Seoul bar open until 6am in Gangnam: crab stew at Yeongdong Pocha

I visited Yeongdong Pocha, located in the Yeongdong Market food alley between Sinnonhyeon and Nonhyeon stations.

It's a place where you can feel both the classic indoor pocha vibe and outdoor yajang (open-air seating) energy at the same time. I had blue crab stew with soju.

I'd recommend it if you're looking for a place to have a comfortable drink with friends or acquaintances in the Nonhyeon-dong food alley.

Yeongdong Pocha at a glance

• Located in the Yeongdong Market food alley between Sinnonhyeon and Nonhyeon stations
• A place where you can enjoy both a retro pocha atmosphere and outdoor yajang vibes
• Blue crab stew ₩35,000
• Fried ramen snack served as the basic side dish
• A variety of drinking snacks like Yeongdong samhap, sweet shrimp sashimi, vongole soju stew
• Comfortable atmosphere for a drink with friends or acquaintances
• Outdoor seats where you can enjoy the surrounding food alley vibe
• Open until late at night

Why Yeongdong Pocha for a second round in the Nonhyeon-dong food alley

I was looking for a place to have a second round of drinks in the Nonhyeon-dong food alley and visited Yeongdong Pocha. It's between Sinnonhyeon and Nonhyeon stations, so it was easy to get to, and I wanted to enjoy a refreshing blue crab stew with drinks in an outdoor pocha atmosphere. Since it's open until late, it's a great spot for not just a second round but a third or fourth as well.

Yeongdong Pocha location, hours, parking and corkage

• 📍 Name: Yeongdong Pocha
• 📌 Address: 51 Hakdong-ro 2-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, 2nd floor
• 🚇 Location: About 246m from Nonhyeon Station Exit 3, roughly a 3-minute walk · inside the Yeongdong Market food alley
• 🕐 Hours: Tue–Sat 16:00–6:00 next day / Sun–Mon 17:00–6:00 next day
• 📅 Reservations: Available via Naver Reservation and Catch Table
• 🚗 Parking: Paid lot next to the store, ₩3,000 for the first 30 minutes, ₩1,000 per additional 10 minutes
• 🍾 Corkage: ₩20,000 for the first bottle, free for additional bottles
• 👥 Facilities: Outdoor-style seating, groups of 6–20 possible, pet-friendly, takeout and delivery available, gender-separated restrooms

There's no listed regular closing day, but I'd still recommend checking before you visit whether they're closed on holidays like Chuseok.

It's on the 2nd floor of a building that has Seogam Saengsogeumgui and Terra Restaurant on the ground floor. Once inside the building, you go up the stairs next to the sign and the entrance to Yeongdong Pocha appears. Being between Sinnonhyeon and Nonhyeon stations, it was easy to reach from either one.

Up the stairs: the old-school pocha exterior

At the entrance, the Yeongdong Pocha sign was on the glass door, and there was a board next to the door for writing your name down for waiting. Rather than a slick spot with a big flashy sign, it's a space that keeps that old-school pocha feel, so you could sense the atmosphere from the moment you started up the stairs.

There was also a fish tank set up in front of the store, and seeing the ingredients managed and cooked right on the spot gave me a bit more confidence when choosing the menu.

Inside Yeongdong Pocha and the open-air seats

Walking inside, the wood-toned interior caught my eye first. There's a wooden Yeongdong Pocha sign near the counter.

There's also outdoor-style seating, so you can feel both the relaxed pocha atmosphere and the outdoor yajang vibe at the same time. It was a great mood for a casual drink, and as evening fell, the surrounding food alley atmosphere and the store's lighting made the pocha feeling even stronger.

With the surrounding food alley vibe and people passing by, it really felt like drinking at an actual outdoor yajang. Especially once the sun went down and the lights around started turning on one by one, the yajang atmosphere was great.

The menu and the blue crab stew we ordered at 35,000 won

• Uni platter ₩59,000
• Large uni platter ₩105,000
• Basil baeksuk (herb whole chicken soup) ₩38,000
• Blue crab stew ₩35,000
• Vongole soju stew pasta ₩28,000
• Yeongdong suyuk (boiled pork) ₩28,000

There were also many other menu items like Yeongdong samhap, sweet shrimp sashimi, odolppyeo (cartilage), dak-ttongjip (chicken gizzards), duck stir-fry, hagfish, mala jjajang, perilla-seed sundubu, and whole octopus chive pancake.

The basic side dish was fried ramen snack, which was great to nibble on while waiting for the crab stew to arrive. So crunchy, haha.

When the long-awaited blue crab stew finally came out, the pot was packed with blue crab, various vegetables, and clams.

As it bubbled away, the refreshing crab flavor slowly seeped into the broth, making it quite rich yet clean.

There was a good amount of meat in the crab, so it was fun picking it out, and eating it with the broth brought out even more umami.

Rather than just being intensely spicy, the stew kept that distinct refreshing, tangy kick of blue crab. The sauce had a sweet tteokbokki-sauce feel to it, which was nice and easy to enjoy, haha.

It paired really well with soju too. The drinks just kept going down smoothly 😁

Naver Reservation and what you get with it

Writing a receipt review on Naver gets you a free fried egg, and if you book a reservation and visit, you can even get a free cola.

How to enjoy the blue crab stew at Yeongdong Pocha

1. Let the crab stew simmer fully. Rather than eating right away, I'd recommend waiting until the broth has boiled enough and the flavors of the ingredients have fully come through.

2. Scoop the crab meat out with a spoon. Rather than forcing it out with chopsticks, gently scraping it out with a spoon makes it relatively easier to eat.

3. Pair the crab meat with the broth. Adding a little of the richly reduced broth to the picked-out crab meat lets you enjoy both the clean crab flavor and the broth's umami together.

4. It's also nice to eat the crab meat together with the vegetables. Since they've soaked up the broth's flavor, eating them alongside the crab meat makes for a fuller bite.

What to check before you go

There's parking available and it can accommodate groups, so it's easy to use even if you're visiting with several people. Takeout and delivery are available, and the store is listed as pet-friendly. Since Chuseok hours or closures can change, I'd recommend checking the latest info on Naver Place on the day of your visit.

Frequently asked questions

How far is Yeongdong Pocha from Sinnonhyeon Station?

It's in the Yeongdong Market food alley between Sinnonhyeon and Nonhyeon Station Exit 3, about a 3-minute walk.

Does Yeongdong Pocha have open-air seating?

Yes. Along with indoor pocha seats, there's also seating where you can enjoy an outdoor yajang atmosphere.

How much is the blue crab stew?

The blue crab stew is ₩35,000.

Can you book a table at Yeongdong Pocha?

You can reserve through Naver Reservation. Setting up notifications on Naver Place also lets you check for coupons.

What is the signature dish at Yeongdong Pocha?

There's a variety of dishes like Yeongdong samhap, vongole soju stew, sweet shrimp sashimi, and basil baeksuk, and on this visit I ordered and tried the blue crab stew.

Final thoughts on Yeongdong Pocha

The blue crab stew I had at this bar near Nonhyeon Station was packed with crab and clams, and the broth was refreshing; the fried ramen snack was also a nice light bite.

With the crab stew, a glass of soju, and finishing off with a bottle of pear juice, I properly wrapped up the night and got a head start on the hangover cure.