Insadong Korean restaurant dinner with mom on the 30,000-won set

My mom and I were spending time near Anguk Station and before we knew it, it was dinner time. We'd walked around quite a bit that day and were hungry, so a warm soup-and-rice meal that would really fill us up sounded perfect.

So we headed to dinner at Wolhadong, a spot near Anguk Station known for its pork gomtang (pork bone soup). It's a pork gomtang specialty restaurant tucked inside an Insadong alley, in a space that keeps its hanok (traditional Korean house) character fully intact — it caught my eye from the entrance. We went for dinner, but since it's close to both Anguk Station and Insadong, it also seems like a solid pick when you're looking for a satisfying Insadong lunch spot.

A hanok inside an Insadong alley: the entrance to Wolhadong

Once you step into the alley, the Wolhadong sign appears alongside a stone path and bamboo. The distinctive atmosphere of the Insadong alley paired with the hanok building gave the walk to dinner a real sense of charm.

My mom and I ended up patting the toad statue's head on our way in for no reason haha

Interior seating good for solo diners too

The interior was just as striking, with the wooden pillars and exposed rafters of the hanok kept intact, and the warm lighting added an overall calm feeling. There's both bar-style seating and table seating, so it looked comfortable whether you're dining alone or visiting as a pair. Since gomtang itself is a simple yet filling dish, this place also seems like a great fit for office workers nearby looking for a solid Anguk Station lunch spot.

They were also running photo review events on Naver and Google. The complimentary item differs slightly by platform, so check the table signage when you visit.

The secret to Wolhadong's gomtang: cheonggeun-jang and the fermentation room

One of the highlights of Wolhadong's gomtang is cheonggeun-jang, a soybean paste made using a recipe based on an old Joseon-era cookbook, which they say adds extra savory depth to the soup. There's also a fermentation room set up in one corner of the restaurant. Wolhadong uses this Joseon-era-recipe cheonggeun-jang in its gomtang, and it was fascinating to actually see the space where it's fermented.

Menu and prices

Looking at the menu, the signature Wolha Gomtang was ₩12,000 and the Hong Gomtang was ₩13,500. There were also several other dishes available, including cold jeyuk at ₩10,000 for a half plate and ₩20,000 for a full plate, squid salad, sambok hot pot, and more.

What I ordered

We went with the ₩30,000 set! It comes with gomtang for two, a taste of jeyuk, and one drink, and we picked cider as our drink. The great thing about the set was that, visiting as two people, we could try both Wolhadong's signature pork gomtang and its jeyuk at once.

The taste of jeyuk comes as 4 pieces

The taste of jeyuk was about 4 pieces total — truly a light taste, just as the name says!

We split it two pieces each, but if you want a bit more jeyuk to go with your meal, ordering the cold jeyuk separately seems like a good option too.

Clear pork gomtang — how does Wolha Gomtang taste?

Finally, the Wolha Gomtang arrived. Unlike the milky-white pork gukbap most people picture, this one had thin-sliced pork sitting in a clear broth. The gomtang comes out already seasoned to a base level.

You taste it as-is first, then add salt and pepper from the table to your liking. I tried it plain first, then added a bit more pepper partway through — it was nice being able to adjust the seasoning to my own taste like that.

Tasting the broth, I could feel the subtle, distinct flavor of a gomtang simmered from pork. My mom, who's usually a bit sensitive to meaty smells, said the pork's characteristic flavor came through more strongly for her. As I kept eating, I understood what she meant. If you're someone who likes a clear-broth pork gomtang where the pork's own flavor really comes through, this will suit your taste even more.

Kimchi and cheonggeun-jang combo

I was so hungry that day, and eating the warm broth together with rice was so filling that I finished my bowl cleanly. Kimchi came out as a side too. The kimchi was fairly assertively seasoned, which made it good to pair in between bites of the mild gomtang. Trying both kinds side by side, I personally liked the napa cabbage kimchi better than the radish kimchi. There was also cheonggeun-jang to pair with the meat, so it was fun to eat the gomtang plain at first, then start mixing in different combinations partway through.

A warm, filling bowl of clear pork gomtang, enjoyed in the hanok atmosphere of Insadong.