Korean BBQ with cast-iron grill and minari at Girin Samgyeopsal, Paju

Today I was looking for a BBQ place near Yadang Station~ and ended up at 'Girin Samgyeopsal' (기린삼겹살), which caught my eye with its giraffe mascot. It was easy to spot thanks to the yellow giraffe model out front, and the cute vibe inside seemed like something kids would love too!!

The heart of this Yadang BBQ spot is the heavy cast-iron grill! The Maillard reaction really kicked in — crispy outside, juicy inside, exactly what you want!

Girin Samgyeopsal menu and prices

"A domestic pork specialty restaurant"

• Fresh samgyeopsal (Korean pork): ₩15,000
• Mokssal (Korean pork): ₩15,000
• Kkodeulsal (Korean pork): ₩15,000
• Diced hangjeongsal (Korean pork): ₩13,000
• Gabrisal (Korean pork): ₩16,000

We ordered gabrisal, kkodeulsal, and diced hangjeongsal! Three servings for the two of us. And a Kelly beer 3-bottle set!! That works out to about ₩4,500 a bottle??!! With so many places charging ₩6,000 these days~ this beer-loving couple was thrilled~👍👍

How to properly enjoy the cast-iron grill

Grilling on cast iron means you don't need to flip the meat much~ apparently it's best to let it sit a while and flip once the Maillard reaction kicks in!! We trust the people who know their stuff, so we always try to follow these tips properly~ hahaha

Thick-cut Korean pork

Maybe because they use 100% premium Korean pork, but the thickly sliced, bright pink cuts looked incredibly fresh at first glance. They also give you onion and mushroom for free when you order meat~♡

Once it hit the grill, each piece of meat was just so thick! And once it was actually cooked, the portion turned out bigger than it looked~~

Alright~ah! This is the Maillard moment~~!! Flip it now!! ❤️

With complimentary minari

They gave us a generous free serving of fragrant minari (water dropwort) here, and lightly cooking it in the pork fat and wrapping it with the meat~~ cut through the richness completely and smelled amazing.

This is really THE BBQ spot in Yadang..★ The cast-iron grill effect is definitely real! Grilled crispy outside and juicy inside, that golden-brown pork flavor is top-notch~~!

And if you put kimchi and mushrooms on the lower part of the grill, they cook in the pork fat that drips down the cast iron, becoming a delicacy among delicacies. So delicious!!

Diced hangjeongsal, crispy skin-side first

I never knew hangjeongsal (pork jowl) could be this good~~! Once you crisp up the skin side first, it gets as crunchy as a chip, and the texture and flavor are amazing~!

Eating the crispy hangjeongsal with the special sauce made the drinks go down way too easily!!

For a side, bibim kalguksu instead of fried rice

After going back and forth between fried rice and bibim kalguksu (spicy mixed noodle soup), we decided on the bibim kalguksu side~!! It comes with the sauce already mixed in, so you can just dig in~~ I highly recommend bibim kalguksu as a side. Fried rice after BBQ is always a solid choice~~ but if you want something cleaner than fried rice!! The thick noodles soaked in sweet and tangy sauce will satisfy you way more!

Lastly! The dessert slushie service~~!! I didn't try the one on the left, but the one on the right was grape Welch's flavor! Tasted great after not having it in a while!! 💜💜💜

Final thoughts

For anyone looking for BBQ near Yadang! With quality Korean pork and generous side dishes~ I highly recommend 'Girin Samgyeopsal,' a proper BBQ spot near Yadang Station!

📍1st floor, units 110 & 111, 1102 Gyeonguiro, Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea / ⏰ Daily 16:00–23:00