Solo dining rice bowl spot at Amsa Station: salmon bowl set, Haekbap

Where is Haekbap Amsa and what are the opening hours?

Haekbap Amsa is at 766 Ollimpik-ro, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, on the 2nd floor of a building a 2–3 minute walk from Exit 2 of Amsa Station. It is open daily from 11:00 to 21:00.

I visited Haekbap Amsa, a great spot for eating alone in Gangdong near Amsa Station. It specializes in home-style (Gajeong) rice bowls and ramen, so it's easy to eat there comfortably from lunch to dinner. It's very close to Exit 2 of Amsa Station, so getting there is really easy too.

Is Haekbap Amsa good for eating alone?

Haekbap Amsa has a range of seating, from bar seats that are great for solo diners to 2-person and 4-person tables. The interior felt bright and clean.

It's not awkward at all to eat alone, and it also felt comfortable for coming with friends, a partner or family.

A receipt review event is running right now, and there's also a 10% happy hour discount for Naver orders, so if you're planning a visit you may want to take advantage of both.

How do you order at Haekbap Amsa, and are refills free?

Ordering at Haekbap Amsa was easy, using the tablet or QR code at each table.

I also liked that with one menu item per person, refills of rice, side dishes and soup are free, so you can eat your fill.

Haekbap sells a wide range of dishes, including rice bowls, ramen, soba and katsu (breaded cutlet). I ordered the salmon rice bowl set.

• Salmon rice bowl set ₩18,900
• Zero Pepsi ₩2,000

What comes in the Haekbap salmon rice bowl set?

The salmon rice bowl set at Haekbap Amsa (₩18,900) is a bowl of Norwegian raw salmon over vinegared sushi rice, served with 2 pieces of fried chicken and mini udon. It looked like a really filling meal.👍

The whole tray was really generous the moment it arrived.

The plating was neat and tidy, the kind of look where you take photos first, haha. The fresh raw salmon was topped with an egg yolk, with pickled onion and radish sprouts on the side. It came with a salad, 2 pieces of fried chicken, mini udon, danmuji (yellow pickled radish), kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi) and wasabi, and though it isn't in the tray photo, fried rice cake (tteok) was also served as a dessert.

Was the salmon in the rice bowl fresh?

The raw salmon in Haekbap's rice bowl had no fishy taste at all and a soft, melting texture. I wanted to taste the salmon itself first, so I picked up a piece without rice and added a little radish sprouts and wasabi.

From the first bite, I could tell the salmon was really fresh. There was no fishiness, and I loved how it melted softly in my mouth.

The nutty flavor spread gently the more I chewed, so the salmon on its own was satisfying enough.🧡

Breaking the egg yolk over the salmon and rice

When you pop the egg yolk in the middle of the bowl and eat the salmon and rice together, the flavor gets much deeper and richer. This time I ate the yolk, salmon and rice in one bite.

The yolk-covered rice and fresh salmon went together naturally, and the gentle sweet-sour note of the vinegared rice brought out the salmon's savoriness even more.🫶

Adding the pickled onion, radish sprouts and wasabi now and then let me enjoy it in different ways without it feeling heavy :)

How were the fried chicken, mini udon and fried rice cake?

The fried chicken that came with the set was crispy outside and moist inside, and the mini udon was better than I expected. The salad was topped with a nutty dressing.

Bite into the fried chicken and it's juicy! The batter was crispy too, so it went well with the salad. The mini udon broth was rich yet clean in flavor, perfect for a spoonful here and there while eating the rice bowl.

The noodles were plump and chewy, so even though it's a small portion I was very satisfied, haha.

After finishing, I also had the fried rice cake for dessert.

Inside was something soft like cheese, and the outside had a light coating of sweet sauce! Crispy outside and chewy rice cake within, a good way to finish, haha.

Is Haekbap Amsa worth a return visit?

• Overall the tray was really generous, and I was happy with the meal: fresh salmon plus a variety of side dishes.
• The atmosphere was comfortable for eating alone, and it's a good place to visit when you want a filling meal.
• If you're looking for a good rice bowl or ramen spot near Amsa Station, I recommend giving Haekbap Amsa a visit. 😊