Kalguksu in Dongseong-ro, Daegu with whole chicken: Donggok Jemyeon

A hot bowl of house-made kalguksu in Dongseong-ro

After work, I was wondering what to eat, and that day I was craving a hot noodle dish, so I visited Donggok Jemyeon Daegu Dongseong-ro Main Branch (동곡제면 대구동성로본점). I’d been curious about this place because it uses freshly made noodles prepared in-house, and I finally got to try it!

Broth matters in kalguksu (knife-cut noodles), of course, but noodle texture is really important to me too. If you’re looking for a neat, satisfying meal in Dongseong-ro, take note!

Parking support when using a Dongseong-ro parking lot

If you’re driving, there’s no need to worry about parking. The restaurant does not have its own lot, but it offers parking support when you use a nearby Dongseong-ro parking lot. After your meal, tell the counter and you’ll get ₩1,500 toward 30 minutes of parking; the additional charge is ₩500 per 10 minutes.

The interior was more spacious and tidy than I expected, which I liked. There were quite a few people dining alone too.

Each table had a tablet ordering system, so it was easy to check the menu and order. It also had a prepayment option, which looked convenient since you don’t have to call over a staff member.

Kalguksu and dishes to share alongside it

The signature options included Korean beef bone broth kalguksu for ₩11,000, yukgaejang (spicy beef soup) kalguksu for ₩12,000, ultra-concentrated chicken kalguksu for ₩13,000, and chogye mixed kalguksu for ₩11,000. If kalguksu alone feels a little incomplete, there was also a seafood chive pancake for ₩15,000, seasoned chicken for ₩9,500, and boiled pork gabrisal, so there were plenty of good sides to add.

Ultra-concentrated chicken kalguksu ₩13,000 Korean beef bone broth kalguksu ₩11,000 Seafood chive pancake ₩15,000

Choose between standard and thin noodles

You can choose the noodle thickness too. When ordering, you can pick either standard noodles or thin noodles, so you can go with what you like. I prefer noodles with a moderately thick, chewy bite, so I ordered the standard noodles.

There was a receipt review event going on too. They said they’ll give you sweet-and-tangy seasoned chicken for free if you write a review.

The basic side dishes came out nicely too, haha. There was kimchi and seasoned peppers that went well with the kalguksu—just the right pairing for a noodle dish.

Every table was stocked with pepper, salt, and a special salt for dipping the chicken.

Ultra-concentrated chicken kalguksu with a whole chicken

The ultra-concentrated chicken kalguksu I ordered came out first. A whole chicken was in the bowl, so it looked generous from the start.

I started with the broth. It had a rich chicken-broth flavor but still tasted light and clean. Adding a little minced garlic made it even better, with an extra layer of garlicky aroma.

The chicken had a good amount of meat on it, and when I pulled some off with my chopsticks, it was much more tender than I expected. The meat was moist and soft, perfect with the noodles and broth. The chicken itself was mild too, so it went really well with the rich broth.

Maybe because the noodles are made in-house, but the texture was definitely excellent. I ordered the standard noodles, and they were nicely thick with a chewy bite. The broth clung well to them too, so every mouthful carried the flavor of the soup, which made it even tastier.

You really have to eat kalguksu with kimchi, haha. The kimchi was seasoned with a nice kick, and it was a perfect match for the mild chicken kalguksu.

Korean beef bone broth kalguksu simmered for 20 hours

My friend ordered the Korean beef bone broth kalguksu, and I heard the broth is made with Korean beef bones simmered for 20 hours. I tried the broth first, and it had that deeply savory yet mild flavor distinctive to bone broth. It wasn’t overly heavy or greasy, though; it was clean enough that I kept going back for more spoonfuls.

Picking up a tender piece of meat with the chewy noodles and having it all with the broth in one bite made the flavor feel even richer.

The meat wasn’t tough at all—it was tender and great with the noodles.

A seafood-loaded chive pancake

The seafood chive pancake we ordered came out too, and it was packed with seafood from the look of it. Plump shrimp and squid were generously tucked between the chives, so seafood kept coming along with every piece I picked up.

It came with chojang (sweet-and-tangy red chili dipping sauce) and soy sauce too.

The shrimp were especially bigger than I expected—plump enough that you really noticed them in one bite—and the squid had a lovely chewy texture too. If you like seafood, definitely order the seafood chive pancake.

They also had yogurt prepared so everyone could grab one after the meal, haha.