Kelp vinegar eggplant bowl at new Cheonan Korean restaurant: Hyangtaek

Today I was craving a clean, mild meal, so I went to a place that just opened in Buldang-dong, Cheonan. It's called Hyangtaek.

📍 Hyangtaek

I found it while looking for Buldang-dong restaurants, and the menu was mostly Korean dishes that felt easy to eat any day, which I liked. It seemed like a good spot to visit on a day when I wanted a proper rice meal.

What Hyangtaek Cheonan Buldang Branch looks like inside

Since it's a newly opened spot, the interior at Hyangtaek Cheonan Buldang Branch was clean and tidy overall. Even the tables and dishware were neatly arranged, which put me in a good mood before the food even arrived.

Rather than being flashily decorated, it had a comfortable feel that let you focus on the meal, which I liked.

The three dishes we ordered at Hyangtaek

We ordered mackerel gondre rice, eggplant doenjang rice bowl, and pan-fried mushrooms.

The side dishes came out neatly arranged in ceramic bowls.

Mackerel gondre rice, eaten plain without sauce

First up, the mackerel gondre rice (boneless mackerel with gondre, a dried mountain vegetable, over rice). This was my favorite of everything I ate that day. You mash up the mackerel and mix it with the gondre rice — it's tasty seasoned with the sauce, and also good wrapped in gim (dried seaweed).

But for me, eating it plain — just the mackerel and gondre rice's own flavor, without adding anything else — was the best way. It was mild yet had a subtle, savory mackerel flavor, and gondre's distinct aroma matched well. It wasn't strongly seasoned at all, but the rice kept going down easily, and I thought it had been a while since I'd had such a genuinely delicious meal.

What kelp vinegar does to the eggplant doenjang rice bowl

The eggplant doenjang rice bowl was interesting too. You mash the eggplant and eat it with rice, and adding a little kelp vinegar gave it a whole different flavor. I tried it plain first, then added a bit of kelp vinegar, and the tangy note completely changed the feel of the dish.

If you usually like eggplant, this is worth trying. The savory flavor of the doenjang (soybean paste) combined with the eggplant's soft texture made this another easy, mild dish to eat.

The mushroom pancake we added as a side

And the pan-fried mushrooms we ordered like a side dish. The savory umami hit as soon as I took the first bite. The mushrooms' own flavor came through while blending well with the seasoning, and it went great with rice. I thought of it as just a side dish, but it turned out to have more presence than expected.

On weekdays they're also running a review event that gives a free plate of pan-fried mushrooms, so it's worth knowing if you're planning a visit.

When you want mild Korean food in Buldang-dong, Cheonan

There are days when you want your meal a little milder and cleaner. This is a place that would come to mind on those days. The mackerel gondre rice was fun to eat with sauce or wrapped in gim too, but I still liked it best plain, in its own mild flavor. If you want a healthy meal instead of something spicy, and you're after clean Korean food, this is worth a visit.

Parking at Hyangtaek Cheonan Buldang Branch

For parking, you can use the building's parking lot, and it was easy to get out after eating, so parking wasn't a worry. Since it's newly opened, the space was clean and the food was neat, making it a spot worth remembering when you want a clean Korean meal in Buldang-dong.