Sejong Korean restaurant: octopus-shrimp stir-fry set, Bapkkot Hansang

I love hamburg steak, and I'm just as into tteokgalbi (grilled short rib patties)~ I heard there's a place in Sejong where you can have delicious tteokgalbi with a neat Korean meal spread, so I booked and went! Here's my honest review of Bapkkot Hansang, a Korean restaurant near Sejong Lake Park.

Bapkkot Hansang hours and parking

Bapkkot Hansang is open Mon–Sat 11:00-21:00, with a break from 15:00 to 17:00 and last order at 20:20. On Sundays it's open 11:00-15:00, with last order at 14:20.

🅿️ Parking is available on basement levels 1 and 2 of the building.

The restaurant is on the 3rd floor of Sejong Machi~

Was Bapkkot Hansang crowded at Chuseok holiday lunch?

It was the Chuseok holiday (Korean harvest festival), so I avoided the rush and arrived after 1:30~ Even after we sat down, customers kept coming in.

I had booked ahead, so a window seat was already set up for us~

Bapkkot Teukseon vs. Bapkkot Teukjeongsik: what's the difference?

The Bapkkot Teukjeongsik (₩30,000) is the Bapkkot Teukseon (₩25,000) plus stir-fried octopus and shrimp. Looking at the menu, it seemed many people have rice bowls for lunch, like the octopus shrimp rice bowl, minari (water dropwort) tteokgalbi rice bowl and herbal suyuk (boiled pork) rice bowl~

I had reserved the Bapkkot Teukseon, but I got curious about the Teukjeongsik, so I asked if I could switch and changed the order! haha Ordered the Bapkkot Teukjeongsik, ₩30,000, for 2 people ✔️

We arrived earlier than our reservation time, but the food still came out quickly ✨

First course of the Teukjeongsik: from salad to seaweed noodle japchae

A fresh lettuce salad with kiwi dressing warmed up the palate and helps prevent a blood sugar spike~

Buckwheat noodles topped with a perilla seed yogurt sauce(?) were fresh yet nutty, and different from anything I've had!

Tangy kimchi with soft, nutty tofu was just right for whetting the appetite~

And my personal favorite: japchae (stir-fried glass noodles) made with seaweed noodles!!

The seaweed noodles have a lovely crunchy chew, and they were well seasoned too, so I enjoyed them even more~

Dried zucchini and eggplant with rice cakes reminded me of gungjung tteokbokki (royal court-style tteokbokki). It wasn't strong at all, and with the perilla seeds it was mild and nutty!

Herbal pork belly suyuk, chicory salad and chive pancake

The herbal pork belly suyuk at Bapkkot Hansang was tender, with no gamey smell, and delicious~

This chicory(?) salad in particular was so tangy and spicy that it paired well with the suyuk, and it was also great just as a side dish, so I kept eating it even after the suyuk was gone🤤

And the chive pancake looked like an ordinary jeon, so I wasn't expecting much~!

But it was nutty and so delicious~ With the chili soy sauce, need I say more👍🏻

Full already, and then a whole baekban spread arrives

Classic Korean table... you're full and the side dishes keep coming❗️ I was already fairly full when suddenly a full Korean baekban (set meal of rice and sides) spread was laid out again...!? Even though these were side dishes rather than the main, nothing felt half-hearted, and you could taste the care in each one~

Fluffy, well-cooked rice,

and a rich anchovy-based ganggoenjang (thick soybean paste stew), a real rice thief. Plus a savory, clean-tasting doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew)...👍🏻 Even though I was stuffed, I ran short of rice!

The real main: minari tteokgalbi

Just as I was saying how full I was, the real main, minari tteokgalbi, showed up ✨ It comes out on a sizzling hot plate like a cast-iron pot.

Sweet-and-salty soy sauce, tender yet with just the right chew. One taste and it made room in my stomach that wasn't there before...

I ate the enoki mushrooms and onions alongside too🫶🏻

Is the octopus and shrimp worth upgrading to the Teukjeongsik?

The stir-fried octopus and shrimp added to the Teukjeongsik is more than I expected, but once you taste it you're glad you switched. Oh right! I switched to the Teukjeongsik midway... but the portion of stir-fried octopus and shrimp was bigger than I thought🥲 I was so full that I regretted it at first, okay? But. After. Tasting. I was glad I switched!

🦐 The shrimp were plump and popped with texture, and 🐙 the octopus was tender yet chewy, and the seasoning was so good, a total rice thief, seriously ㅠ I was full and trying to stick mostly to the main dishes, but the octopus and shrimp turned out so tasty that this rice lover wiped out her rice in a flash....🐷 I recommend the Teukjeongsik, which lets you taste the octopus and shrimp too, if you can manage it...😋

Parking registration and a walk at Sejong Lake Park

After eating at Bapkkot Hansang, just enter the last 4 digits of your plate number on the pad at the counter to register for 3 hours of free parking~! Taking a walk at nearby Sejong Lake Park afterward to digest was a perfect routine👍🏻

Getting to taste the octopus and shrimp with my last-minute menu switch made it an even more perfect meal haha I visited with high hopes for a good Korean restaurant, and it lived up to them, so I'll probably come back next time I'm in Sejong~! Bapkkot Hansang gets my approval as a Sejong Lake Park favorite~