Songpa noodle shop topping trap: chicken steak at Cocker Noodle Two

We went as a couple on a weekend evening.

Half of the meal was sponsored, half was paid out of our own pocket.

What is Cocker Noodle Two like inside?

First off, the place itself wasn't bad at all. Cocker Noodle Two (코커누들두) is small inside. It's not elaborately decorated — just a cozy space with a few tables — which actually gave it a quiet, comfortable feel. I'm not really into loud music or noisy vibes, so this size was right up my alley.

When we walked in, nearly every table was full. It was a weekend evening, sure, but when a place this size is packed, it usually means people know to come here.

Sitting down, I thought, "this must be a good spot." And honestly, the first impression was good.

Free chicken drumstick for a receipt review

At Cocker Noodle Two, if you write a receipt review, they give you a chicken drumstick. That was also not bad — a lot of places have cut back on freebies these days, so this kind of thing is welcome.

So this post isn't written because the place is bad. This is a story about how, in a nice space full of people, one order wrecked an entire evening.

What we ordered at Cocker Noodle Two

The problem was the order. I was already pretty full. So instead of the one-dish-per-person rule, my friend and I decided to order just one main and a few extra sides to share. For reference, there was no signage anywhere in the shop about a one-dish-per-person policy, and no mention of it when we ordered either.

Here's what we ordered:

• Chicken char siu noodle + garlic chive braised chicken set: ₩16,000
• Chicken steak topping: ₩4,000
• Kirin beer x2, ₩6,000 each
• 1 chicken drumstick (free, receipt review service)

Why the 4,000-won chicken steak topping came as a full bowl of noodles

We were expecting one bowl for the main. Instead, two bowls came out. A whole separate bowl of "chicken steak noodles."

When we asked the staff, they explained that the chicken steak is a topping and can't be sold on its own, so it comes served on top of a noodle dish. We had just tapped one ₩4,000 topping item, and an entire extra dish got added to our order.

The shop's answer: no refunds

As we ate, it kept bugging me, so I called the staff back over. Fine, what's already come out can't be undone — but couldn't they at least keep the topping from being selectable on its own, or have it added to the main dish I already ordered, or at minimum, say something like "if you tap this, it comes out as a separate noodle bowl" when taking the order? The answer was that they'd consider revising the menu, but no refund — that's just how the topping works, they said, it comes with noodles.

That answer was the most absurd part. "That's just how it is" is the shop's own internal logic. The customer just read the menu as printed and tapped what it said. It felt like they'd built an ordering structure the customer couldn't possibly know about, and then expected the customer to bear the full consequences of it.

Saying they'd consider fixing the menu is basically admitting there's a problem with the current structure — while refusing to compensate the person who lost money because of that very problem.

So we took one bite of the food that had come out and just left. I don't even remember how it tasted. All that's left is the feeling of a weekend evening that should have been enjoyable getting ruined, the feeling of wasted money, and the feeling of being stuck with something we never wanted to order in the first place, on the shop's own terms.

Ordering tips for your visit to Cocker Noodle Two

For anyone planning to visit: if you're going to split one main dish with sides at Cocker Noodle Two, don't tap on the topping items separately. It's not just adding ₩4,000 — it brings out a whole extra dish.

If you do want to order one, ask first — "what does this come on top of?" And this is just my own opinion, but if a restaurant genuinely wants to treat its customers well, the first step is probably making sure customers in the hall can't hear staff being scolded.

We had just tapped one ₩4,000 topping item, and an entire extra dish got added to our order.