Sangsu Station ochazuke spot: solo eel bowl, ₩4,000 tempura at Ochaya

I was out wandering around Sangsu Station on my own and really wanted some good ochazuke (rice with broth poured over), so I stopped by Ochaya, a well-known ochazuke spot in the Hongdae and Sangsu area.

Where Ochaya is near Sangsu Station, and its hours

Ochaya is at 49 Wausan-ro 13-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, on the 2nd floor, and it's open daily from 11:30 to 20:30 (last order 19:50). Groups are welcome and you can reserve through Naver. There's no parking, but pets are allowed.

What is the atmosphere like at Ochaya?

The interior is done in wood tones, so it felt warm, comfy and cozy, haha

There are plenty of tables, and they're spaced generously, so it seems like a nice place to talk. There are also separate solo seats for people dining alone, haha

How to eat ochazuke

Each table at Ochaya has instructions on how to eat ochazuke. The key is to taste the rice and toppings before you pour in the broth.

• Before pouring the broth, taste the nutritious rice and toppings first
• Slowly pour the warm broth from the small flask over the rice
• Savor it one slow bite at a time together with the broth

What I ordered at Ochaya

• Unagi chazuke (eel ochazuke)
• Shrimp tempura (₩4,000)
• Kirin Ichiban (₩6,000)

How does the unagi chazuke (eel ochazuke) taste?

Ochaya's unagi chazuke comes with eel that's been soaked in sauce and lightly pre-grilled, along with nutritious rice, egg strips and wasabi. Wow, the look of this bowl is amazing..

The sauce-soaked eel comes out pre-grilled!!! With the nutritious rice, egg strips and wasabi, it's a perfect match. The eel is big, thick and sweet, so delicious, haha. It's tender and easy to eat, and the savory depth is amazing 😍

Is the shrimp tempura (₩4,000) worth ordering?

Ochaya's shrimp tempura is ₩4,000, with a plump shrimp inside a crispy coating. It's shrimp tempura!

The crunchy texture was so good, haha. The coating is crisp and the shrimp inside is thick, so the more I chewed, the more I felt that springy shrimp bite 😍 I highly recommend the shrimp tempura, please try it.

Kirin Ichiban bottled beer (₩6,000)

Ochaya sells Kirin Ichiban by the bottle for ₩6,000. I love beer, so I almost always order one, and here they sell Kirin draft beer as a bottled beer!

₩6,000 a bottle, what a bargain. Since it's a bottle, you can pour whenever you like, which I liked too. I poured a glass as soon as the food arrived, and it was crisp and cold, perfect with the meal.

The side dishes at Ochaya are kimchi and dried radish strips (mumalaengi).

The eel is really long, isn't it? •• 💛

I took a shot with everything together: the unagi chazuke (eel), shrimp tempura and Kirin Ichiban. Eel and shrimp tempura go together this well 💛 Doesn't it look so, so delicious? haha

How did I enjoy the unagi chazuke?

With Ochaya's unagi chazuke, I first ate the nutritious rice and eel as they were, then poured in the broth from the kettle. I wrapped the rice in seaweed, ate it with the eel, dipped it in wasabi 💛 and dipped the shrimp tempura in its sauce.

Look how plump that eel is ..💛 I want to eat it again 😭

The broth comes separately in a kettle, so eat the rice and eel as they are first, then pour in the broth and enjoy it that way, haha

Such plump eel!! 💛 It goes so well with the nutritious rice too, haha. Best of all, the eel is so tender you can cut it with a spoon!

Glossy, shiny unagi chazuke, I recommend this eel ochazuke ♡ And after finishing, a cold bottle of Kirin Ichiban,,,

Is Ochaya near Sangsu Station worth going back to?

This Japanese restaurant near Sangsu Station had a warm, cozy atmosphere, and the unagi chazuke with plump eel, the shrimp tempura and the Kirin Ichiban were all so delicious, haha. I recommend it for solo meals, friends, dates and eating out 💛 I was so happy with the unagi chazuke that now I'm curious about the other dishes. I'll have to go back and try more of Ochaya's menu, haha