Gwangju Chinese restaurant with crispy sweet and sour pork: Mayway

They recently moved here to Mayway from Daehung Banjeom in Bongseon-dong, and my parents had eaten there a few times when it was still in Bongseon-dong! Here’s my review after a delicious meal 💫

Mayway Gwangju Cheomdan location and visitor information

Mayway Cheomdan Branch 📍 Address: 6 Cheomdangangbyeon-ro 87beon-gil, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, South Korea ⏰ Hours: 11:00–22:00 (Break time 15:00–17:00 / Last order 21:30) 🅿️ Parking: No

It looks like their signature dish is dol-jjajang, jjajangmyeon served in a hot stone bowl! I didn’t have it this time, but I’ll need to try it next time, haha. There’s also a sheet explaining Mayway’s history. They’ve been operating since 1950, so it’s already been more than 70 years as a Chinese restaurant 👏🏻

It was 2 p.m. on a Sunday and there were still lots of customers. I thought I’d take photos once things quieted down after we ate, but people kept coming in. I snapped these quickly on the way out.. 🤣 To order, just use the QR sticker attached to your table!

• Tangsuyuk (half order)
• Gan-jjajang
• Jjamppong
• Individual seafood nurungji-tang
• One-person set meal (tangsuyuk + jjajang + jjamppong)

This is what we ordered!

The self-serve bar and pre-meal sweet potato fritters

This is the basic self-serve bar. You need to bring the side dishes yourself from the start. There’s chunjang (black bean paste), onions, corn macaroni salad, danmuji (yellow pickled radish), and pa-kimchi (green onion kimchi). Steamed rice comes with unlimited refills!

It felt fresh and nice to see corn salad and pa-kimchi at a Chinese restaurant! I was so excited at the thought of eating pa-kimchi with jjajangmyeon, speaking as one very excited person,, 🥹 We also had the sweet potato fritters they gave us as an appetizer. They were sliced thin and fried, which made them even sweeter and tastier!

Crispy, thick-cut half-order tangsuyuk

✨Tangsuyuk (half order)✨ The tangsuyuk (Korean sweet and sour pork) came topped with cabbage, with the sauce on the side. The sweet-and-tangy sauce suited my taste perfectly!

It was the crispy kind of tangsuyuk, but with nice thick pieces of meat inside. The pork was tender and really juicy, so I enjoyed it so much 💖

Gan-jjajang with nicely cooked onions

Gan-jjajang. I loooove gan-jjajang topped with a soft-fried egg 💕 At other places, the onions in gan-jjajang sauce are often cut large and undercooked, which can feel a bit overwhelming. Here, they were diced small and cooked through, so it was easy to enjoy!

There were potatoes and pork in it too, bringing back memories of old-school jjajang,, ❣️ The sauce wasn’t overly sweet and was delicious! Have it with the tangy pa-kimchi and it’s such a good combo 👏🏻

Tender rice crust in individual seafood nurungji-tang

✨Seafood nurungji-tang (individual)✨ The owner pours the sauce over it personally. It bubbled away and looked so delicious 😚

Give it a good mix before eating! The sauce quickly soaked into the nurungji (scorched rice crust), making it tender and delicious. The seasoning was just right, and the seafood pieces were large and tender too!

Rich but not spicy jjamppong

Jjamppong. We also ordered a basic jjamppong! It had lots of vegetables and meat, and the noodles had soaked up the flavor of the broth nicely. The broth was slightly rich and not very spicy!

A one-person set meal when you can’t decide

✨One-person set meal✨ I highly recommend this menu too! When you’re wondering what to get, this one dish lets you have tangsuyuk, jjamppong, and jjajang all together! It was my first time seeing a three-section plate like this, so that was fun ☺️

They bring out ice cream when you’re almost done eating! Sweet potato fritters as an appetizer and ice cream for dessert—the service was so good that we left feeling happy and full! 🥰

When you’re craving Chinese food in Cheomdan

This is a great place to visit when you’re craving Chinese food in Cheomdan! I think it would be nice for a family meal out, or even for a simple meal. With the before-and-after-meal service and unlimited steamed rice, it’s a restaurant where you can leave feeling really full. In particular, please please try the tangsuyuk and seafood nurungji-tang when you visit 💖