Hongdae Korean restaurant for deodeok gui in a hanok: Anok

I can’t believe there was a hanok restaurant like this in Hongdae

Wow, I can’t believe Hongdae has a hanok like this. Well, no—it’s a newly opened place. It seems like it hasn’t been open for long. But it’s a restaurant that has properly, thoughtfully built a hanok. I got a good feeling before I even went in. This has to be a delicious place.

When you need a hangover cure, lots of people go for a red, spicy gukbap, right? Honestly, clear gukbap is the best hangover food.

Anok’s menu and the walk into the hanok

The menu is nicely concise, as you would expect from a good Hongdae restaurant. There are just three meal options: gomtang, Pyongyang naengmyeon, and yukhoe bibimbap. The dishes include braised pork tail, warm boiled pork, and yukhoe. Still, this place’s stars are surely the clear gomtang and Pyongyang cold noodles. The pork tray and Korean beef bulgogi hot pot would be worth ordering when you come as a group.

The path in is relaxed and quiet—so unlike Hongdae. The owner who made this place seems rather incredible. When it rains, it would be so atmospheric to set out a little table under the eaves on the left, sit on cushions, and have a drink.

The interior is very elegant too, so it is a place where you can really create an atmosphere when treating guests or celebrating an anniversary. People often go somewhere flashy for a wedding anniversary or birthday, but enjoying a meal in a clean, composed hanok like this would make for a romantic day as well.

Every piece of tableware was refined, and its simple, tidy design let me get a preview of this restaurant’s food before taking a bite.

Clear, deep broth and the side dishes

The broth is made with astragalus root, burdock, and carefully selected medicinal ingredients. It really did taste different! I dislike meat broth with fat floating all over it, but they say the fat is skimmed off over two days. A clear, deep, pure broth—how literary is that? It was genuinely as delicious as I had hoped~!

The basic side dishes arrived, and there was gungchae jangajji—pickled celtuce! This is not something that appears just anywhere. I think only the places I have found truly satisfying have served this side dish. The kimchi was house-made too, so it did not have that everyday restaurant kimchi taste. The kkakdugi and napa cabbage kimchi were full of a homemade touch.

With clear gukbap, soy-marinated pickles suit it better than red kimchi. Of course, you have to keep picking at the red kimchi in between if you are Korean. Putting gungchae on a piece of pork was unbelievably good.

This is the dipping sauce for the meat. If you want to transform the broth into something red as you eat, it would be good to add some in. In Jeolla, they call it dadegi. It tastes just like the seasoning sauce an auntie brings out when you ask for dadegi.

The clear gukbap that keeps you reaching for another spoonful

The spoon and chopstick rest was also elegant, in a design I had never seen before, and it was easy to use. When a utensil rest comes out, I usually get lazy while eating and just put everything on the table, but here I kept placing them right back on it. Such a well-made utensil rest.

The clear gukbap I had been waiting for arrived. Wow, this place’s broth is the best! The broth is so appealing and addictive that I kept scooping it up, though it is not intensely flavored. Rather than saying it has no particular taste, it is clean and refreshing. That does not mean it is watery, either. It is not extremely deep, but the umami is alive. Maybe the umami itself feels fresh?

The pork had just the right mix of fat and lean meat, making this a bowl that could capture a gourmet’s palate.

Simply wonderful deodeok gui

The deodeok gui—grilled bellflower root—arrived too. It was plated very neatly, and the harmony of its straightforward seasoning and deodeok was excellent without being flashy.

I really love food with this kind of humble flavor, food that brings out Korean ingredients so well.

Try it with a little of the sauce that comes with the kimchi on top, and it becomes something special.

This is the kind of dish that would earn you heaps of praise no matter whom you brought along. I do not think there is a single person who would look at this and say it was not delicious.

The meat had a pleasant chew while still being tender, and the broth was so appealing that I had no choice but to order more! Thankfully, the staff were kind, so I could comfortably add another serving.

The combination of pork and deodeok was excellent too. As a nourishing meal, it gets 100 out of 100. The rice comes torryeom-style, with the rice warmed in broth, and they balanced the moisture perfectly for mixing rice into the soup.

It was delicious with kimchi, but the pairing with gungchae was absolutely next-level. Do you know gungchae’s texture? It is springy and crunchy, and the lightly seasoned pork goes very, very well with the well-seasoned gungchae. I want to try making these pickles at home. But gungchae is sold in such huge quantities that it is a little hard to buy and make myself.

I tried placing some deodeok gui on it too, but the deodeok gui is better eaten on its own. An absolutely excellent Hongdae gomtang restaurant. Looking out at the hanok as I ate was wonderfully atmospheric, and with the food being so good, I could not have been happier! I will be back. I am bringing someone special.