Seoul Korean restaurant with herring roe mushroom rice: Tanbaek

Today I'm introducing Tanbaek, a great restaurant to eat at after walking around Deoksugung Palace and Jeongdong-gil. Jeongdong-gil is one of my favorite walking courses in Seoul just for the atmosphere. Tanbaek turned out to be a clean, tidy Korean restaurant, a bit different from your typical kalguksu (knife-cut noodle) place.

What I ordered was gom-kalguksu + on-jeyuk (warm pork jowl) + mushroom rice! To cut to the chase, ordering all three together was such a good call.

Where Tanbaek is and what it costs

Tanbaek is at 37 Jeongdong-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul. Its signature dishes are gom-kalguksu, yukgaejang-kalguksu, and on-jeyuk — gom-kalguksu is ₩14,000, on-jeyuk (140g) is ₩19,000, and mushroom rice is ₩4,000.

• 📍 37 Jeongdong-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🥢 Signature dishes: gom-kalguksu, yukgaejang-kalguksu, on-jeyuk
• 💰 Gom-kalguksu ₩14,000
• 💰 On-jeyuk (140g) ₩19,000
• 💰 Mushroom rice ₩4,000

It's close to the Deoksugung stone wall path, so it's also a good spot for a meal after visiting Deoksugung Palace or the Seoul Museum of Art. Jeongdong-gil itself is great for dates or strolls, so it works well as a course to walk off your meal afterward.

🍜 Gom-kalguksu, 14,000 won: how clear is the beef broth?

First, the gom-kalguksu! When you think of kalguksu, you usually picture a thick, heavy broth, but Tanbaek's version was a bit different. It's built on a clear, clean Korean beef (hanwoo) broth, topped with shank, round, and beef brisket.

When I tasted the broth on its own first, it felt fairly strongly seasoned. But funnily enough, once I ate it with the noodles, the seasoning was spot on! The soft kalguksu noodles combined with the clean yet savory broth made for a really nice balance.

The broth itself isn't heavy or cloying, so you keep going back for more. It's a bit different from the kalguksu I usually eat, so if you're looking for a Jeongdong-gil restaurant with a clean-tasting broth dish, this one's worth trying.

🥩 On-jeyuk, 19,000 won: pork jowl served warm and tender

And personally, the dish I loved most: on-jeyuk! Tanbaek's on-jeyuk is boiled pork made with pork jowl (hangjeongsal). The first thing you notice after one bite is simply... tender!!

The ratio of fat to lean meat was great, and there wasn't a single tough bit. Not to overstate it, but it practically melts after just a few chews haha. The savory richness from the fat and the clean flavor of the lean meat came through together, which made me really glad I'd ordered it alongside the gom-kalguksu.

The on-jeyuk comes with a chamnamul (aster) salad, wasabi, and herring roe, so it's fun to mix and match small combinations as you eat.

🍚 Mushroom rice with herring roe: the combination to try

Tanbaek's mushroom rice is cooked with shiitake mushrooms. Normally you're meant to mix it with the seasoning sauce that comes with it, then finish it off with leftover broth — but I really loved topping it with a bit of the herring roe that came with the on-jeyuk.

The clean, fragrant mushroom rice paired with the salty umami of the herring roe really brought the rice to life. The slight fishy note I'd noticed while eating it with the meat barely registered when eaten with the mushroom rice — if anything, it just added more savoriness.

If you visit Tanbaek, I'd personally recommend ordering the mushroom rice without fail! At ₩4,000, it's not a big ask to add alongside the gom-kalguksu or on-jeyuk. And if you get herring roe with your order, try spooning a bit onto the mushroom rice haha.

Why ordering all three dishes together works

Gom-kalguksu alone is plenty for a full meal, but I really enjoyed ordering gom-kalguksu + on-jeyuk + mushroom rice together this time.

The clean broth and soft noodles of the gom-kalguksu, the savory tenderness of the on-jeyuk, and the mushroom rice on the side — each dish has such a different character that it made eating more fun. In particular, going back to a warm sip of gom-kalguksu broth after alternating between on-jeyuk and mushroom rice was a really good combination :)

A place to eat after a Deoksugung walk

I liked Tanbaek's location just as much as the food. There's plenty to see around Deoksugung Palace and Jeongdong-gil, including the Seoul Museum of Art, so it makes a good date course too.

Deoksugung → a walk down Jeongdong-gil → a meal at Tanbaek — that course would work well. Sometimes an atmospheric spot is nice, but this place really suits those times when you want clean, light Korean food without anything too heavy.

Looking for a light Korean meal on Jeongdong-gil?

This visit to Tanbaek on Jeongdong-gil was a satisfying meal for me — all three dishes had their own charm.

The gom-kalguksu stood out with a clean broth base unlike other kalguksu I've had; the broth felt a touch strong on its own but was just right with the soft noodles. And the on-jeyuk, with its great fat-to-lean ratio, was so tender that 'melts in your mouth' really applied.

And finally, the unexpected mushroom rice + herring roe combo! This might just be personal taste, but I honestly enjoyed it more than the meat haha. If you're planning a trip to Deoksugung or Jeongdong-gil, Tanbaek is well worth a visit for a clean, satisfying meal near Deoksugung :)