Gangdong Korean restaurant hot pot with easy parking: Sinjuokmi

I visited Sinjuokmi Gildong Direct Branch (신주옥미 길동직영점). As the weather has gradually turned cooler lately, I started craving something with a steaming hot broth. This time, I headed to Sinjuokmi Gildong Direct Branch in Gildong. Honestly, when I searched for a good restaurant with parking, this place was just the one.

Sinjuokmi Gildong Direct Branch, found with parking in Gildong

It is at Unit 102, 1F, 1459 Yangjae-daero, Gangdong-gu, Seoul. I drove there, and there was a parking lot behind the restaurant, so parking was easy from the start. Around Gildong, it can be hard to find somewhere to park when going out to eat, so having a lot made it a good place to visit by car. After parking, there was an attendant, who said we needed to return within one hour for the duration of our meal.

Near the entrance, I also noticed a Blue Ribbon guide sign. There was a notice saying it was a traditional sundae-guk (Korean sausage soup) restaurant carried on for two generations, but they sold a wide variety of dishes besides sundae-guk, including suyuk (boiled pork) and hot pots. Today was one of those days when I was craving a pleasantly spicy hot pot.

A spacious dining room and self-service station

Once inside, the restaurant was more spacious than I expected. Everything was neatly kept, and the tables had plenty of room between them, so I could eat comfortably without feeling cramped.

You can order through the kiosk.

Various seasoning sauces were set out at every table.

The self-service station was kept tidy, and aprons and any tableware we needed were available for us to take ourselves, which made the whole meal feel easy and comfortable. Children's tableware was available too.

A generously filled gopchang jeongol

As soon as our gopchang jeongol (beef offal hot pot) arrived, I loved how generous the portion was. A large pot was piled high with gopchang, minari (water celery), mushrooms, and assorted vegetables. At first, the ingredients filled the pot so completely that I wondered if it would all fit, but as it cooked and the vegetables softened down, it became just right for eating.

Once it started bubbling away, that spicy aroma rose up. Hot pot really is fun to eat while it cooks like this. I tried the broth first, and it was spicy and rich. It was not just hot for the sake of being hot—the nutty flavor from the gopchang came through too, making the broth really tasty. It was not overly seasoned either, which I liked even more.

The gopchang was chewy and nutty, and it went well with the minari. The mushrooms had soaked up the broth and were good alongside it too, and with so many different ingredients, it was fun picking out a little of this and that.

Ramen noodles and extra rice

And when you are having hot pot, you cannot leave out ramyeon sari (ramen noodles), right? Once there was some broth left, we added the noodles, and of course, this combination never fails. The ramen in the gopchang jeongol broth made the soup seem even richer, and after starting with the gopchang and vegetables and finishing with ramen, I felt properly full.

Sometimes rice runs short when you are eating hot pot, so I liked being able to help myself to extra rice easily. It was nice that we could also bring more side dishes ourselves whenever we ran out.

This time I went for the gopchang jeongol, and I ended up having a much more generously filling meal than expected. The easy parking was great, and the restaurant was spacious and clean, so I thought it would be a good place for a family meal too. Above all, the spicy broth in the gopchang jeongol tasted like something I will crave again once the weather gets a little colder. Adding ramen noodles at the end made it even more satisfying. Because of the name Sinjuokmi, I had only thought of sundae-guk, but the hot pot was good too, so next time I plan to try the sundae-guk.