Suseongmot Japanese spot for hot days: tendon & cold udon, Ongijeong

Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch

Where is Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch for lunch after a Suseongmot walk?

Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch (온기정 수성못점) is a Japanese restaurant at 1F, 9 Suseongmot 6-gil, Suseong-gu, Daegu, South Korea, a perfect spot to drop into right after a walk around Suseongmot. I'd been wandering the lake and wondering where to have lunch, and this is where I ended up.

I love tendon, so I'd had this place saved for a while, and after actually going I get why so many people come.

If you're looking for a tidy place to eat near Suseongmot, I totally recommend it! Anyone hunting for Japanese food around Suseongmot, keep this one on your radar! It's just so well placed for after a lake walk.

It's close to Suseongmot, so access is great, really great. The lake is famous as a date and family outing spot, right? I took a short walk before eating, and the route was so convenient. There are plenty of cafés and restaurants around, but if you like Japanese food, you'll definitely love this.

The exterior looked clean and modern and was easy to spot as I walked by. At lunchtime customers kept coming in steadily, so yes, a proper Suseongmot Japanese favorite :)

What is the atmosphere like at Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch?

The interior is wood-toned, neither flashy nor over-decorated, so it's a comfortable place to eat. Stepping inside, the wood-toned interior really left an impression.

The tables were spaced nicely, and the crowd was a mix: solo diners, groups of friends, and families.

So whoever you go with, the mood feels easy and relaxed~

The staff were friendly too, so I was happy with the place from the first impression. Looking over the menu, I picked the tendon I most wanted to eat, and

the cold bukkake udon (cold udon noodles served with concentrated broth poured over), which seemed just right for the hot weather.

Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch menu

How are the tempura and sauce in the Ongijeong tendon?

The tendon here is a rice bowl generously topped with shrimp tempura, assorted vegetable tempura and seaweed tempura, with a sweet-salty sauce soaked just right into the rice. It was the dish I was most looking forward to that day, and it satisfied me from the looks alone.

The bowl was piled with shrimp tempura, assorted vegetable tempura, seaweed tempura and more,

and it looked so tempting that I ended up taking a bunch of photos first.

One bite and the crunch of the tempura was sooo good.

The batter wasn't overly thick, so it wasn't greasy and the texture of each ingredient really came through. The shrimp in particular had a plump, bouncy bite, and the more I chewed the nuttier it got. The best!

What matters in tendon is not just the tempura but the harmony of sauce and rice. Thanks to the sauce soaked just right into the rice, I could enjoy it to the very end. The sweet, salty sauce blends so well with the rice that it'd be tasty even with the rice alone, no tempura.

As I ate, I understood why so many people call it the Suseong-gu tendon spot. The tempura portion is generous too, so I was properly full afterward! If you like tendon, I highly recommend it.

Should you order cold bukkake udon with the tendon on a hot day?

The cold bukkake udon here has a chilled broth with a thin layer of ice on top and chewy noodles, and it works well alongside the tendon. The udon I ordered with it was so good, ordering it together was a stroke of genius~

The cold broth and bouncy noodles were really charming. The thin layer of ice made it look refreshing just sitting there, and with the first bite the heat vanished.

The noodles were chewy and springy, and the more I chewed the nuttier they tasted, top-notch.

The broth wasn't too salty or harsh, centered on a clean savory depth that's easy to eat. And above all, how well it pairs with the tendon? Need I even say~~

After the crunchy, rich tendon, a bite of cold bukkake udon cleans up your whole mouth!

Thanks to that, I never got tired of it and enjoyed it all the way to the end.

With the weather heating up these days, I really recommend ordering the cold udon too :)

Verdict on Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch

Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch is the place that comes to mind when you want a neat Japanese lunch around Suseongmot. The first thought as I walked out was "I want to come again."

There are so many restaurants around Suseongmot, but for anyone looking for a lunch spot to eat rice there, I highly recommend it! It's fine to visit alone, and also a good mood for friends, family or a partner. The location good for a meal after a lake walk, the clean interior, the satisfying food quality: well balanced overall, don't you think?

• Tendon with impressively crisp tempura
• Refreshing, clean-tasting cold bukkake udon
• Great location for after a Suseongmot walk
• Comfortable, tidy interior
• High satisfaction as a lunch spot

If you're looking for Japanese food near Suseongmot, give Ongijeong Suseong Lake Branch a visit. If you like tendon like me, especially. A Suseong-gu tendon spot with irresistibly crisp tempura, I'll be back :)