Korean restaurant near DDP: bossam set and fried crab, Hansang Charyim

Dinner in Sinseoldong after the DDP exhibition and Heunginjimun

On the day I saw the Wayne Thiebaud exhibition at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) and wandered over to Heunginjimun (Dongdaemun Gate), I had dinner at Hansang Charyim Bapsang Sinseol-dong (한상차림밥상 신설동점), near Sinseoldong Station. Ilrang has been doing the Seoul fortress wall walks lately and got newly interested in Heunginjimun, so we combined the two and headed out.

When I think about it, it's just one ride on Line 1, but somehow it always felt psychologically far away, haha. Having gone, DDP has so much to see, and I didn't expect much from the Wayne Thiebaud exhibition, the main event, but I loved it. Ube had plans with friends that evening, so I said, fine, I'll eat out with Ilrang and come home later~

And that's how we ended up at Hansang Charyim Bapsang Sinseol-dong.

Hansang Charyim Sinseol-dong hours and atmosphere

This bossam hanjeongsik (Korean set-meal) restaurant near Sinseoldong Station is open 10:45 am to 9:30 pm, with last order at 8:30 pm, and closed every Monday. We arrived at 5pm, probably early for dinner, so the hall was still quiet and I quickly snapped some photos.

The chairs have fabric covers, which gave it a slightly formal, banquet-hall feel.

There was a green photo wall, so I took a picture. It looked pretty under the lights.

Ask them to skip the banchan you won't eat

Since so many side dishes come out, there was a note asking guests to have any banchan they won't eat removed before the table is set. Yes! I always do that too at restaurants. It feels such a waste when something I didn't eat just gets thrown out, since the kitchen made it with care.

So we had the fish cake side removed when the table was set. Ilrang doesn't eat fish cake.

Price and contents of the 1-person bossam set, for two

We ordered two 1-person bossam sets (boiled pork wraps set), ₩30,000 in total. Ordering for two gets you a full table: an 8-side banchan spread, bossam kimchi, bossam and doenjang (soybean paste) stew.

They're running a Naver review event, and the drink is a whole 500ml!!! Definitely join in~

Drinking snacks, group seating and a big TV

It's Hansang Charyim Bapsang & Hansang Jumak (a Korean pub), so there's a good range of dishes that work as drinking snacks. Looked like a nice place for a drink too~

There was lots of seating suited to groups.

There's an enormous TV, so meeting friends in a group to watch a sports match over drinks would be great~~~

What banchan come with the bossam set?

Finally, the bossam set we'd been waiting and waiting for arrived~ Here are the side dishes we got.

• Seasoned shredded dried squid (jinmichae)
• Salted squid (ojingeo-jeotgal)
• Corn salad
• Boiled cabbage
• Bracken (gosa-ri)
• Japchae (glass noodle stir-fry)
• Pickled radish for wrapping (ssambu)
• Pickled myeongi greens (wild garlic-like leaves)
• Seasoned chives
• Garlic scapes
• Fried crab
• Braised quail eggs
• Pickled perilla leaves
• Braised lotus root
• Green chili with doenjang seasoning
• Bean sprout namul
• Blanched broccoli
• Lettuce salad

Wow, the variety was something else. Ilrang was amazed too, saying there were really so many side dishes.

The best dish: rare fried crab

Fried crab is something you almost never get at restaurants, so I tried it out of curiosity. You just crunch it whole. The crab is fried and then lightly seasoned, so it isn't greasy, and it was crispy and tasty.

It was the restaurant's best dish~ Above all, I loved that it's so rare.

Tofu-packed doenjang stew and healthy sides

The doenjang stew that came with the set was packed with tofu. It had a deep, nutty flavor like it was made with homemade doenjang, which I liked.

I also liked that there were lots of healthy sides like broccoli and cabbage.

The main dish: bossam and bossam kimchi

The main dish of the bossam set is, of course, the bossam. I don't eat the fatty part, so Ilrang ate the fat and I ate the lean meat. Hahaha

A piece of pork with nicely colored napa cabbage kimchi and radish on the side was great.

So this is the seasoned fried crab? I don't know what to call it, but it tasted good.

The most important thing in a hansang (full table) meal is the rice. The rice here was good too.

Good-value Korean dinner in Dongdaemun: Hansang Charyim Sinseol-dong

If you're looking for a good-value place in Dongdaemun with lots of side dishes, give Hansang Charyim Bapsang Sinseol-dong a try~ ^_^