Dangsan Station izakaya for beef brisket sukiyaki with noodles: Kaken

Kaken A great-vibe, great-tasting izakaya near Dangsan Station 🤍 Address: 237 Dangsan-ro, 1F 101ho, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, South Korea 🤍 Hours: Sun–Thu 17:00–2:00 (next day), Fri–Sat 17:00–4:00 (next day) 🤍 Reservations available, separate men's/women's restrooms

I went to a new izakaya near Dangsan with a great atmosphere! If you're looking for a Dangsan Station bar with good vibes and good food, I'd recommend this one.

How to walk to Kaken from Dangsan Station Exit 2

Kaken is right near Dangsan Station, where line 2 and line 9 meet. Taking Exit 2 gets you there the fastest. It's a great spot when you want a drink after work, or whenever you're looking for a good place near Dangsan Station.

It's a bit tucked into an alley. Once you turn into the alley with that sign, you'll spot the izakaya right away!

Looks like the daily special changes every day. The day I visited, it was geumtae (golden threadfin bream).

Inside Kaken: counter seats and the outdoor-style table

This is the inside of Kaken, the great Dangsan Station izakaya. It felt really cozy. There were about 8 counter seats facing the cooking area, plus 2-top and 4-top tables.

The cooking area is open like this, which makes for more to watch and gives it a trustworthy feel.

And here there was one table that felt semi-outdoor — indoor-ish but outdoor-ish, kind of like a yajang (outdoor drinking tent) vibe. You've got to make the most of this kind of weather, right? So I decided to sit here.

What's on the Kaken menu: grilled fish, skewers, nabe hot pots and sake

This is Kaken's menu. It was broadly divided into mixed sashimi, grilled fish, and skewers. Grilled fish isn't easy to make at home, but here you could try a variety — geumtae, mero (Patagonian toothfish), rockfish, mackerel, horse mackerel, shishamo, and more.

The skewers came in so many varieties too — negima (chicken and scallion), heart, chicken skin, chicken tenderloin, chicken cartilage, shrimp, bacon-wrapped tomato, king oyster mushroom, garlic, ginkgo nut, tsukune, and more. If you can't decide, ordering the 10-skewer assortment seems like a good move.

There was also a wide range of fried dishes, hot pots, cooked dishes, and sides. Sasami (chicken tenderloin) tempura and karamiso motsu nabe (spicy miso offal hot pot) seemed to be the signature dishes since they were marked with stars. Futomaki, abalone guts pasta, uni cream pasta, whole steamed squid — all the dishes looked delicious too. Plus a wide range of sake, soju/beer, and highballs that pair well with everything above!

I don't know much about alcohol, but the sake varieties were introduced like this. The descriptions were detailed enough that it seemed easy to pick something that would pair well with the food on offer.

Heart, chicken tenderloin and tsukune skewers with a Suntory highball

What we ordered at Kaken was the beef brisket sukiyaki, three kinds of skewers (heart, chicken tenderloin, tsukune), and a Suntory highball. I like eating a variety of things, so this kind of skewer place is really my thing. Being able to pick and choose whatever you like is the best part!

Both the heart and chicken tenderloin had zero funky smell, weren't chewy at all, and were delicious.

Then came the tsukune! One of my favorite skewer menu items. It had a bit of a tteokgalbi (Korean-style short rib patty) feel to it and was really tasty. I shared it with the friend I went with, and they loved it too.

You can't have this kind of anju (drinking snack) without a drink. I ordered a highball that paired well with the day's menu.

Beef brisket sukiyaki at Kaken: always add the noodles

Kaken's beef brisket sukiyaki is exactly the dish for when the night gets cooler. And now that nights are getting a bit chilly, a hot bubbling broth hits the spot perfectly. Doesn't it look amazing, bubbling away like that? A flavor that isn't too strong but that you never get tired of.

Oh, and you can add noodles, so I tried that too! I highly, highly recommend this. The noodles are genuinely delicious and go so well with the broth. No flour smell at all, and they come already fully cooked, so you can dig in right away.

I want to go back just for these noodles. I'll have to visit again once it gets a bit chillier. That was Kaken, an izakaya I recommend for anyone looking for a good spot near Dangsan Station.