Cheonan Korean restaurant weekday lunch: self-bar bibimbap, tteokbokki

Where is Hwadeuro-ganggodeungeo Cheonan Main Branch in Baekseok-dong?

Hwadeuro-ganggodeungeo Cheonan Main Branch is at 46-5 Handeul 2-ro, Seobuk-gu, Cheonan-si, and it's open daily from 11:00 to 21:30. Weekday break time runs 15:30–16:50, last order is 14:50 and 20:50 on weekdays and 20:50 on weekends, and there's a restaurant parking lot.

A famous Korean restaurant in Baekseok-dong, Cheonan •• [Hwadeuro-ganggodeungeo] This place is so well-known that everyone in the area knows it — a genuinely popular spot packed with customers at lunchtime 💛 I was suddenly craving grilled fish, so I took my mom along.

It's even been on TV, so you know it's good..!

Even at an early weekday lunch the place was full of customers. The owner said today wasn't even that busy — normally there's a wait and even more people...!

What can you help yourself to at the self bar?

Hwadeuro-ganggodeungeo has its own self bar, so you can refill side dishes, bibimbap vegetables, tteokbokki, nurungji, and more as much as you like ✨

You can add bibimbap on top of a mackerel set here, so watch out, you could really overeat 💥 haha

What comes with the 43,000 won boyang set for two?

Boyang set for two, ₩43,000.

Even with so many customers, the food came out really fast. I ordered the boyang set for two and the whole table filled up completely..💛

This is how the basic side dishes come out — every single one was delicious. The japchae (stir-fried glass noodles) and lotus root especially were so good I went back for more a couple of times, ha.

Napa cabbage 🥬 I grabbed from the self bar — it's genuinely as big as your face. Wrapped around the fish it's amazing, everyone should try it.

There was noodle tteokbokki (stir-fried rice cakes with noodles) at the self bar? Couldn't just walk past that — tried it and it was so good.

You can choose brown rice or white rice — I went with white 🍚 The basic napa cabbage doenjang soup that comes with it is refreshing and really tasty too.

How were the grilled eel, flounder and mackerel?

Order the boyang set for two and you get a combination of pomfret stew, grilled eel, flounder, and mackerel — it's incredibly generous..🤎 How were the two of us supposed to finish all this!!!!!!

It looks a bit small in photos, but the grilled eel is honestly massive in person 🎣

It's also so plump and chewy, really delicious. Dab on some wasabi and dip it in the sauce 💥

The flounder and mackerel — words aren't necessary, honestly. Put them on white rice and it's a real rice-thief situation. If you've got no appetite, come here and you'll polish off a whole bowl in no time. Grilled mackerel isn't great when it's too salty, but this was mild and mellow, exactly to my taste. Even my mom, who hates salty food, loved it too haha. Wood-fired and so delicious — the texture was great too.

Self-bar bibimbap with gungchae (stem lettuce)

If I hadn't already been full, I'd have wanted a second bowl. There's a bibimbap (mixed rice) corner at the self bar, so I mixed myself a proper bowl. The vegetables were so good that even though I was full, I finished it all like a champ. I added gungchae (dried radish greens) into the bibimbap and the crunchy texture and flavor were fantastic. This place could make bank selling just the bibimbap ㅠㅠ

Does the braised pomfret taste fishy?

The broth itself was so good I was very satisfied eating the pomfret stew 🐟 It has a hairtail-stew kind of feel, but there's zero fishy smell — incredibly delicious.

The plump pomfret and bracken fern combo... goes so well together.

Dip it deep into the broth and eat it this way, it's so good — everyone should try the boyang set for two..💛