Junggye-dong shabu-shabu restaurant for group dinners: Hana Shabu

Shabu-shabu in Junggye, shabu-shabu in Junggye-dong, shabu-shabu in Nowon — Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch.

What is going on with this weather ~ fall usually has some temperature swings, but did it really turn into winter overnight?! And it's only early September, come on >.< It's still been sunny and warm during the day these past few days with a nice cool breeze, but with this sudden cold I haven't even switched over my closet yet and I'm about to catch a cold.

This is exactly the kind of weather that makes me crave one particular dish !! Though honestly I love it in summer too haha

I usually enjoy shabu-shabu a lot, and on a chilly day like this it warms you right up, so I went to Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch =3

Where is Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch, and is there parking?

By subway, Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch sits between Junggye Station Exit 4 and Hagye Station Exit 6 on Line 7. It's at unit 101 in the Brownstone Junggye building, on a ground floor full of shops, right at the corner, so it's easy to find. (Underground parking is free for 2 hours.)

Is Hana Shabu Shabu right for a family gathering or a Nowon group dinner?

The inside of Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch feels upscale overall — I thought right away, this passes for a family gathering or a company dinner spot ! (And once I ate, the food backed it up too haha) I visited for an early lunch, so I got seated right away without a wait ^^

Shabu-shabu or seiro-mushi: how the Hana Shabu Shabu menu is split

Looking at the menu at Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch, it splits into two categories: shabu-shabu and seiro-mushi. Shabu-shabu is the one everyone knows ! Seiro-mushi is basically cypress-box steaming.

What's unusual is that it's further split into Basic, Course, and Premium. It's about whether you want it à la carte or as a full course, and seeing it laid out this way gives it a slightly fancier feel haha. The menu is also entirely different for lunch and dinner, which makes it easy to read.

Lunch hours and ordering rules at Hana Shabu Shabu

The lunch menu runs weekdays from 11:30 to 15:00 !! It's not one pot per person, so the table has to order the same menu — I do like seiro-mushi too, but you have to wait while it steams, and I didn't think I could handle that wait today, so I went with shabu-shabu instead lol

Basic set vs Course set: what's the difference?

The menu has to match across the table, but Basic and Course can each be ordered individually.

• Basic: meat + vegetables + udon
• Course: meat + vegetables + udon + meal + dessert
• With Course, you pick one meal item, and dessert is ube pudding

The starter salad and the table details

A simple salad comes out first to whet your appetite, and under the utensils there's a sheet explaining how to eat shabu-shabu — while I was skimming through it I noticed the wet tissues even had the restaurant's logo printed on them. The owner was kind and attentive, but it's these little details that add up to a sense of care and polish. That's when I thought, this really would work well as a Nowon dinner spot for a work gathering.

MSG-free broth and eight kinds of mushrooms

A little while later, the cast-iron pot was filled with broth, and a spread of vegetables and meat was set up. Even the meat, once ordered, got sliced right away — I could hear the slicing machine going in the kitchen — and that's why it looked so glossy and fresh!

First of all, I really loved that this shabu-shabu doesn't use MSG ! Sometimes you go for shabu-shabu specifically to eat healthy and tasty, but then afterward you get really thirsty or your stomach feels bloated ~ and that's when you realize, ah, the broth must have had a lot of seasoning in it >.<

There were way more mushroom varieties than the usual ones I eat ~ counting them, there were about 7?! Ah, maybe 8 if you count the white jelly mushroom too?! haha So it was fun to savor each mushroom's texture, flavor, and aroma one by one.

On top of the cold weather, my insides had been aching since morning — I kept wondering, is this my lungs or my kidneys — but as I ate something warm, healthy, and tasty I felt like I was slowly getting better... though really I think I just forgot the pain while eating lol

When the food is good, the pain slips away for a while lol. The owner even said the MSG-free broth would be good for that.

I told myself I was basically eating health right now, savoring it slowly and eating extra well >.< Even when you're sick, good food really does go down easily lol

Udon noodles and the complimentary tataki

Once you finish the shabu-shabu at Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch, it's time to add the udon noodles ! The broth itself is sweet and has a tsuyu-like base, so once the udon went in, it was every bit as good as a dedicated udon place lol

If you post a photo review, you get complimentary tataki — the owner torched it sizzling right in front of us, and with the spicy sauce added on top, it was really delicious ^^ After finishing off the complimentary tataki too... wow, I'm getting so full... and there's still the final meal course left lol

Gyudon to finish the course, ube pudding for dessert

For the course's meal choice, you pick between gyudon (beef rice bowl) and mentaiju (pollack roe rice bowl). The owner recommended the gyudon, so I went with that — it was piled high with beef >.< Finishing with gyudon instead of porridge felt hearty and satisfying too?! haha

And to finish, sweet ube pudding ~

There was a business-card-like item with a flower illustration by the entrance, and I picked one up — that pretty flower design left one more memorable impression of Hana Shabu Shabu. Between the care that goes into making it delicious without MSG and the owner's sense of style, this is a real Junggye favorite ! With its upscale atmosphere, taste, and service, this is a Junggye-dong shabu-shabu restaurant that works well for family gatherings or a Nowon work dinner too ^^

Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch hours at a glance

Hana Shabu Shabu Junggye Main Branch is open Monday through Sunday from 11:00 to 22:00, with last order at 21:00 and no break time. The address is 101 Brownstone Junggye, 29 Dongil-ro 203ga-gil, Nowon-gu, Seoul (Junggye-dong 506, ground floor unit 101).