Sadang bar for afternoon sake and oden hot pot: Susan Sadang Main Branch

If you’re looking for an izakaya in Sadang from early in the day, let me introduce this Sadang bar with no break time.

A great izakaya near Sadang Station: Susan’s beef tendon fish-cake hot pot, gatherings, company dinners, dates, aged sashimi, and beef sashimi

An izakaya near Sadang Station open from the afternoon

I met a friend in Sadang for the first time in ages. Since we were meeting during the day, it felt a bit awkward to sit in a café the whole time. So while looking for an izakaya bar near Sadang Station, we came to Susan Sadang Main Branch (수산 사당본점), known for its aged sashimi and hot pots. Just follow the map from Exit 8 of Sadang Station and you’ll spot it right away!

It looks like there is also a basement level if the first floor is full. We arrived right at opening time, so we sat on the first floor.

The main dishes are displayed big outside too, so anyone would want to walk in, haha. The deciding reason I chose Susan among Sadang’s good restaurants was this!! I’m not the type to eat an early breakfast or have lunch on the dot, so when I meet a friend around 3 p.m., there is usually nowhere to go.

But Susan opens at 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday and at 3 p.m. Friday through Sunday!! Anyone like me who wants daytime drinks from that awkward time onward will absolutely love this place.

From a welcome aperitif to QR ordering

Once you step inside, the signature dishes are written all over the place like this.

This was my first time receiving a welcome aperitif at a Sadang izakaya bar. Truly so touching... I really love these little thoughtful touches. It tasted like premium sake, so I loved it.

The basic table setting was neatly laid out like this. I like corner seats, so I went all the way to the innermost table.

You can view the detailed menu by opening the QR code to order. There were way more dishes than I expected, so it took me a little while to look through everything.

Polar Bear’s Tears sake and Gwangban Yuksa

Today, rather than soju, I wanted sake with a steaming beef tendon hot pot and sashimi, so I ordered this sake with the cute polar bear on it. It was called Polar Bear’s Tears, and it cost ₩40,000.

It was decorated in a Korean-meets-Japanese style, and the spacing between tables was somewhere in the middle—not too tight and not too wide!

When you order sake and say you’d like it chilled, they even put it in an ice bucket like this. Cheers with a friend I had not seen in ages—the glasses are so cute too, aren’t they?

This is one of the signature dishes here: Gwangban Yuksa, a platter of flounder and beef sashimi! Since this is a great place for aged sashimi in Sadang, I definitely recommend it. For our main dish, we ordered the beef tendon oden hot pot.

Beef tendon oden hot pot that was fun to pick through

Can you see that glossy shine? The oden (Japanese fish cakes) were not just inexpensive fish cakes—some even had cheese inside. They were so springy and delicious, and having so many kinds of fish cake made it fun to choose what to eat. It also had bok choy, which I love, and maybe konjac glass noodles? I liked that too.

And my friend and I are both broth people, haha, so we asked for a broth refill. They happily did it and were so kind. Not only the owner but every staff member was incredibly friendly, so I’m thinking I’ll come back whenever I’m in Sadang. The beef tendon was generous too, and it went perfectly with the sake.

It is great as one of Sadang’s good restaurants, for a date, or when you are looking for daytime drinks with a friend, so don’t hesitate—come to Susan Sadang Main Branch. If you make a Naver reservation and write a review, you can receive hotteok ice cream until September 18, so don’t miss that opportunity either. I recommend this excellent Sadang izakaya.