Daejeon solo bar with hourly seat rotation: Mullae Hanjan

Mullae Hanjan Solo Drinking Bar, Daejeon Bongmyeong Branch (문래한잔 혼술바 대전 봉명점) is a second-floor solo-drinking bar in Bongmyeong-dong, Daejeon, where seats are shuffled by lottery once an hour.

I've been checking out the new solo-drinking bars opening one by one in Bongmyeong-dong. This time, it was Mullae Hanjan.

To get straight to the point, this is not somewhere to drink quietly. Your seat does not stay the same, either.

Mullae Hanjan Bongmyeong Branch: location and seating atmosphere

It is 859 m from Exit 7, or about a 13-minute walk. It is right in the middle of Bongmyeong-dong's bar alley, so it is easy to find.

The bar is in Rooms 201 and 202 on the second floor. You have to take the stairs, and the sign is not very visible from the first floor.

Once you get upstairs, though, Bongmyeong-dong's neon lights pour in through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The window seats fill up first for that view.

It opens at 8 PM. The timing works perfectly if you come here for a second round after dinner.

Most of the seating is bar-counter stools. Everyone sits side by side in a single row.

A lit wooden shelf hangs on the wall in front of you, displaying whisky. Bottles such as Johnnie Walker Blue caught my eye.

More than 20 liqueur bottles line the work counter behind the bar. Each has a pour spout, so the staff are quick when orders come in.

There is a wireless lantern at every seat. The overall lighting is dim, with the lantern lighting only the area around your glass.

Even on a weekday night, the place was nearly full. Most guests looked to be in their 20s to early 30s.

Seat rotation every hour

The heart of this bar is its seat rotation. Every hour, a lottery is drawn and everyone's seats are completely shuffled.

When the time comes, an announcement is made and everyone picks up their drinks and moves according to the result. Suddenly, you are sitting among completely different people than you were an hour earlier.

At first, I wondered what this was all about. We had been sitting together, then suddenly got split up.

Once we had mixed, the awkward stretch was shorter than I expected. Everyone is in the same boat, so it starts with asking each other's names.

At one point, the whole bar raises their glasses. Even the table next to you, full of people you have never met, lifts a hand for a toast together.

That was when I understood why it is called a solo-drinking bar. Even if you come alone, someone will be sitting beside you within an hour.

Board games to break the ice

Board games are always set out. Right after the seats change, there is nothing better for breaking the ice.

Our table had a penguin ice-breaking game and a crocodile tooth-pulling game. A few boxes of card games were stacked beside them, too.

They are games I played in elementary school, but playing them while drinking makes them completely different. Everyone was deadly serious about breaking a single piece of ice.

We also played a game of placing wooden pieces one by one on top of a glass. Whoever knocks it over drinks, so the rules are simple.

When I tried it, it was sweet and went well with a stronger drink. They gave us refills, so we made it to a second bowl.

I also spotted a portable-battery rental machine near the entrance. You keep taking photos while moving between seats, so I could see that coming in handy.

Questions about visiting alone and parking

Can I really go alone?

There were actually several guests who had come alone. If anything, the rotation works best when you arrive solo.

Is there parking?

Since it is a bar in inner Bongmyeong-dong, I recommend taking the subway or a taxi.