Korean restaurant dinner in Seongnam with bossam and kalguksu

The weather has turned pleasantly cool. After work and the commute home, you just do not have the energy to set a meal on the table, right? But eating out makes you worry about your wallet first with prices these days, haha.

But what if there were a place where ordering bossam comes with two servings of kalguksu for free?

It would be a shame to pass this place by without knowing, so let me walk you through it carefully today.

Thanks to a good opportunity, my wife and I went out for bossam together. It was Bossam Ae Kalguksu Seongnam Sangdaewon Branch (보쌈애칼국수 성남상대원점), newly opened in Sangdaewon-dong, Seongnam.

Location and parking at Bossam Ae Kalguksu Seongnam Sangdaewon Branch

The address is 1F, 56 Geumsang-ro, Jungwon-gu, Seongnam, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea (경기 성남시 중원구 금상로 56 1층).

There is a bus stop right in front of the restaurant, so public transit is convenient. It is also on the ground floor facing the road, so you will not get lost even on your first visit.

Parking, honestly, is the disappointing part. There is only room for about one or two cars behind the building, and it is on a slope, so you need to be careful when parking.

If you are driving, Sangdaewon 3-dong Public Parking Lot is the less stressful choice. It is a 5-minute walk to the restaurant!

Table induction burners and solo-dining bar seats

When I opened the door and walked in, it felt fresh and clean, as you would expect from a new restaurant.

There are plenty of four-person tables, each with an induction burner, so you cook the kalguksu (knife-cut noodles) right at your table. There are also bar-style seats by the window, making it comfortable to eat alone.

The wall notices emphasized everything being made that day: gabrisal pork boiled every morning, bossam kimchi made that day, and seafood-and-minari pancakes cooked to order.

It was written in large letters that the kimchi uses cabbage from Ttangkkeut Village in Haenam, sun-dried salt from Sinan, and highland radish from Gangwon-do, which somehow made it feel trustworthy.

Ordering gabrisal bossam and the free kalguksu

You can order right from your seat using the tablet on the table.

We chose the small gabrisal bossam (₩37,000). It was just the right amount for two people to share.

Order bossam and two servings of kalguksu come free. Choose kalguksu or makguksu!

We were craving something hot and brothy, so we chose kalguksu. There is also a solo bossam set (₩10,000) and a special bossam set (₩13,000), so it does not feel burdensome for solo dining or lunch. There is even a children's bossam set (₩7,000), making it a good setup for a family meal out.

Takeout is ₩3,000 cheaper, and there are bossam lunchboxes too, so eating at home is another option.

Side dishes and two self-service bars

Once seated, the seafood broth pot was the first thing that caught my eye.

Then the kalguksu noodles and side dishes were set out, one by one, until the table was full.

There was green-onion kimchi, napa cabbage kimchi, peppers, raw garlic, ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste), and salted shrimp—everything you need with bossam.

There are two self-service bars, so you can get more side dishes without feeling self-conscious when you run out.

You can also scoop as much steamed rice as you want from the rice cooker! The rice was nicely fluffy and went well with the bossam. This self-service setup seems to be why people call it a good-value restaurant in Sangdaewon-dong.

Tender gabrisal bossam

At last, the main dish arrived!

The gabrisal bossam was different from ordinary boiled pork from the way it came sliced in long pieces. I recommend trying the first piece with just a little salted shrimp. That is when you get the clean flavor of the meat and its savory aroma best.

The balance of lean meat and fat was good, so it was not dry at all—just wonderfully tender! Add shredded radish kimchi for a tangy crunch, or bossam kimchi for a burst of savory depth. “Is this actually a kimchi place...?” Both my wife and I especially loved the kimchi. It was crisp and fresh enough to make us understand why they say it is made that day.

Cooking seafood-broth kalguksu at the table

While we ate the bossam, the broth bubbled away beside us. Once it reaches a rolling boil, you add the noodles and vegetables. Cooking it ourselves was fun, like we were camping, and my wife and I ate laughing, haha.

Because it is seafood broth, the soup was clean-tasting with a slight spicy note at the end. The noodles were soft yet chewy, and the quality was impressive for a complimentary item.

Filling up on bossam and finishing with hot broth made the whole spread feel complete.

Reader tip! If you finish the kalguksu, you can add an egg and make your own juk (rice porridge). Sesame oil, seaweed, and salt are available at the self-service bar!

Hours and fresh-boiled bossam times

Hours are 11:00–22:00 daily, with last orders at 21:30. We went around 8 p.m. on a weekday, an hour and a half before closing, and it was not too busy, so we enjoyed dinner at an easy pace. If you prefer a quiet meal, after 8 p.m. seems like a good time.

Also, there are set times when the meat comes out fresh: 11 a.m., 3 p.m., and 7 p.m. They say that visiting just after those times gets you freshly boiled bossam. There was also a notice saying you can receive a drink for participating in a receipt review, so keep that in mind.

Questions before you visit

Where should I park?

There are only one or two spaces behind the building, so Sangdaewon 3-dong Public Parking Lot is the easier choice. It is a 5-minute walk from the restaurant.

Is it okay to go alone?

Yes. There are window bar seats and a solo bossam set (₩10,000), so it is great for dining alone.

Is takeout available?

Yes. Takeout is ₩3,000 cheaper, and there are also bossam lunchboxes (₩10,000).

A dinner filled with bossam and kalguksu

Bossam, two free servings of kalguksu, side dishes from the self-service bar, and steamed rice—it had been a while since I had such a satisfying dinner.

Still, the restaurant's own parking area is narrow and sloped, which is a drawback. If you are driving, the public parking lot is the answer!

The meat and kimchi were delicious, and cooking the noodles ourselves added another layer of fun. It is a nice place for anyone looking for a good-value restaurant in Sangdaewon-dong or wondering where to find good bossam in Seongnam. ^^