83-year Grilled Beef Rib Restaurant In Seoul

Over the past 80 years, Joseonok has always been crowded because this is considered the best grilled beef rib restaurant in Seoul.
83-year grilled beef rib restaurant in Seoul
The restaurant is located in Euljiro, central Seoul, specializing in galbi - beef ribs marinated on a charcoal stove. Arriving one afternoon, journalist Ben Mckechnie saw in the kitchen a fire bursting with meat as the meat was placed on the grill. The sizzling sound of the marinade and the aroma radiating out made his stomach rumble. Ben has been to Seoul for the past 11 years and has never seen such a crowded barbecue at noon

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The shop is open from 12am to 9:30 pm every day, except the 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month. Photo: Ben McKechnie.
Waiters in black aprons go in and out of the kitchen repeatedly to bring the barbecue grills to the table They cut the meat and ribs into smaller pieces at the customer's table.



The hardest part when enjoying this dish is to eat the clean ribs with chopsticks.
Ben shared, when he bit into the freshly baked meat, the fire and smoke rose in his mouth and then came the rich sweetness of the meat and the marinade. Each piece of galbi seems to be a little different, when it softens quickly, when you have to chew a little more. "Whether you eat galbi on its own or on steaks and ribs with other vegetables, the taste is great and the food is salty," says Ben.
Today, Seoul has hundreds of barbecue stalls, but Joseonok is still believed by many to be the only place making delicious Korean steaks. Opened in 1937, this is one of the oldest eateries still operating in the Korean capital. The walls are plastered with black and white newspapers and pictures of Joseonok as proof of the 83-year-old restaurant's history
While Korean kebabs often place kitchens in the middle of the table for customers to roast themselves, Joseonok still makes galbi the old way: A chef will cook for all diners.



Therefore, the restaurant does not have smoky dining tables, the meat is cooked evenly (slightly outside but pinkish and moist enough on the inside), keeping the sweetness rich.
Galbi diners can eat with kimchi, lettuce, green pepper and chili sauce. Photo: Ben Mckechnie.
Chef Park Jung-gyu has been working here since 1960. He shared: “The restaurant's galbi recipe for 80 years has not changed. But not really because in the last few decades, people pay more attention to healthier eating, we have reduced sugar ”.
Mr. Park's meat marinade is simply soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and sugar.



He often buys ribs and beef and brings them to the shop at 8:30 every morning to chop them. Beef is always kept fresh, not chilled. Ribs must be marinated for 2, 3 days before baking. According to Mr. Park, the secret to having a delicious galbi is that the ribs must be covered with marinade when brought to the grill.
Kim Jin-young, the 3rd generation of the family running Joseonok, said the first barbecue in Seoul dates back to the Joseon period (1392 - 1910), located in the vicinity of royal palaces such as Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung. . The shop was so famous that the people in the palace also wanted to eat.



Galbi and bulgogi (ribs and roast beef) both come from maekjeok - grilled skewered beef that dates back almost 2,000 years ago.
Galbi grilled beef ribs originated from royal cuisine, but Joseonok itself was one of the first restaurants in Korea to popularize this dish to everyone, making it a popular dish. When Japan occupied the Korean peninsula (1910-1945), meat became a luxury food and was only available to the Japanese elite. Kim's grandmother opened the Joseonok restaurant, which has become a rare restaurant in Seoul owned by Koreans and serving only Koreans.
According to Mr. Park, at first, the shop opened to sell drinks with serving food. In the 1940s onwards, meat became a more popular commodity, and in Seoul the galbi was gradually known. Since then, Kim's grandmother decided to switch to selling only grilled beef ribs.



Several decades later, the menu is still simple, only galbi, some soup and naengmyeon (cold noodles) for customers to eat when the meal is almost finished. Many patrons of Joseonok said eating galbi here reminded them of childhood food.
When eating in Joseonok, your table will have shiny metal chopsticks, fragrant grilled ribs, a few small bowls of kimchi of all kinds, ssamjang chili sauce to dipping and raw vegetables, green peppers served. Photo: Ben McKechnie.
According to Khanh Tran / Vnexpress
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