Dunsan-dong gopchang restaurant with brisket add-on: Uhwa Gopchang

Today I checked out Uhwa Gopchang, the hot new spot everyone's talking about in Dunsan-dong! With the cool morning and evening breeze these days, it really feels like fall has arrived. And on days like this, isn't heading out for something delicious with a friend or partner just the best?

I was actually out on a date in Dunsan-dong, Daejeon, when a sign caught my eye from far away. It was Uhwa Gopchang, where you can try fresh gopchang (grilled beef intestine) butchered the very same day! The lively energy spilling out from the entrance made me stop in my tracks.

Uhwa Gopchang hours, parking and reservations

Uhwa Gopchang is open daily from 17:00 to 24:00, which makes it perfect for a drink after work. It's located across from Hyangchon Apartment's main gate, so it's not hard to find. Let me walk you through the basics you'll want to check before visiting!

Dunsan-dong is notoriously hard to park in, but here you get 2 hours free at the restaurant's own lot, so I didn't have to worry even with the car. 😊 Walking inside, the tables were already nearly full, proof of how popular this place is. If it's an important appointment or a date, I'd strongly recommend booking ahead through Naver reservations! Not only do you skip the wait and get seated right away, you also get service perks for leaving a review.

Uhwa mixed platter for two plus one serving of brisket

We started off by ordering the Uhwa mixed platter for two, which lets you enjoy several cuts at once. As soon as we sat down we looked over the menu, and the lineup was really well put together.

After some deliberation, I decided to order the Uhwa mixed platter for two so we could try several cuts at once!

You could feel the care put into the basic table setting from the start, especially the beef-packed seaweed soup that warmed me right up. 👍 On top of that, chewy old-style tteokbokki (stir-fried rice cakes) came out as a side, perfect for cleansing the palate. The staff asked if we eat raw liver and tripe, and when we said yes, they brought out a glistening, fresh plate of raw liver.

Finally the main event arrived, the mixed platter, already pre-cooked so it grilled up fast. The staff cut everything into bite-sized pieces and grilled it to the perfect doneness themselves, which meant we could focus on conversation and eat comfortably. ✨ The gopchang was packed full inside, getting savory with every chew, while the daechang (large intestine) practically melted in the mouth.

To keep the meat flowing without a break, we added a serving of beef brisket to the grill, and the combo of rich gopchang with nutty brisket was incredible! Grilling chives, bean sprouts, and kimchi alongside on the pan, letting them get golden in the fat, cut the richness and brought out even more flavor. 😊 Topping each bite with a bit of the cheongyang chili in the sauce made it addictively good — you just kept reaching for more.

Finishing with flying fish roe fried rice

The finale at Uhwa Gopchang was flying fish roe fried rice. By the time we'd worked through the meat we were pretty full, but you can't skip fried rice — the dessert of Korean meals!

We ordered the fried rice piled high with flying fish roe, and watching it get pressed down and fried on the grill got my appetite going all over again, haha. The popping texture of the roe and the nutty toasted seaweed flakes mixed with the leftover gopchang fat, and I ended up scraping the pan clean.

You could tell the ingredients were genuinely fresh throughout, and it turns out they only use meat brought in from the slaughterhouse every dawn, which made me trust the place even more. On nice-weather days like this, they throw the doors wide open, giving it an outdoor pojangmacha-style vibe that makes it a great atmospheric date spot too. The staff were all so kind that I felt good the whole meal through. If you're looking for a real gopchang restaurant in Dunsan-dong, Daejeon, I'd say don't hesitate to check this place out!