Gunja Station bar open till 2am: ramyeon-spice bone grill, Saechamjip

The place I visited today is a Korean bar near Gunja Station! Saechamjip.

Saechamjip is located on the 2nd floor.

The food at Saechamjip was really solid! They've got all kinds of stews, bone grill and jeon (savory pancakes), and a great lineup of makgeolli. This is genuinely a spot I'd recommend for good bar food with private rooms near Gunja Station, so let me write it up in detail.

Where is Saechamjip, and what are its hours?

Saechamjip / 16 Neungdong-ro 36-gil, 2nd floor, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul / 17:30 - 02:00

They're open until 2am so there was plenty of time to relax and enjoy.

Arriving at the 5:30pm opening: how long is the wait?

I showed up right at the 5:30pm opening, and as soon as I walked in, people kept streaming in behind me. Definitely a popular spot!! Everyone clearly knows where the good food is haha. It seems like there's some waiting later at night, but since they give out ice cream for waits over 20 minutes, waiting there might even be kind of fun lol.

How private is the seating at Saechamjip?

Inside there's a good mix of 2-seat, 4-seat, and group tables, and most are blocked off with partitions or curtains, so it really feels like a private room bar. I liked that there weren't many fully open tables!

Complimentary starters: muksabal and V-Cone snacks

The basic sides that come out are mukmuchim (acorn jelly salad) and... V-corn snacks? This is the first place I've seen serve V-corn haha. They also give you heotgae sticks, which is such a nice touch~ Even the water tastes like heotgae tea lol. Bars definitely need this kind of thoughtfulness!

What we ordered: nakgopsae hot pot, bone grill and strawberry makgeolli

Here's the menu. Everything on it looked so tempting that I decided I definitely need to come back with a bigger group of friends next time — I want to try everything!!! This time I ordered the nakgopsae hot pot, bone grill, and strawberry makgeolli. They even have bingsu (shaved ice) for dessert, so this is definitely a place built for drinking haha.

They also had all kinds of staff call buttons, so I didn't have to awkwardly wave anyone down — just press the button. So convenient.

Strawberry smoothie makgeolli, 12,900 won

They make their own fresh-blended smoothie makgeolli, and I went with the strawberry flavor — this makgeolli is genuinely delicious! Cool and smooth but still with that makgeolli tang, absolutely great! There are several flavors too — mango, strawberry, yuzu, blueberry, pine nut, and more! Strawberry is probably the safest pick, and I love strawberries anyway, so that's what I chose.

Nakgopsae hot pot, 32,900 won

Since it's a bar, I figured the portions of the food would be pretty small, but honestly, isn't the quality great?? The shrimp were huge, there was tons of octopus, plus daechang (beef intestine) and woo-samgyeop (thin beef belly) — the portion was so generous it surprised me. And for 500 won more you can add glass noodles or udon noodles~ I added glass noodles too haha.

Bone grill, 25,900 won, in Level 2 ramyeon spice

The bone grill I'd been looking forward to!!!! My sister loves bone grill so much that I went searching for places that serve it, and that's how I ended up at Saechamjip. The seasoning wasn't too spicy but had a nice sweetness, so it's a flavor anyone could enjoy! Eating it together with the scallion shreds on top made for a great combo~

The bone grill came with about 4 big pieces! For 3,000 won more you can add a cheese bomb~ I picked the Level 2 spicy ramyeon flavor, and I think even people who can handle spicy food would enjoy Level 3 too — Level 2 wasn't spicy at all!!

The meat chunks are really big and look tender, right?? The meat wasn't dry at all — it was soft and easy to pick off the bone! For anyone who doesn't want the hassle of picking meat off the bone, they also have a boneless version haha. My sister firmly believes chicken and this kind of bone-in meat only tastes right when you pick it off the bone yourself~ so she doesn't touch the boneless option lol.

You have to stir the strawberry makgeolli well before drinking, and this stone bowl definitely kept it cold for a long time, so I could keep sipping it cold. If you're someone who dislikes the taste of alcohol and can't drink much, I highly recommend makgeolli! It feels more like a drink than alcohol~~~ That doesn't mean it won't get you tipsy though!!

Looking at it all laid out like this, doesn't it look huge and hearty and delicious?? While the nakgopsae was simmering, I ate the bone grill first, and once I started eating it I really wanted rice with it lol. A bone grill flavor that calls for rice.

The octopus and shrimp are seriously plump and plentiful, right!!!! This is the first time I've seen such plump, generous toppings in a bar dish, especially the shrimp — they were so big I was really satisfied. Eating like this, time flies. The portion was so big I was completely full lol.

Jellies on the way out and the restroom amenities

As a nice final touch, they even set out jellies at the register.

The bathroom had everything you could need, from mouthwash on — such a thoughtful bar that I'd recommend it with confidence. I think I can confidently recommend Saechamjip to my friends next time!! I noticed they also have gaeseong jua (a Korean rice cake dessert) on the menu — I've never tried it before and was so curious, but I was too full to eat it this time. Next visit, I'm definitely trying it~!!!