Gopchang Story KBBQ — Restaurant in Annandale

Since first seeing Gopchang Story I had been curious about trying gopchang gui -- a Korean way of cooking intestines and other offal. I'd had limited experiences with intestines so far, and was a little nervous. But this was a great place to visit, since they were happy to describe everything and even give me a sample of a couple pieces before I ordered.

While I'd had mostly good experiences before and knew that intestines are something I could like, I was surprised but just how tasty everything was here. The bite-sized pieces were seared and caramelized, with a crackly outside giving way to savory and succulent interior, enhanced by a sprinkle of a garlicky seasoning just before being served. The small intestine was my favorite, since the large was a bit chewier. But both were delicious. I also tried the beef heart, which was tender and only mildly livery.

I went with the assorted intestine gui finished on the grill at the table, and thoroughly enjoyed the variety. But I'd also suggest just the small intestine or heart. They have a full menu of Korean BBQ dishes for people who may not be as adventurous. Also a great mul naengmyeon cold noodle soup.

In particular, both the host and server were really welcoming and friendly. They made sure that whatever I ended up ordering, I'd end up with something I'd love. It was a great time, and I look forward to...

So glad this chain finally made it to the DMV. My friends and I have been trying to go for the past couple weekends and finally made time. Now Gopchang doesn't have an online/call in reservation system yet. Just show up drop your name and wait in your car. We had to wait over an hour on a busy Saturday which is expected. We ordered the seafood pancake, assorted large intestines and the large intestine with ribeye spicy stew. The first order of intestines were great. They serve the dish over some radish and chives. The soup itself was mild at best and sweet. The ribeye was tender and the noodles were delicious.

I'm giving Gopchang some stars off because of the service, portion size and lack of sauce options. It took us a while to get our food even with more diners leaving the restaurant. We were served our appetizer towards the later part of our meal. The special powder was garlic power and the grills themselves were working so we were served our dish with the over the counter ones. The price itself came out to around $55 including 2 soju bottles. Pretty reasonable but expect to spend around that much if you want to get full. They do take Covid seriously here with dividers between the tables and the entire staff were wearing...

Here we are! Another review of the many k bbq spots in the DMV that I am determined to eat at. Not sure of how many I’ve gone to, but I’m here now. The place has a decent atmosphere with a similar starters and sides. I’d say like many nationality foods, kimchi and some other small bites are the initial warm up to the event. The kimchi was a sweet to me. I’m not a fan of that style but continued onward. I had option a with fatty brisket, thin sliced pork belly and pork shoulder. The sides I asked for were the soy bean stew, rice, old school lunch box and the house salad. I never had an old school lunch box but it was tasty. It had thin sliced sausage similar to the jolliebee spaghetti sausage, rice, Fried egg and kimchi. Nice! The steamed egg was tasty in the tiny pot, the stew delicious and had enough spice, the salad with house dressing had a good balance of acidity and sweet, and they gave me corn cheese. That was great with some pork belly. Not sure that is something one does but it’s what I did. The overall experience was decent. My server was pretty cool and helps when you can connect on a level of hobbies or interests like sneakers. Big up to that guy knowing his stuff. I’d go here again. Not too shabby....