Pig out at Piggy House

Piggy House is located along Middle Road next to I Love Saipan Outlet Store. (Contributed Photo)

Generous potions, check. Authentic Korean food, check. Affordable prices, check.

Piggy House along Middle Road checks all the boxes for hungry customers looking for great-tasting Korean food without burning a hole in one’s wallet.

Another thing working for Piggy House, said owner Kim Gean Hei, is the homey feel of the restaurant since it’s actually a family-run restaurant.

“Our restaurant is run solely by our family, meaning that all the experience, recipes, and taste stay consistent and delicious. Our head chef has lived more than 30 years of her life working as a chef in Korea, and the years of her work are shown in every meal we cook up. We are also run entirely by our family, meaning that we make the food, run the business, and manage the restaurant all by ourselves. This makes the kitchen—and the whole restaurant by extension—a comfortable and friendly environment,” she said.

Bossam (steamed pork with cabbage). (Contributed Photo)

Piggy House currently has four bestselling dishes: Bossam (steamed pork with cabbage), Kimchi Jun (Korean kimchi vegetable pancake), Baeksook (whole chicken soup), and Jaengban Jjajang (big tray black bean noodles).

Like all businesses on island, Piggy House was also affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, Kim said while the restaurant didn’t close, they were only able to do takeout from March to around June. When they did reopen for dine-in a couple of months back, the number of customers have declined.

Kimchi Jun (Korean kimchi vegetable pancake). (Contributed Photo)

“Since reopening, business has been definitely slower than before COVID-19. I think this is the same with all restaurants and businesses. It is alright though, since getting rid of the spread of COVID-19 and the safety of our islands come first!” she said.

Kim also assured dine-in customers that Piggy House adheres to all safety precautions and guidelines set by the Governor’s COVID-19 Task Force to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. “First, we require customers to wear masks. No masks, no service. Second, we currently have a customer admittance limit of 40 people, which is half of the normal capacity. Lastly, we keep the place absolutely sanitary to prevent any virus or bacteria from lingering on surfaces,” she said.

Baeksook (whole chicken soup). (Contributed Photo)

When asked why they chose Piggy House as the name of the restaurant, Kim said the name actually was a compromise. “It meant to be called Piggy Bank because our most popular dish at the time was pork (pork belly) and also because piggy bank means money. But we just settled for Piggy House,” she said.

The Piggy House owner thanked their regular customers for supporting them throughout this time of hardship. “We hope you all stay healthy and well. We will continue to provide you the best Korean meals on island! To the newer customers or to whoever may be interested, you will always be welcome with an overflowing amount of warm Korean food that will leave you coming back for more. We promise you that. The delicious taste and the amount we provide will definitely be worth our cheap price! Try it, try it, you might like it!” said Kim.

Jaengban Jjajang (big tray black bean noodles). (Contributed Photo)

Piggy House is located along Middle Road next to the I Love Saipan Outlet Store in Chalan Laulau. It is open from Monday to Friday, 11am-2pm for lunch and 6pm-9pm for dinner. Saturdays and Sundays are dinner-only.

For more information or for reservations, call 233-8383 or 783-8383.