We Unknowingly Dined Beside Park Bo-gum & IU At Seoul’s Hottest BBQ Pork Restaurant Gold Pig — Now It’s Coming To S’pore

One of Seoul's most popular K-BBQ restaurants

For many Singaporean foodies visiting Seoul, Gold Pig has become something of a pilgrimage site.

The three-storey restaurant is located near Yaksu Station in Seoul's Jung District. Such is its popularity that diners have sometimes waited up to two hours or more for a table. Reservations are super hard to come by, unless you’re a VIP like, say a K-pop or K-drama star. 

The restaurant has been recognised by the Michelin Guide's Bib Gourmand selection every year since 2019.

The setting has a casual industrial vibe, is somewhat gritty and no-frills — not what you usually expect from a celeb hangout. 

Famous customers include BTS, G-Dragon, David Beckham

K-pop stars including BTS members Jungkook and Jimin, G-Dragon and members of aespa have all reportedly visited the restaurant over the years.

Our colleague ate behind IU & Park Bo-gum

Our food editor dined at the restaurant’s top floor last year and unwittingly sat behind K-drama stars IU and Park Bo-gum of hit Netflix drama When Life Gives You Tangerines. She was filming the food and dining room during the meal, and initially attracted a few quizzical looks from members of the actors’ entourage. She had a fuzzy glimpse of the K-drama stars in her peripheral vision and thought Park Bo-gum looked like your typically well-groomed, trendy Seoul native. “IU sat with her back facing me and from that angle, she was very petite and almost nondescript in her baggy windbreaker.”

The group soon relaxed when they realised she truly was just filming the food. 

Interestingly, after they left, Gold Pig’s manager excitedly informed our food ed that the Korean celebs were sitting mere inches away. Later, she reviewed her phone’s film footage and noticed she inadvertently caught both K-drama stars on video. At one point, Park Bo-gum swivelled around and shot her a curious glance. 

If only he knew she was far more interested at the time in documenting pork belly than Korean heartthrobs. As it turns out, fate — and this story — had other plans.

Former England football captain David Beckham also popped by during a visit to Seoul last year, later sharing photos of his meaty feast on social media.

The restaurant has become so closely associated with celebrity visits that autograph collections and signed memorabilia from famous guests have become an attraction in their own right. Check out BTS member Jungkook's autograph at the eatery.

What makes Gold Pig special?

Gold Pig’s signature cuts include pork belly, pork neck and pork shoulder sourced from specially bred YBD pigs, a cross between Yorkshire, Berkshire and Duroc breeds.

The meat is aged before service and grilled tableside by staff, allowing diners to focus entirely on eating rather than cooking.

The meat is unerringly fresh and juicy with an ever so slight hint of funk that you either love… or not.

Our food ed especially enjoyed the side dishes and sauces, including the intensely crunchy, tart kimchi and daikon. Plus dips like a signature chilli made with umami fermented hairtail fish innards.

Different pork served at S’pore pop-up

Gold Pig's co-founders, Park Su-kyung and her husband Shin Jae-woo, spent years refining both the pork breed and grilling techniques used at the restaurant. The pair reportedly entered the barbecue business after running a food delivery venture, wanting greater control over the quality of the meat they served.

While Gold Pig is known for its specially bred YBD pork in Seoul, the Singapore collaboration will instead showcase Handon from Jeju supplied by MeatK, the upmarket meat arm of So Good K founded by culinary entrepreneur Olivia Lee. The company spearheaded efforts to bring Korean pork and beef into Singapore. Handon is a term used to describe premium pork raised in South Korea. And here in Singapore, Jeju black pork and Jeju white pork are the stars.

First Singapore collaboration with Cote restaurant

After opening its new Taipei outpost, Singapore will be Gold Pig's next stop, though not via a permanent restaurant — at least for now.

Instead, the Michelin Bib Gourmand K-BBQ spot will make its SG debut through a two-night collaboration with swish Korean barbecue restaurant Cote Singapore, whose New York flagship holds a Michelin star.

The dinners will take place on June 29 and 30, priced at $258 per person, or $418 with wine pairing.

Five representatives from Gold Pig, including its founder Park Su-kyung, chef and members of its management team, are expected to fly in from Seoul for the event.

The collab menu will showcase both Hanwoo, Korea's prized native beef, and Handon, Korean pork, as part of a larger campaign supported by Korea's Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT), and the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Singapore.

The approximately seven-course dinner will feature a range of dishes created by Gold Pig and Cote. Diners will be welcomed with Cote's gogicha, a beef bone consommé, before moving on to Gold Pig's House Ham Naengchae, a refreshing dish of chilled seasonal vegetables and house-made ham dressed in soy milk dressing. Other courses include Hanwoo japchae and a meat board featuring braised Handon pork collar and Hanwoo shank.

Main course highlights include Gold Pig's signature bone-in pork belly with skin-on, alongside Cote's Hanwoo tenderloin and 45-day dry-aged rib-eye.

The meal is expected to conclude with Gold Pig's signature kimchi stew, alongside dishes such as Hanwoo bak kut teh, pork bulgogi gimbap, Hanwoo galbi and dessert. Menu items are subject to final confirmation.

The collaboration serves as the launch of a two-month Hanwoo and Handon showcase running from July to August. Participating restaurants include Cote, Drim, Gu:um and Ju Shin Jung, with each expected to roll out exclusive menus featuring Korean beef and pork. 

It is not yet known if Gold Pig has plans to eventually open a permanent outlet in Singapore.

The Gold Pig x Cote collaboration is on June 29 and 30 at Cote Singapore, Level 3 COMO Orchard, 30 Bideford Rd, S229922. More info via website and Instagram.

Additional reporting by Florence Fong