Gwanak Seoul bar for a hearty dinner: Hwarong Jujeom

My husband and I went to Hwarong Jujeom (화룡주점) on Sha-ro Street for dinner! From the name alone, it feels like a pub you would go to specifically for drinks, but the menu had lots of lighter dishes to have with alcohol, from gopdoritang (spicy chicken and beef intestine stew) to nabe, yukhoe, and suyuk jeongol. There were also so many options substantial enough to fill up properly from the very first stop.

Dinner, rather than drinks, was our purpose that day, and as we ate, my husband and I kept saying, “We should come here from the first stop, not the second, haha.”

Finding Hwarong Jujeom on Sha-ro Street and the atmosphere

The red neon sign really stands out as you walk along Sha-ro Street, so it was not hard to find. We went at night, and the lighting and neon sign out front really gave it that pub atmosphere, haha.

Large photos of the signature dishes are displayed at the entrance, so you can browse before going in! There was a much wider variety than I expected, including gopdoritang, pollock roe shrimp cream udon, Hwarong nabe, and a yukhoe set.

Once inside, the feeling from the exterior continues! With black tables, warm lighting, and assorted posters and props on the walls, it felt a little retro and nicely relaxed for drinks.

It does not feel like an overly formal restaurant—more like a place to meet friends, eat, and chat for a long time! There are tables for two as well as larger groups, so it looked good for dates, friend gatherings, or group visits. There was even a group of around ten people when we visited, but the tables were spaced out enough that it did not feel overly loud; everyone just blended into the softly lit atmosphere.

Most of all, we felt this is a good place for a quick snack on a second stop, but it is especially suited to people looking to settle in from the first stop and eat and drink properly!! I could not drink because I am pregnant, so we simply went for a meal, hahaha. Every dish was way too filling to call it just bar food, haha.

Pressure-Cooker Real Gopdoritang ordered by tablet

You can order from a tablet at the table. Photos make choosing easy, and there are so, so many menu items!!!! It is good value too: for two people, one main dish is almost enough for a full meal.

• Pressure-Cooker Real Gopdoritang ₩32,900
• Steamed rice
• Drinks

I did not drink that day and focused on the food, and to give the conclusion first: it did not feel awkward at all to come for dinner without alcohol. There are lots of alcoholic drinks too! They have highballs and makgeolli (Korean rice wine), so we decided we absolutely have to come back for drinks someday... (in two years...?).

Complimentary snacks and table setting

At a pub, the complimentary snacks are essential~~~

Along with the basic table setting, they brought little snacks to pick at, and I kept reaching for them while we waited for our food. These were seriously delicious...

Gopdoritang served in its pressure cooker

And then, today’s main event! Just as its name says, the gopdoritang arrives in the actual pressure cooker. I usually picture gopdoritang bubbling in a regular pot, so seeing a huge pressure cooker land on the table was pretty fascinating from the start, hahaha. Oh, this felt like a restaurant that really knows what it is doing.

A staff member opens the pressure cooker right at the table, and a burst of hot steam rises as the lid comes off. I recommend recording this on video rather than just taking photos!

Then we looked inside, and it was truly more generous than expected. There was chicken, potato, and beef intestines, but what I liked best was that all the chicken was boneless thigh meat!!! I did not even expect it to be boneless—and it was thigh meat too. The owner really gets it...

The meat was tender rather than dry, and it had absorbed the sauce well. Rather than being intensely, aggressively hot, the spice had a pleasantly sharp kick, so even I, someone who is not great with very spicy food, could keep eating it. And this sauce... goes so well with riceㅠㅠ

In the end, we ordered steamed rice to eat with it. With a little broth, chicken, and potato over the rice, it was a complete meal. Personally, if you order Hwarong Jujeom’s gopdoritang, I would recommend getting steamed rice too, haha.

A surprisingly generous amount of beef intestines

What surprised me most while eating was the amount of beef intestines! Even though it is called gopdoritang, I assumed it would be mostly chicken with only a few pieces of intestines, but they just kept appearing no matter how much we ate, haha.

“What is going on with this amount of intestines?”

I do not even know how many times my husband and I said that... The pieces were large too, with a satisfying chew, and their rich flavor worked beautifully with the sauce.

There was plenty of boneless chicken thigh as well as enough intestines that we never felt shortchanged, and the two of us ended up quite full.

A filling first stop on Sha-ro Street, even without drinks

Usually, when you think of a pub, you think of going after dinner as a second stop and ordering one light snack. But at Hwarong Jujeom, bar dishes such as gopdoritang, nabe, yukhoe, and jeongol are nearly as filling as full meals!!!!

It is perfectly fine to visit for dinner without drinks as we did, and if you come with friends, it looks ideal for starting here, eating heartily, and enjoying drinks slowly. So if you want a bar near Seoul National University Entrance Station where the food matters as much as the atmosphere, it is worth a visit! I especially recommend the pressure-cooker gopdoritang with boneless chicken thigh if you hate picking meat off bones :) Next time, we want to try the yukhoe or nabe dishes we saw at so many other tables, hahaha.