Western lunch course near Mangwon Han River Park: beet tart, Noju

A few days ago I went to Noju, a well-known restaurant in Mangwon-dong, with a friend. We were heading to Mangwon Han River Park and looking for a good place to eat nearby, and Noju's lunch course looked cheap yet really impressive. It turned out to be a fine dining place with great value that I'd happily recommend.

• Location: 2F, 56 Donggyo-ro 9-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul
• Opening hours: 11:30 ~ 23:00
• Menu: Lunch course

How to get to Noju near Mangwon Station, and where to park

Noju is on the second floor of the building with the "Mangwon-dong Makguksu" (buckwheat noodle restaurant) sign. Come out of Mangwon Station Exit 2 and head into the alley. The Noju sign isn't big, but even though it's a cute little one, it's easy enough to spot.

If you're driving, Noju has no private parking lot. I heard Mangwon Public Parking Lot or Mangwon Roadside Public Parking Lot, both a 5-minute walk away, aren't too far.

Noju opening hours, break time and reservations

Noju is open 11:30 to 23:00, with a break time from 15:00 to 17:00, so plan around that. It's closed every Monday!

I'd recommend booking ahead on Catch Table (a Korean reservation app)~ If you reserve you won't have to wait, and for an anniversary you can ask for lettering and they'll prepare a lettering service, so keep that in mind!

What is the seating like at Noju? Go for a window seat

Inside, Noju has two kinds of seating, hall seats and bar seats, and the hall has tables for 2 and for 4. We'd booked a table for two on Catch Table the day before, so we just gave the reservation name when we arrived and sat down.

We could choose our seats on arrival, and since we went at lunchtime, the sunny window seats had a nice mood and let us look outside while eating, so we sat by the window. The guests who came after us with reservations also went for the window seats first. Window seats are popular, of course!! haha

What's in the Noju lunch course?

Noju's menu had today's lunch course along with a wine menu that pairs well with it. We weren't really in the mood for wine, so we just had the lunch course today~~

The lunch course came in this order: focaccia, two bite-size starters, arancini (fried rice ball), jambon (French-style ham), octopus and clam pasta, signature gnocchi, Iberico, and lemon sorbet!!

Noju wine list

Noju has a huge range of wines, so there's a separate wine menu. The wine menu has plenty of variety too, but many wines aren't on the list, so it says to ask if you need a recommendation.

Going for the lunch course is great, but I felt this is also a wonderful restaurant for wine lovers. One wall is packed with wine! The owner tidies the wines from time to time, and he seems really serious about wine.

Focaccia with yuja (Korean citron) cheese

The starter bread of Noju's lunch course was focaccia, crispy and baked on the outside, moist and chewy inside. Eaten with yuja (citron) cheese, the bread's nutty, plain flavor blended with the fresh scent of yuja, so even though it was just the starter bread, I really enjoyed it!

Two bite-size starters: beet tart and endive

Two bite-size starters came out: a tart topped with beet, and endive, each meant to pop into your mouth in one go. The beet tart tasted like nothing I'd imagined, and the sauces inside matched it so well that personally this is the one I still think about!! It suited my taste so perfectly I'd have bought it to take home if they sold it.

The endive felt like a light, one-bite salad, so it was nice to have before the mains started~~

Arancini topped with sesame oil powder

Noju's arancini was crispy outside and moist inside, reminding me of dongguran-ttaeng (Korean pan-fried meat patties), but it felt very high-end. The white powder on top was sesame oil powder, and it's so amazing that eating just the powder tastes like sesame oil.

You can see how moist it is inside just by looking, right?? It's so soft that the Korean phrase "geotbaksokchok" (crispy outside, moist inside) came out on its own when I put it in my mouth.

Zucchini-wrapped jambon with Emmental cream

Jambon was tucked inside a golden-grilled zucchini, with a generous layer of Emmental cheese cream underneath. Cutting it in half and dipping it in plenty of sauce was such a good match. The more sauce I dipped, the better it got!!

Octopus and clam pasta rich with anchovy

Noju's octopus and clam dish was a pasta full of anchovy aroma, and the smell was really lovely! It felt like a vongole pasta, with garlic and olive oil notes too, and the savory anchovy depth spread through the whole pasta, making every bite a joy!

What does Noju's signature gnocchi taste like?

As soon as Mangwon-dong Noju's signature gnocchi arrived, I loved the subtle truffle aroma. I cut into it right away and the texture was totally chewy yet soft, which I loved.

It came out piping hot, so cutting it in half and eating it with the soup and truffle gave a really rich flavor. I understood immediately why people say Noju's gnocchi is so good! My friend, who already loves gnocchi, said Noju's gnocchi was really delicious too.

Iberico steak with jalapeño and mashed potatoes

The Iberico steak came with jalapeño and mashed potatoes, and every single element was perfect. The meat was cooked perfectly and seasoned just right, so "Wow, this meat is good!" came out right away, and with jalapeño it was even better, and with the mashed potatoes too it was perfect!

Meat grilled this well!!! It's so delicious~~

Dessert: lemon sorbet

After enjoying all the dishes, we were given lemon sorbet for dessert, and it was super fresh and cool, a perfect dessert. The texture melted in my mouth and I kept going back for more!!

Is the Noju lunch course worth it for good-value fine dining?

I think Noju in Mangwon-dong is a really good place for value fine dining!! If you're looking for a good restaurant in Mangwon-dong, going at lunch means no price pressure and it seems like a solid choice haha

Have a great meal at Noju in Mangwon-dong, then go to a nearby café for dessert and coffee~~ and finish with a walk along the Han River. Perfect, right~~~~