Korean restaurant near Daegu Haany Univ, Gyeongsan: Bapeul Jitda

A Gyeongsan hanjeongsik (Korean set-meal) restaurant good for treating someone special: "Bapeul Jitda"

Lately, when eating out, sometimes I crave a neat hanjeongsik spread with lots of side dishes rather than something spicy or heavy. Today I visited Bapeul Jitda Gyeongsan Main Branch, right next to Daegu Haany University. It's also close to Yeungnam University — about 10 minutes by car. The roads are good so it's easy to get to. I heard it was recently featured on the TV show Oh Jung-yeon's Oh! Good Day, in a segment called "Gukju's One Ladle." I was so excited going in!

Hours and location

Hours 11:00-21:00 / Last order 20:00 / Closed on Chuseok holiday

It's on a somewhat out-of-the-way road, not a tourist spot, but the place has a lot of regulars. There's a zoo nearby called Neighborhood Otter where you can interact with otters, so it could be a nice visit with kids too.

It's right by the roadside so it's easy to find.

Parking is always the biggest worry wherever you go, but Bapeul Jitda has a large parking lot, which makes it great for group bookings and gatherings.

Interior atmosphere, rooms, and group seating

Walking in, the exterior is clean, but the interior is also really clean and spacious, which I loved.

The spacing between each table is wide, which made dining really comfortable.

Bapeul Jitda has separate private rooms like this,

and it can also accommodate really large groups like this.

Menu and order

There are set menus organized by season — spring, summer, autumn, winter — plus kids' pork cutlet, kids' abalone porridge, and baby rice, making it good for family gatherings. It seems like a great stop for lunch after taking the kids to Neighborhood Otter.

Order: Autumn 1-person set x1, Winter 1-person set x1

There's also a review event running right now, so join in if you can.

What's in the autumn and winter 1-person sets

Beef brisket mushroom hot pot. It's loaded with various mushrooms and beef brisket. If you cook it too long it gets salty, so eat it hot right after a quick simmer for the best taste.

Seasonal salad. Egg, bacon, puffed brown rice, and vegetables, topped generously with cheese.

Chilled pork. I heard it's Korean pork shoulder — the meat wasn't dry at all, really tender.

Fried eggplant. I really love fried eggplant, and this was totally crispy! The sauce was sweet and tangy — so good.

Gopchang gim (seasoned seaweed) and kkosiraegi (seaweed fusiforme). Wrap the kkosiraegi in the gopchang gim and dip it generously in chojang (vinegar chili sauce).

Steamed abalone. Underneath there's geujang (abalone innards sauce) mixed with barley.

Grilled deodeok (bellflower root). Grilled with a gochujang-based marinade.

The cheese potato balls I got from the review event — crispy outside, soft inside, really good. Super crunchy.

Abalone porridge, included in the autumn set.

Hijiki bibimbap, included in the winter set.

Receiving the full table

Finally, the whole table arrived, full. Overall there's a great variety of dishes and the spread itself comes out generous. I think the charm of a good Gyeongsan hanjeongsik spot is being able to try, in small portions, a wide variety of dishes you'd rarely prepare all at once at home.

The beef brisket mushroom hot pot is also generous. Dip it in the special sauce and it's impossible not to like.

The tender chilled pork, wrapped with the accompanying sauce, has zero dryness — completely soft. Since Daegu Haany University and Yeungnam University are nearby, I think parents would really enjoy being brought here.

Eating the barley rice with geujang together with the abalone gives an incredibly soft, springy texture, haha. Each dish harmonizes really well together, which I loved.

The grilled deodeok looks bright red like it'd be spicy, but it isn't spicy at all. Overall, Bapeul Jitda doesn't over-season, so it's not harsh or spicy at all for kids, parents, or elders to eat.

Live abalone porridge and hijiki bibimbap

The live abalone porridge is packed with the innards, so it's savory and really rich.

If you're feeling sick, a bowl of this abalone porridge could probably make the pain disappear, haha. There are plenty of Gyeongsan restaurants and hanjeongsik spots, but I heard many regulars still come all the way out to this out-of-the-way location — and now I understand why.

The hijiki bibimbap is packed with hijiki and various vegetables, so it should be good for your health too. The overall flavor is on the mild side; if you want more seasoning, just add more paprika gochujang. I wanted to taste the ingredients as they were, and the mild flavor was fine, so I just ate it plain, haha.

There's perilla oil with olives mixed in, which adds a nice savory taste too. If you're looking for a clean place to eat in Gyeongsan, or a Gyeongsan restaurant to visit with your parents, Bapeul Jitda seems like a really solid choice.

The cheese potato balls from the review event were also great dipped in the special sauce. The whole time I was eating, I felt like I was eating something healthy. I really ate well and got full — honestly I almost burst, haha.

If you're building an outing course

With Daegu Haany University, Yeungnam University, and Neighborhood Otter all nearby, Bapeul Jitda would make a great dining stop when planning an outing or a drive course. Among Gyeongsan's hanjeongsik restaurants, this is a place where you can eat a healthy meal. It's not high-end hanjeongsik, but the clean interior and neat dishes make it something anyone can enjoy without pressure, while still feeling well taken care of. The whole meal made me think, "I should bring my parents here next time." It seems like a restaurant that brings out each ingredient's own unique charm through healthy cooking rather than heavy seasoning. Maybe that's why, even though I was really full, I didn't feel bloated or heavy at all afterward. Highly recommend it to anyone looking for a Gyeongsan restaurant or hanjeongsik spot. I'm definitely going back — planning to visit again soon, haha.