Izakaya near Hoegi Station: Shin-chan okonomiyaki, Hamaru Hoegi

Today I came to introduce a truly next-level okonomiyaki spot. This is Hamaru Hoegi, well known as an izakaya in the Hoegi bar scene — a place with amazing flavor hiding behind a cute drawing, and it has a huge following of regulars. Shall we take a closer look at what it's like?

Where is Hamaru Hoegi and what are its hours?

Hamaru Hoegi is an izakaya located at 11 Gyeonghuidae-ro 1-gil, 1st floor, Hoegi-dong 60-50, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. It's open from 17:00 to 02:00, and until 03:00 on Fridays and Saturdays. Naver Reservation is also available.

How to walk to Hamaru Hoegi from Hoegi Station

As you can see, Hamaru Hoegi isn't too far from the subway station. On a nice day like today, it's a perfect distance to walk, and there's plenty to look at along the way. Or you could just take a bus one stop from right in front of the station.

Inside Hamaru Hoegi: mood, tables and counter seats

The inside of Hamaru Hoegi is mainly wood interior, with about 7 tables plus indoor and outdoor counter (dachi) seats. It had a very clean, uncluttered feel that was really well organized, so my first impression was quite good.

Above the tables, cute figurines and stylish bottles are lined up, which really suited the izakaya character of the place. The overall mood and interior were very much to my liking. For reference, there were about 7 tables set up, plus both indoor and outdoor counter seats, so you could use whichever felt comfortable.

What's on the menu at Hamaru Hoegi?

The Hamaru Hoegi menu can be seen all on one laminated sheet, featuring yakitori, soba, mentaiko dishes, nabe hot pot, and more. Since the image quality might not come through well in one shot, I photographed it in sections.

I only mentioned okonomiyaki earlier, but as an izakaya they have a wide variety of dishes — yakitori, soba, mentaiko dishes, nabe, and more. The Hamaru 8-skewer and 5-skewer omakase sets let you enjoy yakitori at a lower price, so nearly every customer seems to order one of these.

How did the okonomiyaki and 5-skewer yakitori omakase taste?

That day I ordered the okonomiyaki and the 5-skewer yakitori omakase at Hamaru Hoegi. The yakitori omakase came with mentaiko tenderloin, chicken wings, thigh-leek skewers, king oyster mushroom, and cherry tomato. Shall we go check out the food through video and photos?

First off, that Crayon Shin-chan drawing on the okonomiyaki catches your eye, right? Haha! They even detailed the hair, which was so cute. And for the 5-skewer yakitori omakase, they gave us mentaiko tenderloin, chicken wings, thigh-leek skewers, king oyster mushroom, and cherry tomato — doesn't the grilled finish look perfect? Whichever way you look at it, the visuals were all excellent.

You're wondering about the taste? At first the okonomiyaki looked like it had a lot of sauce, and I thought 'won't this be greasy?' But not at all — it was light and delicious. That amount of sauce turned out to be just the right amount, haha.

The yakitori was grilled so well that each type had a noticeably different texture and flavor, and the smoky char came through exactly right, so I kept gasping with every bite. With the okonomiyaki and yakitori this good... I naturally craved a drink, so I couldn't resist an Asahi draft beer, haha. That's how good it was.

Is Hamaru Hoegi worth a second visit?

I already thought the mood was great from the moment I stepped in, and beyond that great atmosphere, the food itself was on point too, which made it even better. The overall pricing was reasonable and the owner was very kind, so I think I'll definitely be back.

If you love izakayas, this is a place you'll be more than satisfied with. Even if you're not going today, save it on Naver Maps and make sure to check it out sometime.