Restaurants in Hongdae, Seoul: late Saturday gomtang at Doonjeong

I was out in Hongdae and stopped by Doonjeong, a hearty Hongdae restaurant, for some hanwoo (Korean beef) gomtang (beef bone soup). Between the good-value clear gomtang and the spicy yang gomtang, I got a proper recharge — and this isn't just a quick, simple bowl-of-soup spot. Doonjeong's menu ranges from meat-packed gomtang to hot pots, boiled meat platters, and pancakes, so it works just as well for a meal as it does for drinks.

Where is Doonjeong Hongdae, and how long is the late Saturday wait?

Doonjeong is a Hongdae restaurant about a five-minute walk from Hongik University Station Exit 1. Since it's tucked into an alley, parking is tough. It's technically a soup restaurant, but the space itself is clean with a wood-toned interior. Even though we came late on a Saturday, there were plenty of customers, and it was busy enough that we had to wait.

There were families, foreign visitors, and tables of women dining together — clearly a menu that works for anyone. And the owner was so kind that I still remember it, haha.

Doonjeong's menu: gomtang, hot pots, boiled beef and pancakes

Doonjeong's menu centers on hanwoo gomtang, with clear gomtang, spicy hanwoo gomtang, sseuji (beef tendon) gomtang, chadol (brisket) gomtang, and spicy hanwoo yang (tripe) gomtang, among others. Beyond the soups, there's hanwoo hot pot, hanwoo gopchang (tripe) hot pot, seasoned meat, boiled meat, yukhoe (beef tartare) bibimbap, shrimp minari (water celery) pancake, and meat-kimchi pancake — plenty of options that work well for a meal with drinks.

Doonjeong says every dish uses 100% domestic ingredients, including hanwoo (Korean beef) from female cattle. No wonder it's been picked for the Blue Ribbon Survey in both 2025 and 2026. This time, the two of us ordered spicy hanwoo yang gomtang (regular), clear hanwoo gomtang (regular), and shrimp minari pancake.

Clear hanwoo gomtang, regular size — how much beef is in the bowl?

What I ordered was the clear hanwoo gomtang. Even in the regular size, there was a lot of meat. Sometimes with gomtang you get more broth than meat, which can be a bit disappointing, right? At Doonjeong, even the regular size comes with plenty of meat.

One bowl left me pretty full. The broth was on the clear side with no gamey smell, and it felt clean. The greasiness that gomtang can sometimes leave behind didn't linger in my mouth, and afterward my stomach felt refreshed rather than heavy.

Napa cabbage kimchi instead of kkakdugi (radish kimchi)

The secret to a good gomtang or gukbap (soup with rice) place is the kimchi!! The kkakdugi (radish kimchi) paired well with the gomtang too, but personally, the napa cabbage kimchi was more my style. A spoonful of clear gomtang followed by a bite of kimchi made for a perfectly balanced meal.

How spicy is Doonjeong's spicy hanwoo yang gomtang (tripe soup)?

My husband likes spicy broth, so he ordered the spicy hanwoo yang (tripe) gomtang. There's also a spicy hanwoo gomtang without tripe, so if you're not a fan of tripe, order that one instead. Gomtang comes in regular and large sizes, and we both went with regular.

Even the regular size was more generous than expected. The spicy broth wasn't aggressively hot — more of a sharp, savory heat than a burning spice. It wasn't the chemical, capsaicin-style spiciness but a natural, brisk kick, which I actually liked. With hot broth, rice, meat, and tripe together, it was filling enough that I think it'd make a great lunch option too.

Shrimp minari pancake: how much shrimp and minari (water dropwort)?

Gomtang alone felt like it wasn't quite enough, so we ordered the shrimp minari (water celery) pancake too. Inside, there are small shrimp cut into roughly three pieces each — and there was more shrimp than I expected!!

The minari was really generous too, so one bite brought a burst of minari fragrance. It wasn't overly greasy or heavy, and dipping it into the soy sauce mix with chili and onion that came alongside made it even better with its crisp bite.

Ordering the shrimp minari pancake alongside the gomtang to share, rather than gomtang alone, was better value and let us try more variety. They also have traditional liquor and makgeolli (rice wine), which would go great with the shrimp minari pancake, haha.

Is Doonjeong Hongdae worth the wait? Final verdict

The hanwoo gomtang I tried at Doonjeong, a Hongdae restaurant, was good value and satisfying. If you're looking for a clean, filling lunch or a Korean dish to go with drinks, try the hanwoo gomtang alongside the pancake and boiled meat.