Weekday dinner A Set with cube steak risotto in Dunsan-dong: Bologna

What is Bologna Daejeon Dunsan Branch?

Bologna Daejeon Dunsan Branch is an Italian restaurant on the 1st floor of 30 Dunsanjungno 46beon-gil, Seo-gu, Daejeon, built around the concept of authentic Bologna home cooking. It's open Mon–Sun 11:00–21:30, with a break from 15:00–17:00 and last order at 20:30.

I wanted to enjoy pasta and risotto somewhere with a nice atmosphere for a change, so I visited Bologna, a well-known spot in Dunsan-dong. Both the menu and the interior capture that Italian home-cooking feel, so the moment I stepped in, it felt warm and cozy! Even on a weekday evening it was packed with guests. Here's my detailed review below.

Parking, reservations and waiting at Bologna

You can park at the Hyeongseong parking building next to the restaurant. If you mention it at checkout, you get 2 hours of parking support.

If there's a wait, register on Catch Table and wait in the waiting area. Reservations are also available, so booking through Naver before your visit would be convenient!

I'd recommend turning on alerts when reserving with Bologna — you get a complimentary glass of wine 🍷

🍨 There's also a gelato gift if you leave a review after visiting!

Inside the 40-pyeong wood-toned dining room

The restaurant is fairly spacious at about 132 sqm (40 pyeong), and the tables are spaced generously so it never felt cramped. The dark wood-tone interior paired with warm lighting creates an overall calm, upscale mood. It's not overly formal, so you can eat comfortably, but it also suits a date or an anniversary when you want to set the mood.🍷

It was also a nice space for a family meal or dining with parents. If you visit with kids, they provide a kids' risotto, tableware, and chair too 👍🏻 (see the menu). Since it was evening, jazz and classical music were playing, which made it feel like a real European restaurant!

If you've made a reservation, a reserved-table message with your name is placed on the set table.

Starter soup and bread

After ordering, we waited a little while before they brought out the starter soup, pickles, and bread. The soup was corn soup — smooth and gently sweet, perfect to start the meal with. Starting slowly with warm soup and bread made the whole meal feel more relaxed.

Bologna Daejeon Dunsan Branch menu

⭐️MENU⭐️

What comes with the 38,000 won A Set

We ordered the A Set that day.

• A Set ₩38,000 (+₩4,000 surcharge)
• Soup + bread + seasonal salad
• Choice of 1 pasta + choice of 1 risotto
• Options chosen: bolognese ragu pasta / cube steak cream risotto

Since you can pick one pasta and one risotto, it's a great composition if you want to try a few different dishes together.

Seasonal salad

The seasonal salad had sweet mango on top of fresh vegetables. The crisp vegetables and sweet mango went well together, giving a refreshing, clean taste! It was a nice light appetite booster before the cream risotto or the rich ragu pasta.

Bolognese ragu pasta

I chose the bolognese ragu pasta without a second thought. Bologna's ragu is apparently made every morning in-house following traditional Italian methods, from prepping to sautéing to simmering the ingredients themselves. In particular, they say this ragu sauce is simmered for 4 hours the authentic Italian way. As shown in the photo, the wide noodles come piled generously with ragu sauce, and cheese is sprinkled on top at the end.

Twirling the noodles together with the sauce, the rich meaty flavor of the ragu blended beautifully with the tomato notes, plus the nutty savoriness of the cheese — delicious. Compared to a typical tomato pasta, this style has a much deeper, richer meat flavor, so if you like ragu pasta, I think you'll really enjoy it. Highly, highly recommend!!!!

Cube steak cream risotto

For the risotto, I chose the cube steak cream risotto. The cream risotto came topped generously with appetizing cube steak. The subtle flavor of mushrooms blended well with the soft, thick cream sauce, and eating it together with the cube steak made it even more filling.

There was also a hint of pepperoncino mixed into the cream risotto, giving it a subtly spicy kick — this was really great! The pepperoncino completely cut through the usual richness of cream sauce, so I kept eating without getting tired of it. With plenty of cube steak on top and a generous portion of risotto overall, it was filling even when shared between two of us along with the pasta.

The herb salt gift handed over after paying

Lastly, at checkout they gave us a herb salt as a gift 🤍 The staff were all so kind and the meal was satisfying, and then they gave us a parting gift on top of it! I was touched 🥹

Who should visit Bologna in Dunsan-dong?

Bologna in Dunsan-dong 🍝 works well not only for special occasions like dates or anniversaries, but also for a leisurely family meal or dining with your parents. With good food and good atmosphere combined, it was a great spot to sit and chat slowly over a meal. There are plenty of cafés near Bologna in Daejeon, so it's easy to head to a café afterward, making a perfect first-and-second-course combo. If you're looking for an Italian restaurant with a nice atmosphere in Daejeon, I think Bologna is well worth trying.