Hongdae Japanese restaurant with staff-pick sake tarako-don: Jongno

How do you get to Jongno Donburi Yeonnam from Hongik Univ. Station?

Jongno Donburi Yeonnam is a Japanese donburi (rice bowl) restaurant in a basement level at 9 Donggyo-ro 46-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, about 589m from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 3. I found it while looking for somewhere to eat in Yeonnam-dong.

Walking from Hongik Univ. Station into the Yeonnam-dong alleys, you'll find the restaurant tucked in a basement. The entrance is wood-toned from the start, which fit the vibe of the Yeonnam-dong alley pretty well.

Inside Jongno Donburi Yeonnam: seating and solo dining

Jongno Donburi Yeonnam has wood tables, warm lighting, and even bar-style seating, so it looked good for couples but also not intimidating for someone eating donburi alone. Once inside, the atmosphere was calmer than I expected.

Overall it felt cozy, which made it a nice place to eat slowly.

Sake tarako-don, the staff pick on a day the salmon aged well

I decided on the sake tarako-don on the staff's recommendation. I was still deciding what to order when the staff member told me the salmon had aged especially well that day and recommended the sake tarako-don. I went with it right away, and after tasting it, I was glad I listened haha.

It came with generously cut salmon, white pollock roe (myeongran), perilla leaf, scallion, and wasabi. The salmon wasn't sliced thin either — it had good thickness for picking up piece by piece.

Instead of mixing everything from the start, I tried placing a little salmon, white pollock roe, and wasabi on the rice bit by bit. Salmon + white pollock roe + wasabi + rice, all in one spoonful — pure bliss ♡

The soft texture of the salmon paired with the salty punch of the white pollock roe, and the wasabi cleaned it all up in the middle — the combination really worked.

The salmon was fine on its own, but personally I preferred it with both the white pollock roe and wasabi piled on. Once I ate it this way, I kept scooping up the same combination for the rest of the bowl. I understood why the staff specifically recommended the salmon that day.

Adding jumbo shrimp tempura to the order

Along with the sake tarako-don, I also ordered Jongno Donburi Yeonnam's jumbo shrimp tempura, since rice alone felt like it might not be enough. The moment it arrived, the long shrimp tempura pieces caught my eye first. The batter was still crispy, and it came with cabbage and sauce, which made a nice side to go with it.

Since the sake tarako-don was overall soft in texture, having a crispy piece of jumbo shrimp tempura in between worked well. A bite of salmon, then shrimp tempura, then back to a spoonful of rice with white pollock roe and wasabi — alternating between the two dishes I ordered made for a pretty filling meal.

Worth it for a salmon rice bowl in Yeonnam-dong?

If you're looking for a salmon rice bowl in Yeonnam-dong, I'd recommend the sake tarako-don at Jongno Donburi Yeonnam. Thanks to the staff's recommendation this time, my menu choice turned out very satisfying.

What stuck with me most was the combination of white pollock roe and wasabi with the salmon, rather than just eating it plain. If you like both salmon and myeongran, this combination will probably suit you well. Adding the jumbo shrimp tempura let me alternate between soft and crispy, so I was glad I ordered it alongside.

A good spot to try when you want a proper meal on a Yeonnam-dong date, or when you're near Hongik Univ. Station and craving a salmon donburi. If I visit again and hear the salmon is good that day, I'll probably pick the sake tarako-don again :)