Gwangju Cheomdan Chinese restaurant with mini shrimp toast: Mayway

I went to Mayway, a Chinese restaurant near the Cheomdan Lotte Mart.

⏰Hours Monday–Sunday 11:00 – 22:00 Break time 15:00–17:00 Last order 21:30 🚗Parking Nearby public parking lot

Where is Mayway in Cheomdan, Gwangju, and what is it like inside?

Mayway Gwangju Cheomdan is on the main road next to the Cheomdan Lotte Mart, across from Gyeojassi Church, and even from the outside it feels a little more polished than a typical Chinese restaurant — more like a fusion Chinese spot. The interior is bright and clean too, so it felt like a comfortable place to eat with family or to stop by as a Cheomdan lunch spot.

What is on the menu at Mayway?

The menu ranges from familiar Chinese dishes like jjajangmyeon (black bean noodles), jjamppong (spicy seafood noodle soup) and fried rice, to slightly more unusual options like spicy webfoot octopus jjajang, brisket jjamppong, seafood rice bowl and seafood nurungjitang (scorched rice soup). The one-person set meal lets you have jjajang, jjamppong and tangsuyuk (sweet and sour pork) all at once, which was a very welcome option for someone like me who's bad at deciding.

Here's what I ordered.

That day I ordered the one-person set meal, the one-person seafood nurungjitang, mini menbosha (fried bread with shrimp filling), and gunmandu (pan-fried dumplings). Since I wanted to taste a bit of everything, it ended up being quite a hearty spread. Ordering is convenient — just scan the QR code at the table.

The 12,900-won one-person set: jjajang, jjamppong and tangsuyuk together

First, the one-person set meal comes out more generously than expected. Both the jjajang and jjamppong noodles are on the thinner side, so the rich jjajang sauce coats them evenly. It's a bit different from the usual thick Chinese noodles, and eating the sauce together with the noodles like this was good. As for the jjamppong, the smoky wok-fired flavor hits immediately with the first sip of broth. It's spicy with that alive, stir-fried aroma, and personally I reached for the jjamppong even more than the jjajang.

The tangsuyuk was a bit different too. Instead of the usual long strips, it's made from thick, whole pieces of domestic sirloin, fried and then cut. One bite and you can really feel the thickness of the meat — good chewy texture, and definitely different from tangsuyuk with a thick batter coating. Being able to try all three — jjajang, jjamppong and tangsuyuk — for ₩12,900 was a good choice when you want to eat a variety of things.

Seafood nurungjitang (crispy rice soup) in a solo portion

Seafood nurungjitang is usually sold as a dish meant to be shared among several people, but here there's a separate one-person version, which made it easy to order a favorite dish alone. The thick broth arrives boiling hot, packed generously with seafood like squid and shrimp, along with mushrooms and vegetables.

I liked how the crispy nurungji (scorched rice) gradually softened as it soaked up the broth, and the broth itself was rich without being greasy, so I enjoyed it all the way to the end. If I had to pick a dish from that day I'd want to eat again, the seafood nurungjitang would be near the top.

Mini menbosha (shrimp toast) and gunmandu (fried dumplings) as sides

The mini menbosha came out bite-sized, making it easy to pair as a side. Inside the crispy bread is a shrimp ball, and the springy texture of the shrimp goes well with its slightly sweet flavor.

The size wasn't overwhelming, so it was nice to pop one in while eating jjajang or jjamppong.

The gunmandu also had a fuller filling than I expected. The outside fries up crispy while the inside stays moist, so it would've been worth ordering on its own too. Even with all the dishes I ordered, overall it didn't feel overly greasy or heavy, so I was able to eat more comfortably than expected.

A self-serve bar with rice, plus ice cream after the meal

There's a self-serve bar on one side. Along with the standard Chinese-restaurant side dishes — danmuji (pickled radish), onion, chunjang (black bean paste) — there's even rice available, so you can help yourself if you need more. It seemed especially handy for adding a bit of rice after eating a soupy dish like jjamppong or seafood nurungjitang.

I also liked the small touch of being able to finish the meal cleanly with a cool ice cream afterward. At the time of my visit there was also a promotion where ordering two draft beers got you tangsuyuk for ₩1,000, which seemed like a pretty good deal if you're stopping by for a casual evening beer.

Is Mayway in Cheomdan worth a visit?

Mayway Gwangju Cheomdan feels like a fusion Chinese restaurant that adds a distinctive twist to familiar dishes. The menu lineup is practical, from the one-person set that lets you try jjajang, jjamppong and tangsuyuk all at once, to the seafood nurungjitang you can order solo, and the portions were generous overall. The smoky jjamppong, the thick sirloin tangsuyuk, and the seafood-packed nurungjitang stuck with me in particular, and this is a place I'd want to revisit when I'm craving a filling meal in Cheomdan.