Birthday Korean BBQ near Balsan Station: potato ssam, Chamdwaejitgan

We visited Chamdwaejitgan Magok Branch, a Korean BBQ restaurant near Balsan Station, to celebrate my son's birthday. The place is spacious, so it was really comfortable to eat in, and the meat grilled over charcoal and domestic rice husks had such a great smoky flavor. Best of all, we got to enjoy unlimited fresh vegetables, including domestic minari (water celery) — such a happy birthday week.

Location and hours of Chamdwaejitgan Magok near Balsan Station

Chamdwaejitgan Magok Branch ⏰️Hours: 4:00 PM – 2:30 AM 🚶‍♀️How to get there: a 1-minute walk from Balsan Station Exit 9, in the Megabox building at Queens Park Nine Building C. It's so close to Balsan Station that it's easy to find, making it a great stop when you're looking for a Korean BBQ spot in Magok.

In particular, since it's a spacious restaurant with 80 seats, it looked great not only for family meals but also for group gatherings. It would also be good for a corkage meetup.

Menu at Chamdwaejitgan Magok

Looking at the menu, you can find a variety of pork cuts.

• Pork belly (Boseong nokdon)
• Flower pork neck (Boseong nokdon)
• Jirisan black pork belly
• Jirisan black pork neck
• Thousand-layer pork (Boseong nokdon jowl)
• Garib-san (Boseong nokdon special cut)

For dessert, there's Jirisan arrowroot cold noodles in broth, Jirisan arrowroot spicy mixed noodles, kimchi stew, doenjang (soybean paste) stew, egg custard, and fried rice. After some deliberation, we ordered flower pork belly and flower pork neck.

Charcoal-grilled with rice husk smoke

The interior was clean and spacious, so it was comfortable to eat here.

Rice husks were placed on the table burner, and thanks to the state-of-the-art ventilation, there wasn't much smoke while grilling — it felt very pleasant.

In front of the kitchen there was a fridge with a sign saying the meat was aging inside. Seeing this made me think, 'this must really be a good place.'

The grill plate on the table also looked like Chamdwaejitgan's own custom-made design. It was wide, so it was great for grilling, and there was room on one side to add minari, bean sprouts, and kimchi.

A generous basic table setting

The basic side dishes are set up on the table: shredded green onion salad, salad, minari, wrapping vegetables, lettuce and perilla leaves, along with ssamjang (dipping sauce), wasabi, salt, and wasabi shiitake mushrooms, all neatly arranged.

They also have a secret sauce of their own — a spicy sauce and wasabi mushrooms served together, great for dipping.

There were also potato slices, pickled garlic scapes, lettuce and perilla leaves, wild minari, seasoned bean sprouts, and kimchi — a generous spread of side dishes to eat with the meat.

Best of all, they run a salad bar, so all the side dishes except minari were unlimited refills.

Pork belly and pork neck, grilled by the staff

When the pork belly and pork neck came out, potato slices, shishito peppers, and king oyster mushrooms came along with them. A staff member grilled it for us.

Once the grill plate was properly heated, they started placing the meat piece by piece. On one side of the grill, minari, bean sprouts, and kimchi were laid out in turn.

This combination just can't not be delicious haha. Watching the thick cuts of meat turn golden brown on both sides made my mouth water just looking at it.

A generous egg custard, too

The egg custard we ordered also arrived. Piled up generously, it had a deep nuttiness from the sesame seeds and sesame oil aroma. Taking a spoonful between bites of grilling meat was also quite a treat.

Once the meat turned golden brown, they cut it into bite-sized pieces, seared it on all sides, and arranged the wild minari, bean sprouts, and kimchi neatly in front — it looked so appetizing just to see.

Chamdwaejitgan's signature potato ssam

Then they started putting potato slices on the grill in earnest, and the staff showed us how to make potato ssam (wrap).

The tablet ordering system also introduced potato ssam as a tasty way to eat here.

I put a piece of meat on top of a well-grilled potato slice, then wrapped it together with pickled garlic scapes and wasabi shiitake mushroom. Since it was such a new combination, I was really curious and excited to try this potato ssam.

The slightly crisp potato was mild in flavor, and eating it with the meat gave a great texture. The pickled garlic scapes added a tangy, sweet-and-salty crunch. Adding the wasabi shiitake mushroom on top brought a sharp, spicy kick that cut through the richness. With its great savory depth too, it was a whole new flavor combination compared to the usual meat wraps.

Perfectly crisp outside, chewy inside

Since it was grilled by an expert, the doneness was just right.

The outside was crisp while the inside stayed chewy — really delicious. Also, keeping the minari, bean sprouts, and kimchi on the grill plate meant they stayed warm the whole time we ate, which was nice.

Being able to eat the side vegetables with every bite of meat meant we never got tired of it, and enjoyed it deliciously right to the end.

Pork and minari — always a great combo

The minari we had in spring, we could also enjoy in autumn — that made me so happy.

Pork really is never a fail when eaten with minari — the crisp texture and the distinctive aroma of minari go so well together. My son also enjoyed the potato ssam, saying it was delicious, and said the spicy sauce and mushroom wasabi combo was great too, not greasy at all, going down easily.

Even the fried rice was delicious at this Korean BBQ near Balsan Station

We also ordered fried rice. After trying it, my son said this ranked among the best Korean BBQ places he's been to recently, and seemed really happy about it. Guess eating something delicious on your birthday really does put you in a good mood haha.

This time, we dug into the fried rice. Made with vegetables, seaweed, and a red seasoning, it was delicious as expected, and the plump texture of the rice grains was especially good. The rice had a good bite, and the glossy sheen made it taste nutty and delicious — we finished the fried rice in no time. I came here thinking it was a pork belly place near Balsan Station, but it turns out it's also a place known for great rice bowls and fried rice.

Finishing touches with a nice sense of care

When we ordered beer, we found a liver supplement — milk thistle — hanging off it.

At first I thought, what is this? Turns out it was a liver supplement haha. I really love this kind of touch. For people enjoying meat and a drink, it felt like a thoughtful little detail — a nice sense of care.

When we went to pay, I noticed they also had yogurt for dessert, candy, lens cleaning wipes, hair ties, toothpicks, floss, mouthwash, and even Febreze prepared. When you go to a Korean BBQ place, you always worry about your clothes smelling like smoke afterward, so having Febreze available was great. Seeing everything prepared this thoroughly, you could tell the owner really has a good sense of hospitality.

Summing up Chamdwaejitgan Magok, a Korean BBQ restaurant near Balsan Station

We visited Chamdwaejitgan Magok Branch to celebrate my son's birthday. In a spacious, pleasant restaurant, we enjoyed meat grilled over charcoal with rice husk smoke, and since the staff grilled it for us, we could relax and enjoy the meal comfortably. In particular, I loved being able to try the unique potato ssam combination along with wild minari, bean sprouts, and kimchi.

Not only was the meat delicious, but the egg custard and fried rice were great too, making this a solid choice for family meals, as well as for anyone looking for a good pork belly place near Magok Station or a gathering spot near Balsan Station. My son ate happily, and it was a delicious meal during a happy birthday week.