Seongdong Seoul unlimited eel Korean BBQ: Songnim Bok Jangeo

Unlimited eel charcoal grilling in Seongsu

I live around Konkuk University and Seongsu, so I go to lots of good restaurants nearby! Today, as someone who is crazy about eel, I went with my boyfriend to Songnim Bok Jangeo Unlimited Freshwater Eel Seongsu Branch (송림복장어 민물장어 무한리필 성수직영점), supposedly a Seongsu local favorite~!

A neat exterior and the menu

Let me show you the exterior! The huge sign is right there, and unlike other places, its neat exterior really stands out, haha.

Here is the menu~! Unlimited-refill prices are split between adults and children, and the ₩3,000 table setting is extra, but the side dishes are substantial, so it did not feel like a waste at all, haha. Takeout is available, and they have a wide variety of alcohol too—when we arrived, it was already clearly a local favorite~!

The self bar and how to grill eel

Once you sit down, they set out the basic side dishes, and after that you refill them yourself! Things they do not initially serve, such as ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste), chili peppers, and garlic, were ready too, haha. If you wait, they set up the charcoal and grill for you!

The unlimited-refill time is 2 hours!! Usually eel restaurants par-grill everything for you, so grilling eel myself felt unfamiliar! But there was an instruction sheet for grilling it deliciously, so it was not difficult, haha. We fumbled a little at first, but by the second round we had completely got the hang of it, haha.

The self bar was being kept very clean!

There were three types of meat, plus ginger, aged kimchi, kimchi, pickled onions, pickled perilla leaves, ssamjang, chili peppers, and garlic.

I loved that the eel, pork belly, and chicken thigh were all prepared so neatly and kept fresh! We are really sensitive about meat quality, so we kept eating while thinking, this quality for this price? Haha.

There were baskets for ssam vegetables, small plates, salt and pepper, wet wipes, and sesame oil! Since the self bar had so many things ready, I looked around at the neighboring tables and loved that everyone was making and eating their own personal combinations, haha. I really liked the thoughtfulness in every way, and how clean the self bar remained!

From eel to pork belly and chicken thigh

At first, they generously put all three meats on the grill for you, and after that, it is self-service!! If they had not given us all three in advance, we probably would have focused on just one, but thanks to that, we ate all three evenly until the end, haha.

Oh, and they gave us bokbunja ju (Korean black raspberry wine) on the house!! I really love it... but I had gotten an injection in my knee that day, so not being able to drink it is honestly my biggest regret.. Since it is a local spot, there were lots of older gentlemen too, and once they started with bokbunja ju, they just went hard on the soju, haha. I am coming back here anyway... and next time I will definitely drink it myself.. My boyfriend drank it, and said it went down smoothly like grape wine, then he finished it all by himself..? Next time, me too..

Grill the back of the eel first, then trim off the fins and dorsal fin! Once both sides are a little golden, cut it into small pieces and grill the sides, haha.

We divided the work: my boyfriend grilled both sides well and cut it up, while I diligently turned the pieces on their sides as we ate, hahaha. Unlike meat, it is only hard at first—it was easier than I expected! I also liked that the heat was not too fierce.

When these sides, which were quite raw at first, turn golden brown like the one on the right, they are ready to eat! I tried lots of combinations, and ginger plus sauce is really the key! The side dishes were all nicely seasoned too, so it was great to mix things up without getting tired of it. The unusual combinations were eel with pickled onions, and eel with pickled perilla leaves, haha. Everything was delicious, so try different pairings and find your own combo!

We went there to absolutely feast on eel, so we really ate mostly eel, hahaha. We burned it a little at first, but at some point my boyfriend figured out the trick and became totally great at grilling it!! I am happy to have a boyfriend who grills meat well ~

Pork belly cannot be left out! At unlimited-refill places like this, the pork belly is usually really thin, has bones in it, and looks obviously like frozen meat that has just been thawed—but the pork belly here was thick and so delicious! You could taste the juices, you know..

My boyfriend eats so much meat that his grilling know-how is almost at restaurant part-timer level.. He chops it up chop-chop, picks it up with the tongs, and flips it right over.. He used to cut it twice this size, but after years of training, he cuts it like this now. The best~ My combo... please roll pork belly with pickled perilla leaves ㅜㅜ It is seriously so delicious.. The juices are alive—amazing..

We also enjoyed the chicken thigh so much, haha. Grilled over charcoal, it had a herb seasoning and was so tasty!!

Buckwheat water noodles for dessert and final thoughts

What is dessert for Koreans? Buckwheat water noodles (₩9,000), of course~ They were not strongly seasoned and were almost like Pyongyang naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles)! That made them even more appealing, haha.

In the end, we cleared everything again today.. What even is an environmental surcharge..? Well, it will not apply to us..

The moment we walked in and saw lots of older men and women, I immediately shouted, “Ah, this is a real local favorite.” And the older gentlemen were sitting there opening bottle after bottle of soju? That says it all, haha. I was so happy to find a local gem like this in Seongsu, the world of young trendsetters, and as Seongsu residents, we have designated it one of our regular spots too, hahaha. The eel is unlimited, but it tastes so good.. The quality is excellent too!! Every meat was high quality and well maintained, which I loved. The staff and owner seemed to get along well, so the atmosphere was great too; seeing the older guests having such a good time, I could tell this was a good place~

I visited this time as part of a review group, but it has also become one of our regular places that we will definitely visit whenever we crave it, haha. I totally recommend it!