Songdo Ribs
The temptation of savory meat containing the history of Songdo
“I ate beef ribs yesterday~” In the early 1980s, students would be envious of a classmate who came to class wearing a sweater smelling of ribs. In those days, “Songdo Ribs” wasn’t a restaurant within reach of just anyone.
Songdo Ribs, which opened in October 1980, marked the beginning of Songdo becoming known. The restaurant had moved onto a site serving only Songdo Amusement Park, alongside shabby cart bars, but it was enough to attract affluent people from other regions, who pursued a decent outdoor dining experience. Its luxurious taste and exterior, well-known even 35 years ago, haven’t changed nor has its fame abated.
Writer Lee Hyun-joo
Photographer Jeong Dong-myeon
Songdo Ribs was built on a site larger than 2,000 pyeong. It is equipped with an outdoor pond and playground larger than most apartment playgrounds. Old and forgotten objects such as millstones worked by horse or ox, round fulling sticks, and mine tubs, vehicles that carried coal, are placed in the playground, giving it something of museum feel. On weekends, it is common to see fathers who have come to dine outdoors explain how they are used are to their children.
This restaurant and its unchanging taste have been loved by Incheon residents for 35 years. It refuses raw meat that can be easily stored, and instead strictly sticks to seasoned ribs, because guests who come there never forget the taste. A father who once came with his son after receiving a thick pay envelope is now a grey-haired old man, with his son stepping on the shadows of reminiscence while seated across from each other. A mother who came with her daughter after receiving lodge money is a grandmother now, visiting with her granddaughter. Songdo Ribs has long been a meat restaurant frequented by three generations.
Director Go-Tae-geun says that the secret to the restaurant’s popularity among all generations is its unique seasoning sauce and charcoal. The rib seasoning sauce uses only fruit seasoning, not caramel. The sauce comes together with the charcoal, a white coal, to give birth to the unique taste of Songdo Ribs. Brown coals used in most rib houses are less costly and easier to burn. However, the taste produced by them cannot compete with that of white coal. Putting a rib into my mouth, the fragrance of the charcoal mildly spreads across my whole mouth. The soft texture of the meat and the savory taste of the seasoning fill me with a sense of happiness.
I ordered the beef-rib soup renowned for clear meat broth and clean taste. I am overwhelmed by an abundance of large ribs that protrude from the bowl. All of the water stained with blood and grease has been completely removed, leaving behind a soup with a fresh taste and no unpleasant smells.
If you want to cleanse your palate after eating
Night has already fallen. Looking down from the glass of the new wing I see the light of the Incheon Bridge. Its twinkling somehow reminds me of my childhood. I had forgotten the savory meat cuts served by my father. Next payday I will bring my father to this place and eat together. It is my turn to cut the meat and place a heap in his rice bowl.
Songdo Ribs
Admission : 558-7 Ongnyeon-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon City
Inquires : 032-822-2222
Operating hours: 11:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Menu : sirloin, hand-run sirloin, marbled beef, fresh rib, bulgogi, super beef-rib soup, ttukbaegi bulgogi,
mixed naengmyeon, cold noodle soup, doenjang stew (one per person ordering a rice bowl)
