Hongdae Western restaurant with a friend: mustard greens risotto, Omil

Omil Hongdae opening hours and how to reserve

Omil Hongdae is open Mon–Fri 11:30–21:15 and Sat–Sun 11:00–21:15, with no break time. It opens even on Korean holidays. You can join the waitlist or reserve through Catch Table, and also reserve through Naver. There's also an event: follow on Naver, write a review, and you get a free drink.

I don't know why I'm craving Western food so much lately 😆 I couldn't decide what to eat with my friend, so we went to Omil Hongdae, which I'd been keeping in mind because it looks so cute! I'd seen reviews saying the omurice is s-o-o cute and tastes amazing too, not just looks, haha.

How close is Omil Hongdae to Hongik Univ. Station?

Honestly, Omil Hongdae is right around the corner: you can get there in 1–2 minutes after leaving a Hongik Univ. Station exit. It's a pretty popular spot, though, so I recommend checking the live waitlist on Catch Table and joining the queue or reserving before you go.

The last time, I showed up without thinking, hit the dinner peak, and had to wait forever 😭 So this time I followed the waitlist on Catch Table as we headed over.

How long is the weekend wait at Omil Hongdae?

On a weekend, the dinner peak at Omil Hongdae had about 7–8 teams waiting, and in the early evening (around 5 pm) about 3 teams. The line moves fast: the 3 teams ahead of us cleared in about 5 minutes, so we got in right away.

It was so crowded when we went in that I couldn't take a photo of the whole interior, but it looked like it could seat about 10 parties of two. If you'd feel better with a reservation, go for Naver reservations!

Omil Hongdae set for two: what's in it

The Omil Hongdae set for two comes with daily omurice, spicy flat iron risotto, Omil soba maki (buckwheat noodle rolls) and 2 drinks. Omil's omurice is really famous... so I almost went for the Rubber Duck Omurice, which even comes with a rubber duck doll, but the basic omurice looked delicious too, so I stuck with the basic. The set for two looked great, so we ordered the set.

• Daily omurice
• Spicy flat iron risotto
• Omil soba maki
• 2 drinks

Drinks and service

Omil Hongdae brought the drinks out first! I liked that sparkling water was one of the drink options. The staff were really, really kind and checked on us attentively during the meal, which impressed me. If they heard something drop, they came right over to replace it, and they kept walking around to see if we needed anything~

The food came out in the order risotto → omurice → soba maki, and it didn't take long for everything to arrive; as we ate, they quickly brought the next dish. Lots of places call something a set for two and then leave you hungry, but Omil's set for two was really generous and filling, so I was satisfied 👍😆

Is the spicy flat iron risotto very spicy?

Omil's spicy flat iron risotto is listed as spicy, but by Korean standards it isn't spicy at all, and it's delicious. The amount of flat iron steak lives up to the menu name 👍👍

The best part was the finely chopped mustard salad (gyeojaechae) on top of the spicy flat iron risotto. Risotto can get a bit heavy partway through, but Omil tops it with tomato plus mustard salad, so it refreshes you every few bites, which I loved. It's the first time I've seen a place put mustard salad on top, and I'm only now finding out how good it is... 🥹

What does Omil's soba maki taste like?

The soba maki is cute too, Omil... 🥹 >-< Look at that face, isn't it too cute!

Omil's soba maki is a buckwheat noodle roll made with sweet Japanese-style rolled omelet and loads of cucumber. I already like buckwheat noodle rolls, so I was happy it was in the set~ Each piece is pretty big, but also soft, so even putting a whole piece in my mouth in one bite wasn't overwhelming, and it chewed gently. It was so good I wanted to take some home.

Is Omil's basic daily omurice any good?

As expected, at Omil you have to order an omurice...!! The quality of Omil's daily omurice is on another level. The egg is a vivid color and looks so appetizing, and I was moved by how it flows out when you cut it in half 🥹 The sauce was especially solid, and the egg + sauce + fried rice were all delicious!

Omil Hongdae overall verdict

If you're looking for a good pasta or omurice place near Hongik Univ. Station, I recommend Omil Hongdae!! You might think the taste can't be great when the look is this cute, but that's not the case at all: it was great on both taste and looks.