Family dinner with kids' plates at Hanam Doeji Jip, Nowon, Seoul

I heard the Wolgye Starfield Market had just opened, so my wife, my preschool-age son and I decided to go check it out.

Let's fill up on meat for dinner!

But I realized we should eat dinner first. If you walk around on an empty stomach, forget the sightseeing — all you can think about is finding a restaurant.

So the first place we stopped was Hanam Doeji Jip Seokgye branch. That day we decided the three of us would eat meat together and then take our time exploring.

What matters when dining out with a kid — and parking

When eating out with a child, taste matters, but whether the parents can eat comfortably matters too, quietly. On that front, a BBQ place where staff grill the meat for you puts my mind at ease from the start.

If you're driving, parking is probably the first thing you're wondering about. There's a parking space beside the building, and when I asked the staff, they also pointed us to the underground parking at the front building.

We parked following their guidance. Rather than circling around aimlessly, it's easier to just ask the restaurant first. When you're moving around with a kid, details like this matter quite a bit.

The kids' tableware and gim they thoughtfully provided

After we sat down, what I liked was that they set out separate tableware and gim (seaweed) for my son. It's not just the adults' meals that get attention — they think of the kid's portion too, which was a nice surprise. It's not some grand gesture, but this kind of small thoughtfulness sticks with you.

It felt like they were genuinely welcoming to guests with kids. The service was friendly too, so we could eat without any stress the whole time.

What we ordered — mixed meat platter, doenjang jjigae, kimchi noodle soup

Next up, what we ordered that day. We centered our order on the mixed meat platter (모둠한판) and added doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) and kimchi noodle soup.

Even when eating meat, I like to have one stew and one noodle dish on the table to change up the flavor. That's what we did this time too. When dining with more than one person, this kind of combo makes choosing the menu a lot easier.

With the staff grilling, parents could actually focus on eating

And what's hard to leave out about Hanam Doeji Jip is that staff grill the meat for you. At a BBQ place, someone always has to hold the tongs — flipping, cutting, checking if it's done — and the conversation keeps getting interrupted.

Especially on a day when you also need to look after a kid, you wish you had an extra pair of hands. Here, we could skip that trouble.

With the staff grilling the meat, my wife and I could look after our son while still eating comfortably together.

Today's pairing: myeong-i namul

With the well-grilled meat in front of us, I thought for a moment about how to eat it, then tried it with myeong-i namul (a wild mountain herb). Personally, this was the combination I liked most that day.

A piece of meat paired with myeong-i namul — the two went really well together. It made me realize how much the side pairing matters when eating meat.

Eating just meat is good, but switching up the combo now and then makes the meal a bit more fun. If you like myeong-i namul, I'd recommend trying it together at least once.

The white on the grilled kimchi isn't cheese — it's pork fat

On top of that, they grilled the kimchi for us too. It wasn't just the meat that got grilled and left at that — having the kimchi taken care of as well made things even easier.

A bite of meat, then a piece of grilled kimchi, then back to myeong-i namul. Even in front of the same grill pan, the fun of eating changes depending on what you pair it with. We didn't have to bustle around grilling things ourselves, so we could just focus on eating — I liked that. Oh, and the white stuff sprinkled on the kimchi — I thought it was cheese, but it was actually pork fat.

We also had the doenjang jjigae we ordered alongside the meat, and finished the meal with kimchi noodle soup. Starting with meat and ending with noodles — personally, that's a flow I really like. If you're on the fence about ordering just meat, it might be worth checking out the stews or noodle dishes too.

A comfortable dinner for the three of us

Looking back on the meal, I still think of the myeong-i namul and meat combo, but what stays with me longer is how comfortably the three of us got to eat as a family.

Thanks to the kids' tableware and gim, and to them grilling everything from meat to kimchi for us, my wife and I had the room to actually enjoy the meal. The friendly service played a part too.

If you're looking for Korean BBQ near Seokgye Station and trying to figure out where to take your kid, I'd say put Hanam Doeji Jip Seokgye branch on your list. Hope this helps anyone looking for a dinner spot before heading to Wolgye Starfield Market, just like we were.