Tomato-jang pork belly with blueberry wine, Namyangju: 2002 Witch's

Today I'm introducing '2002 Witch's Arpeggio,' a restaurant near Myojeoksa Valley in Namyangju! I had a delicious dinner with a valley view at Arpeggio, which serves this unusual tomato-jang (tomato sauce) pork belly.

What's the atmosphere like beside Myojeoksa Valley?

The valley water trickling by here made for such a good atmosphere! It's fall weather now so it's cool, and eating while listening to the stream sound made everything taste even better!

48-hour jar-aged tomato-jang pork belly, researched by the witch for 25 years

Namyangju's Myojeoksa restaurant Arpeggio is run on the know-how the owner has built up running this single location for 25 years. 🅿️ Parking was in the open lot in front of the restaurant with plenty of room, so it was easy to park.

Outdoor seating and indoor seats

There's an outdoor area right beside the creek with real outdoor-dining vibes, and the indoor space is fairly spacious too. The moment you walk inside you see the jars! Tomato-jang pork belly aging for 48 hours! Aging makes the seasoning soak in more and the meat softer, right?!

When we visited, the outdoor seats by the creek were already full, so we ate inside, but the AC was blasting cold and the tables were spaced generously, which was nice.

The tomatoes that are practically this place's symbol 🍅🍅🥫🍅🍅🥫

What three of us ordered, and the prices

The three of us ordered two servings of tomato-jang pork belly (Shin Ramyun spice level), one serving of cheese tomato-jang pork belly, and a potato pancake! The pork belly can be adjusted to spice level 1, 2, or 3. We went with the slightly spicy level 1, Shin Ramyun spice.

• Jar-aged tomato-jang pork belly ₩20,000
• Jar-aged cheese tomato-jang pork belly ₩25,000
• Crispy-outside-chewy-inside potato pancake ₩25,000

The standout side dish: tomato kimchi

The look of it alone screamed 'this place is good' -!! The side dishes here were great too. Even my parents said every single side dish was made with real care and tasted delicious. Japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), miljeonbyeong (wheat crepes), tomato kimchi, seaweed, ssamjang (dipping paste), leafy greens for wraps, and more! The tomato kimchi in particular was such a special treat! It was good enough that we refilled it a few more times.

They also sell homemade blueberry wine, so we ordered a bottle, and it was sweet and tangy and delicious! It went really well with the tomato-jang pork belly.

Why you should order the potato pancake too

And while the main tomato-jang pork belly here is delicious, this potato pancake!!!! It's genuinely crispy and so good! I'd recommend ordering this as a side to go with it. That cracker-like texture! Totally my type. It's good dipped in soy sauce, and also good dipped in the slightly reduced broth from the tomato-jang pork belly!

The tomato-jang pork belly gets an extra boost of smoky flavor from a torch, which made it even more delicious.

The tomato-jang pork belly cooking away nicely! After grilling the pork belly aged in tomato-jang, they put cheese on top, then finish with a torch fire show to bump up the smoky flavor even more!

So how does the tomato-jang pork belly taste?

This place uses a tomato-based sauce made with the soft sweetness of pineapple and the umami of various other ingredients, aged in-house. It's tomato-jang, but it's almost like a mild gochujang (red chili paste) pork belly? The umami of the tomato, the gentle non-aggressive sweetness, and the salty taste of the cheese came together in a way that was both unusual and harmonious.

Finishing with pollock roe nurungji fried rice

I'd recommend joining the review event, since leaving a Naver receipt review gets you pollock roe nurungji (scorched rice) fried rice made in a cauldron ~~ It was packed with pollock roe, and the roe popping in your mouth brought a huge burst of umami. Even full, we finished with the fried rice~!