Nampo Station Japanese lunch with parents: beer set & udon, Daidokoro

Today I finally went on a Nampo-dong outing with my family after a long time. While hunting for something different, I heard there's a Japanese home-cooking place on the 10th floor of Lotte Department Store Gwangbok that's amazing in both looks and taste, so off we dashed!

Where is Daidokoro Gwangbok and what are its hours?

Daidokoro is in the 10th-floor food court of Lotte Department Store Gwangbok. It's open 10:30 to 21:00 (same closing days as the department store), with last order at 20:00. For parking, just use the Lotte Department Store Gwangbok parking lot! We went in through the Aqua Mall first, took the elevator up to the 10th floor, and after a short walk we found the food court in the main building.

Daidokoro Gwangbok entrance and waitlist

Even outside the restaurant, I spotted tons of cute, charming Japanese-style decorations! 🥰 On one side hung a nameplate reading "Mentaiko Rice Bowl Master," so my expectations shot up before I'd even eaten, haha.

You can see the menu outside before going in, which is really handy. On the wall next to it there was a notice for a cute kids' curry set and a height-measuring sticker! It looked perfect for eating together after shopping at the department store with kids. 👍 Fittingly for a famous Nampo-dong restaurant, there's a device at the entrance for registering on the waitlist through Catch Table!

Is Daidokoro Gwangbok seating good for solo diners and families?

Inside Daidokoro Gwangbok there were several tidy four-person tables, and big plush dolls sat cutely beside the two-person tables. So I thought Daidokoro would also work for eating alone in Nampo-dong. Even by yourself you wouldn't feel lonely at all; it would feel like eating with a friend. 🧸

It was full of cute, charming Japanese-style props, so waiting for the food was never boring and it was a treat for the eyes! Oh, and they have baby chairs too, so no need to worry, haha.

Daidokoro menu and perks

Every table at Daidokoro has a tablet for viewing the menu, but to look through it comfortably with my parents, I asked for a printed menu, haha.

From the best-selling karaage set (fried chicken set meal) to set menus that add a side and a drink to the meal, the lineup is well put together.

Also, Daidokoro offers small perks for students and birthday guests, so be sure to claim them! I assumed a department store restaurant wouldn't serve alcohol, but luckily(?) they sell draft beer! I was sooo happy and ordered right away, haha.

Each Daidokoro table has an ordering tablet, and next to it were the cabbage sauce and even the spoons for the milk pudding served as dessert.

Even the paper cups at Daidokoro are cute, ㅠㅠ and the staff uniforms have a cat drawn on the back, which was so adorable! 😻

What comes in the Daidokoro draft beer set?

The Daidokoro draft beer set comes with a karaage set, a tonkatsu set, mini menbosha (shrimp toast) and 2 draft beers. Since we came by subway today, we wanted a beer each, so we cleverly added a fried tofu udon set and 1 more draft beer to the set!

They served the beer first, along with a light snack of crackers! Coming to the department store in the daytime and all drinking draft beer together made me sooo happy, you know?

Tonkatsu set: curry rice with a full spread of sides

The Daidokoro tonkatsu (pork cutlet) set comes with curry rice, the cutlet and basic side dishes all on one tray. The egg has a heart on it 🧡 and the sides were so varied, with kimchi, pickles, braised quail eggs, Vienna sausages, seasoned pickled radish and soup, that the lineup was really great. Getting a whole spread like this made me feel truly treated, haha.

If you don't like a soft-boiled egg in the set meals, just tick fully cooked on the menu!

Karaage set: two sauces and a soy sauce egg rice swap

The Daidokoro karaage set comes with curry sauce, and for ₩2,000 extra you can switch to soy sauce egg rice. As befits Daidokoro's signature dish, the fried karaage looked sooo delicious.

Big bites for good food! The karaage set has the same side dishes as the tonkatsu set, plus two dipping sauces for the karaage. The white sauce is rich and nutty and the red one is spicy, and I loved both, haha.

Fried tofu udon set: smoky fried tofu and vegetable tempura

Last is the Daidokoro fried tofu udon set we added! Udon topped with fried tofu full of smoky flavor, plus vegetable tempura! Isn't the look of that fried tofu crazy? The udon noodles were springy and the tempura crispy and tasty!

Daidokoro's basic seasoned pickled radish was nutty and tasty too, and the rice under the fried egg was an enormous portion, haha. I think it's great for anyone looking for a hearty meal in Nampo-dong!

Mini menbosha (shrimp toast): made for draft beer

The menbosha included in the Daidokoro draft beer set comes as 4 pieces. It's served with cabbage and was fantastic with our draft beer. Biting into springy shrimp between fried bread slices..! Crispy outside, springy inside 🍤 it was the kind of flavor you keep reaching for, haha.

Daidokoro cabbage refills and a milk pudding finish

Daidokoro staff kindly brought us a generous cabbage refill when we asked. My dad is a cabbage killer, so we asked for one more refill, haha. To finish, we happily ate the milk pudding too. 🍼 They even gave us a vitamin candy after we paid, so thank you, we enjoyed it 🍬

I fell for the cute look, then fell again for the huge rice portion and the taste: that was my visit to Daidokoro Gwangbok! Haha. Tasty karaage with cold draft beer is pure love, so I really recommend trying them together. 🍻