Isu Station pho spot: sprout-laden pho and plump cha gio, Bangbaedong

A review of my catch-up date with a friend at Bangbaedong Ssalguksu near Isu Station, haha. My friend lives near Sadang and I'm a Line 7 person, so Isu was the perfect spot to meet! It's been ages since I came to Isu Station, which I used to visit all the time.

Honestly, Isu Station doesn't have many go-to restaurants, but while we were agonizing over the menu I suddenly craved pho, and this is where we ended up!! Found a good restaurant at Isu Station, haha.

Where is Bangbaedong Ssalguksu Isu Branch, and what's the atmosphere like?

Bangbaedong Ssalguksu Isu Branch is just a 5-minute walk from Isu Station Exit 10, super close!

There's no signboard! I guess that's the hip thing these days,,

The vibe inside is so authentically local.. There are even chairs outside the door for people waiting. From the chairs to the tables, you could tell they put care into a local feel. I took a few shots of the cute drawings too, haha.

Bangbaedong Ssalguksu Isu Branch menu and what we ordered

There were lots of pho options by type of meat, and I liked that there's a separate spicy pho too. We went with one pho each plus one side: combo pho, beef belly pho, cha gio and a cider.

The pho hot pot looked so intriguing, but I think it said it's only available in the evening! If you want something unusual among Isu Station restaurants, a pho hot pot with a drink could be fun, haha.

I was curious about Nep Moi 30 too.. I looked it up and it's a traditional Vietnamese rice spirit, vodka-style, apparently! (I've even been to a liquor expo and still hadn't heard of it.. what a vast world.) With fried rice dishes and bun cha (grilled pork with noodles) as well, it's great for enjoying a variety of Vietnamese food.

• Combo pho ₩12,000
• Beef belly pho ₩11,000
• Cha gio ₩6,000
• Cider ₩2,000

Order done ❤️ Lots of people were getting fried rice too, but today we focused on pho, haha.

Sauces, self-serve side dishes and free rice

Every table has hoisin sauce and chili sauce, plus what looked like chili pepper?, so you can feature some spiciness in your broth..

Side dishes are self-serve from the bar: pickled onion, pickled chili and danmuji (yellow pickled radish). I always add extra pickled onion, so having it at the self-serve bar made me so happy. The pickled chili was quite spicy, so watch out if you can't handle heat, haha.

And..!! I noticed a rice cooker, and it turns out the rice is free. If you have a big appetite, you can put rice in your soup too and easily get full..

Combo pho for 12,000 won: portion size and broth

The pho was served first! About 5 minutes after ordering? It really came out fast. It looked like a huge portion for the price at first glance, and it really was. After finishing, I was seriously stuffed and satisfied.

This is the combo pho I ordered. Combo pho with several kinds of meat usually runs around ₩15,000, but this one is loaded with beef belly and brisket, so ₩12,000 is a price I absolutely love.

See how generous the meat is? The noodles are plentiful too. The broth is light, loaded with bean sprouts, and tastes clean!! It isn't harsh, so you keep sipping. Topped with the pickled onion and chili sauce I grabbed, it's heavenly..

Some pho comes with bean sprouts and some doesn't, right? My mom loves bean sprouts in pho so much that she pays extra for them even at places that don't include them, and this is exactly her taste, haha. The texture of the sprout-packed pho is great too.

Cha gio for 6,000 won: worth ordering as a side?

The cha gio here were beyond my expectations: big, plump and stuffed with meat. When they arrived, the plating had such a local feel, lol. They'd just been fried, so they were piping hot.

I don't usually order sides expecting them to be amazing; I just feel the main alone is a bit empty. But these were freshly fried, super hot and crispy, with a juicy, meat-packed filling, and so delicious. It had the highest meat ratio of any cha gio I've had. And I've mostly seen slim, flat ones, but these are big and plump... great.

Bangbaedong Ssalguksu Isu Branch: final verdict

We were both really full after our meal. The interior has a local feel, and the one difference from the real thing is how clean it is, haha. Which is actually a plus.

A place with hearty, clean-tasting pho and sides that are better than expected. If you like pho with a clean broth packed with bean sprouts, you'll be very happy at Bangbaedong Ssalguksu, a great Isu Station restaurant I recommend, haha. It was a delicious meal. The end, haha.