variety that went well with the meat.

Lettuce, pickled onion, seasoned bean sprouts, seasoned scallions, doenjang, seaweed salad — all good pairings for meat. My dad and I tasted each side dish while waiting for the meat to arrive haha.

How thick is the ogyeopsal, and who grills it?

And then the samgyeopsal finally arrived! It had a decent thickness, so it looked really appetizing once it hit the grill. A staff member set it up first, then it was up to us to grill it ourselves.

So I did my best grilling the meat haha. Whenever it's just me and my dad, I seem to end up being the one on grill duty.

As the samgyeopsal cooked on the grill, that savory smell rose up, and I thought — good call, eating meat at lunch.

You could really taste that distinct savory flavor of samgyeopsal, with a nicely chewy texture that got better the more you chewed. Not too thin, just the right thickness — it really felt like eating meat.

Kimchi grilled on the pan with the ogyeopsal

And you can't have samgyeopsal without kimchi haha.

We put some kimchi on the grill too, and the kimchi that browned nicely in the meat's fat was honestly delicious.

Putting a piece of samgyeopsal on top of the well-grilled kimchi and eating it together — the savoriness of the meat and the umami of the kimchi paired really well.

Is two servings enough for a lunch for two, and what to order next

I was glad my dad enjoyed it too. We'd actually gone back and forth a bit on what to eat for lunch, and I think choosing samgyeopsal that day was the right call. Grilling meat, chatting about this and that, eating slowly — lunchtime flew by.

While eating, we already agreed we'd try the mandu jeongol next time haha. True to its name, Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu is originally known for its mandu jeongol, so even though we had samgyeopsal this time, I'm planning to go back for that. I was especially curious since they say the dumplings are handmade. Having mandu jeongol together with hand-cut noodle soup sounds like it would be delicious in a totally different way.

This time we had two servings of samgyeopsal — the meat was tasty and it was a good lunch spot for me and my dad. Even at around 1pm, the place was busy, so it seems like a spot people regularly come to for meals. Next time I really need to go back for the mandu jeongol :) This time it was two servings of samgyeopsal with my dad — we ate well and enjoyed it haha.

Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu location, parking and 24-hour opening times

• Address: 1F, 31-10 Jeongbalsan-ro, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Directions: about 333m from Jeongbalsan Station Exit 1; 120m from Western Dome; across from Bethel Church; 400m from MBC Dream Center; 400m from Lotte Department Store; 450m from Ilsan Lake Park
• Parking: available down to B3 of the building; free parking registration available with a meal
• Hours: open daily 00:00–24:00, 24 hours, no closed days