Gyeongju samgyetang restaurant with acanthopanax pickles: Ogajeong

I'm writing up a post about Ogajeong Gamasot Samgyetang, a Dongcheon-dong, Gyeongju spot I visited over the weekend.

I went while out exploring Gyeongju — my friend, who's actually from Gyeongju, recommended it as a samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) place, haha.

First impressions and parking at Ogajeong Gamasot Samgyetang

Here's the outside of the restaurant, haha. My first thought was, this looks like the kind of place a lot of older gentlemen come to eat at...? Walking in, my suspicion turned into certainty, and after tasting the food, that certainty turned into gratitude, haha.

Even though I came pretty early in the evening, around 5pm, there were already quite a few cars in the parking lot, haha.

Walking in, I saw they're running a Gyeongju Big Eater event! Isn't the Gyeongju Mippi keyring so cute >.,< haha.

What to order: the herbal (acanthopanax) samgyetang

Here's the menu, haha. I got the herbal (acanthopanax) samgyetang 🫶🏻

The special menu items look like they'd be amazing with a drink. Why do I think that? Because the side dishes and the samgyetang itself were unbelievably good.

Why acanthopanax is worth ordering

The benefits of acanthopanax! Honestly, my grandfather used to make acanthopanax pickles for me when I was little, because back then I had a serious case of tiny acne bumps. I went to skincare clinics, dermatologists, oriental medicine clinics, tried esthetic cosmetics — nothing worked, it kept coming back every couple of weeks, and I even got to the point of avoiding people because of it. But after eating young acanthopanax leaves, haha, it cleared up like magic. Ever since then I've had zero aversion to the smell — if anything I love it, because it saved me.

Private rooms and who eats here

Even now as an adult, I always eat beef with acanthopanax pickles!!!!! Anyway, there are two or three private rooms, plus tables set up in a large hall area too.

Since they had a lot of reservations, I was led into a room that's mostly used for four-person seating, haha. There were more guests already inside than I expected, haha. They all seemed to be locals from Gyeongju — people stopping in for gatherings or dinner after work..!!

As for the benefits of acanthopanax, honestly I just know from personal experience, haha, that instinctively it's great for your health. I've loved it so much I've eaten it without checking the benefits for my whole 3x years of life... haha.

The broth and chicken: the best samgyetang so far

It arrived!!!! The broth... best samgyetang I've ever had, hands down. The chicken meat was tender, soft, delicate — also number one.

The acanthopanax pickle tasted just like my grandfather's, and the peppers and onions were so good I thought honey must be coming out of them, ugh, haha.

Look at this tender meat! For reference, I really dislike old hen meat — the chewiness bothers me and it makes my jaw hurt, haha. This was the exact opposite. It just melted away...!!!

My family cooks lightly seasoned without MSG, so whenever store-bought food has seasoning added, I can tell instantly — my mouth gets that sweet, heavy, coated feeling.

Here, either they used none at all or just a tiny amount. I'd guess the former — anyway, it was so delicious. That pure taste of the ingredients themselves — if someone said let's make the trip to Gyeongju just for this, I'd go, haha (it's a 6-hour round trip).

Clearing every side dish, acanthopanax pickles included

All my friends know I'm a small eater, haha. I've always had a small frame and a small appetite, and since I've run a blog since college, I've eaten out a lot — if something's not tasty, I'll chew it and spit it out, and once I'm full, I stop eating, no matter what. Naturally I only finish half a samgyetang and never touch the side dishes... but can you tell? Haha, this was just too good.

I'm not writing this way because it's a sponsored visit. I also paid part of the bill myself. Even looking at my other posts, a review this glowing is rare. Anyway, I really, truly recommend it. I'm not acquainted with the owner here, haha.

Thank you for such delicious, healthy food — and on the way out, elderly guests in suits kept stepping out of expensive foreign cars one after another, the lot was so full it ended in double parking, haha. Yep, this confirms it's a genuinely great restaurant, haha. Wealthy older folks showing up on a Friday night? That's the whole story. It's the ultimate measure of a good restaurant, and it's never once been wrong for me.