Baegot all-you-can-eat eel after an Oido day trip: Songrim Bok Jangeo

Hi everyone! It's been a while — this is Yolody! It's fully autumn now, so I went out to catch some cool sea breeze at Oido, on the West Sea. Since I was already at the beach after so long, I debated between grilled shellfish and kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup), but instead I found a really solid all-you-can-eat eel place and went to check it out! The verdict after eating there: total, complete satisfaction. Let me get into the details!

Where is Songrim Bok Jangeo in Baegot, Jeongwang-dong?

Songrim Bok Jangeo Freshwater Eel Unlimited Refill Jeongwang Direct Branch is an all-you-can-eat eel restaurant right in the middle of the apartment and commercial complexes of Baegot New Town in Siheung. Parking in front of the restaurant is free, and the unlimited refill time limit is 2 hours.

I hadn't been to Oido in almost 15 years, and the Baegot area has changed so much into Baegot New Town. The neighborhood was packed with apartments and commercial complexes, and right in the middle of it is this freshwater eel unlimited refill spot, Songrim Bok Jangeo, clearly beloved by the locals. Free parking is available right in front of the restaurant, and apparently there's more seating downstairs too! The time limit is 2 hours (since the unlimited refill period is 2 hours!).

How much is the unlimited eel? 29,900 won per person

The unlimited refill price at Songrim Bok Jangeo Jeongwang Direct Branch is ₩29,900 per person, with a separate ₩3,000 table setting fee. For two people that's just over ₩60,000, which I think is honestly better value than the grilled shellfish places that are famous around Oido!

The inside is really spacious, like this.

What is on the self-bar, and how to grill your first eel

At Songrim Bok Jangeo, they first set your table with basic side dishes, eel, and meat. Here's a tip! Freshwater eel is thick and takes a while to grill, so put your first eel straight on the grill right away and then head over to the self-bar!

At the self-bar, all the side dishes from your initial setting plus the main ingredients — eel, pork belly, chicken neck — are laid out generously. I was genuinely shocked by the quality of the freshwater eel. All the times I've paid ₩40,000–50,000 per kilo for eel flashed before my eyes... (what a waste of money...)

Honestly, I figured unlimited-refill freshwater eel would be a bit disappointing in quality, but absolutely not. As you can probably tell from the photos, the eel was really thick and fresh.

On top of that, all the various side dishes were kept clean and hygienic too.

Thick freshwater eel takes about 10 minutes on the grill

You can probably tell from the photos how thick and large the eel at Songrim Bok Jangeo is. I'd planned on just a normal meal, but once I saw the quality of the eel, my appetite came back and I loosened my belt.

I got the special soy teriyaki sauce ready, loaded up with pickled ginger, and waited for the eel!

It seems to take about 10 minutes for the eel to cook through. So if you want it done quickly, cut the eel into smaller pieces ahead of time! If you're too lazy to flip it and grill it whole, it'll really take forever.

I tried the freshwater eel in a bunch of different ways. Since eel is a pretty fatty fish, eating it with just one side dish can get a little greasy and heavy after a while. So I'd normally recommend pairing it with strong-flavored things like ginger, garlic, and perilla leaves — but the eel here was so well-prepped that I didn't feel any unnecessary sliminess, fins, or bones at all.

Since the eel cooks slower than you can eat it, you have to put the next batch on the grill as soon as the first round is nearly done, haha.

How were the pork belly and chicken neck meat?

By the time I'd eaten about 4 eels, I was already stuffed and satisfied, but I grilled up some pork belly and chicken neck anyway to give you all a full report.

The pork belly had really nice color, but honestly, the pork belly and chicken neck were about the level you'd expect at an all-you-can-eat spot! Still, wrapping freshwater eel and pork belly together in one bite gave me a kind of happiness that's hard to put into words!

Finally, I finished off with chicken neck dipped in sesame oil salt.

Is Songrim Bok Jangeo good for family gatherings and company dinners?

I ate so satisfyingly at Songrim Bok Jangeo Jeongwang branch! They seem to have branches all over — Suwon, Seoul, Gyeonggi-do — so next time I want to bring my family. Really recommend it!