Bucheon bar with crispy mozzarella potato pancake: Yeongpo

A few days ago, after work, a friend and I went to Yeongpo for that outdoor drinking-street vibe in Sinjung-dong. Maybe because it is already known as a great spot for company dinners around Sinjung-dong, lots of people seemed to come here for group dinners. We went late on a weekday after work, but there were still so many customers that we walked in going, “What...?? Is tomorrow not a weekday but the weekend...? Is it Friday night...?” Other restaurants had empty tables, but Yeongpo’s outdoor seats were full, while the inside was bustling with company-dinner groups.

Yeongpo near Sinjung-dong Station: location and late-night atmosphere

Yeongpo Location: 46 Jomaru-ro 291beon-gil, 1F, Unit 107 Hours: 18:00–06:00 Menu: cheese potato pancake, jjukumi pork belly

There are so many streets with outdoor drinking spots near Sinjung-dong Station. Yeongpo was down the Baskin-Robbins alley, right beside a claw-machine arcade. It is a fairly new bar, but it is already this popular!! I feel like I go to Sinjung-dong almost every week, and whenever I see a new restaurant, I walk past thinking, “I should try that next time.” Yeongpo was one of those places, and I finally made it!

Yeongpo’s interior was fairly relaxed at first, but around 9 p.m., about 20 people arrived for a company dinner and it suddenly got bustling. It really must be a popular Sinjung-dong spot for company dinners! It looked like everyone had contacted them beforehand to make reservations.

An outdoor-bar feel indoors and ordering the menu

We considered sitting in the outdoor area too, but liked an indoor table better, so we sat inside. The weather was nice and the doors were open, so it still had that outdoor-bar feel, which I loved~ Every table has a tablet for ordering, and the menu was seriously varied. There were plenty of snacks and dishes, including basil baeksuk (slow-cooked chicken soup), pressure-cooked pork back ribs with kimchi, blue crab stew, marinated blue crab, a boiled pork platter, grilled buttered pollack roe, mozzarella cheese potato pancake, crispy squid and shrimp pancake, hangover ramen, and more. Since it was our first visit, we chose from the best sellers! Best sellers you cannot go wrong with! We ordered the mozzarella cheese potato pancake and jjukumi (webfoot octopus) pork belly, and they were perfect dishes to have with a beer~

After ordering, they brought Saewookkang shrimp crackers and water as the basic accompaniment. But it was not regular water—it was some kind of brewed tea, maybe hovenia tea? Barley tea? I thought, if you drink this while drinking alcohol, there is no way you could get drunk. I kept eating the crackers with beer before the main dishes arrived; they were nutty and salty, so I kept reaching for more. Maybe because I had gone after work without dinner and was hungry, but those crackers were so good hahaha.

Jjukumi pork belly that had me waiting for that smoky flavor

As soon as you order, the owner cooks everything personally. The kitchen is open, so you can see it, and there was a whole fire show going on~~ I waited thinking, “Jjukumi pork belly with that smoky flavor cannot possibly be bad~” haha. I love both jjukumi and pork belly, and since jjukumi is in season and delicious right now, it was the perfect thing to order.

It arrived with jjukumi, pork belly, and bean sprouts piled on top. I mixed it once so the seasoning would soak in well, then dug right in! The seasoning had really soaked into both the jjukumi and pork belly; it was not spicy, and the seasoning was just right. Pork belly cannot be bad, and the jjukumi was tender with a great texture, plus the bean sprouts added perfect crunch! As I ate, I thought fried rice made in this sauce would be delicious.

Mozzarella cheese potato pancake with great crunch and cheese

The second dish at Yeongpo, a popular Sinjung-dong company-dinner spot, was the mozzarella cheese potato pancake. It was packed with cheese between shredded-potato pancakes, then topped with a sprinkle of cheese powder and corn. The presentation was amazing.

The sauces were truffle mayo, ketchup, and pickled onions. I had always thought potato pancakes were delicious dipped in ketchup or soy sauce, so I could not imagine truffle mayo with them. (My thoughts on the truffle mayo are below..!!) I cut the potato pancake into easy-to-eat pieces with scissors~ Even as I cut it, it went crunch, crunch, crunch hahaha. I loved that it was basically ASMR!?!?

As I cut the mozzarella cheese potato pancake with scissors, the cheese stretched and stretched, which made cheese-loving me so excited. I took a sip of beer and started eating right away!

I put one bite-size piece of potato pancake into my mouth, and its crunch was exactly the kind I love~ There are chewy potato pancakes and crispy ones. I prefer a crispy potato pancake with beer, while a chewy one is better with makgeolli (Korean rice wine), but since it was beer today, I absolutely loved how crisp it was!! Ketchup is always good with potatoes, of course. What was unusual was the truffle mayo: the soft, nutty flavor of mayonnaise with a subtle truffle aroma lingering around it went so well with the potato pancake. It felt like the flavor was taken up a level?? I was amazed that someone had discovered this combination!!

Draft beer in lovely weather like this~~~ I think draft beer tastes best after work! For anyone looking for a good Sinjung-dong spot for a company dinner, I recommend Yeongpo! It seems they take reservations too, and if you reserve in advance, they will have a table ready for you. It was a great bar for a company dinner or for grabbing a draft beer with friends. Everyone, go to Sinjung-dong for that outdoor drinking-street experience~