Sometime you have to look up to find good eats. This second storey eatery serves lamb Korean BBQ for those on a shoestring budget and yet does not compromise on the quality.
The sign just said, “참숯구이 화로 양고기”, or “charcoal grilled lamb”. And the entrance is not on the main street, but on the side door for the fire escape stairwell. Level 1 is a well-appointed pork BBQ place, the second floor is the lamb BBQ place called Hwaloyang Galbijib 화로양갈비집 and they also operate the third level as beef BBQ. I have not figured out the relationships among the three shops, as they all seem to be the same owner but different styles.
Compared with the ground floor, the interior in the eatery is really spartan. I like spartan, as most eateries with humble decorations will concentrate on getting their food right.
At the centre of each table is a gas burner that you can add a charcoal stove on top.
Nothing beats a charcoal fired BBQ. I know, I know, it may be carcinogenic. But the flavours that are produced with a charcoal stove cannot be replicated. So eat in moderation.
Samgag-yang-galbi 삼각양갈비 Triangular shaped lamb ribs
They specialise in lamb, and the best part to try would be the lamb chops from the rib rack. Called samgag-yang-galbi 삼각양갈비 or triangular shaped lamb ribs, one serving is two chops.
The lamb chops are not seasoned with herbs and spices, just salt. I like that as it would like flavours of the lamb to shine through.
This restaurant requires you to grill it yourselves during lunchtime because there’s only one lady running the place. Luckily I was quite apt in BBQ.
And they provided a dipping dry mix of cumin, peppercorn, and other spices for you to enhance the flavours of the lamb chop if you find salt too simple.
The perfect side dish to go with the grilled lamb chops is buchugeotjeol-i 부추겉절이 or pickled chives salad, a freshly prepared tossed salad. This is different from buchu-kimchi 부추김치, which is left alone to ferment a bit.
Yeolmugugsu 열무국수 Cold noodles soup made with young summer radish kimchi
Yeolmu-kimchi, or young summer radish kimchi, is a popular Korean side dish (banchan) made from the thick, tender leaves of young white radishes. The cold noodles here use yeolmu 열무, the first time I tried it in naengmyeon. Starch content in the flour used is what makes the noodles so chewy and elastic. Naengmyeon is from North Korea, and these days used interchangeably with guksu.
Guksu is usually made from wheat flour, resulting in a texture much more in line with Western style pastas, but here the noodles is the same ones as traditional naengmyeon. This spicy, slightly sweet, savoury and tangy cold noodle dish is perfect for the summer heat and for reducing the heatiness from eating BBQ, and is traditionally a finale to a BBQ meal.
Nothing fancy, just a good eatery in the middle of the city.
Hwaloyang Galbijib 화로양갈비집
120-3 Bukchang-dong, Jung District, Seoul, South Korea
Tel : +82 2-310-9202
Visited Aug 2024
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