Sunday night izakaya in Yeouido: chicken skewers, Robadayakki Sodam

Hi everyone, it's Somi ~

Yeouido has so many offices that it's also packed with izakayas, and I've lived here for about a year and a half, so I've been to quite a few. I can't name them all, but plenty of them charge more than the food quality deserves — this time, though, I found an izakaya that really nails its skewers!!

Let me introduce a skewer and grilled fish spot: Robadayakki Sodam Yeouido Branch.

Where is Robadayakki Sodam Yeouido Branch, and what are the hours?

Robadayakki Sodam Yeouido Branch is on the 1st floor of 17 Yeouidaebang-ro 65-gil, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, and it's open daily from 17:00 to 01:30 the next day. It's on the 1st floor of the Seorin Building near Saetgang Station.

Finding the entrance on the first floor of the Seorin Building

Robadayakki Sodam Yeouido Branch is on the 1st floor of the Seorin Building, but it can be a bit tricky to find. If you enter through the building's main entrance you'll need to circle around inside the retail area, or there's also a route from the back of the building — though I only discovered that on my way out after eating, so I'm not totally sure haha.

Inside Robadayakki Sodam: counter seats and partitioned tables

Inside Robadayakki Sodam Yeouido Branch, there are counter seats like this as well as table seats separated by partitions. I visited on a Sunday evening and it was still pretty crowded.

Yeouido is such an office-worker-driven area that a lot of places are closed or quiet on weekends, but even on a Sunday night this place was full of customers, which made me even more excited — must be a good one. I'd recommend booking through Naver Reservation before you go!

The menu and what we ordered at Robadayakki Sodam

From set menus that are great for groups, to single skewers, grilled fish, nabe (hot pot) dishes, aged sashimi, and fried items — basically every izakaya menu item you can think of, all here lol

Since this was our round two after already eating dinner elsewhere, I wanted to keep things simple, so I ordered like this.

• Chicken skewers 4pc, ₩8,500
• Bacon cheese rice cake skewers 3pc, ₩6,500
• Grilled Spanish mackerel, ₩21,000
• Hangover ramyeon, ₩9,000

(Looking at that list now, I'm not sure that counts as "simple"...)

A fried egg 🍳 came out as a complimentary starter — protecting the stomach lining before drinking (?) lol

I tried to order draft beer but got cut off, so we ordered Chungha instead haha. We also ordered Jinro but they mistakenly brought Chamisul, and instead of swapping it out they just popped the cap open right away ^^ So thanks to that, I got to have Chamisul again for the first time in a while, ㅜ

Skewers grilled right in front of the counter

At Robadayakki Sodam, once you order, they grill the skewers right in front of you like this. The smell is insane, and getting to watch it being grilled right there adds to the fun and makes you trust what you're eating.

Bacon cheese rice cake skewers, 3pc for 6,500 won

Bacon cheese rice cake skewers — I'd never seen this on a skewer menu before, so I had to try it. You can pretty much guess the flavor, but how could that combo not be good? Haha crisp outside, chewy inside, with savory cheese in the middle — basically an upgraded sotteoksotteok (sausage and rice cake skewer).

Chicken skewers, 4pc for 8,500 won

The chicken skewers were great, but what surprised me first was the portion. 4 pieces for 8,500 won is genuinely cheap compared to other izakayas, and the chicken quality really came through. There was none of that off smell or dryness you sometimes get with cheap chicken — it had a subtle smoky char and was cooked just right, so tender. There wasn't a separate dipping sauce, but the skewers themselves seemed to be seasoned, coming out spicy and salty.

Grilled Spanish mackerel, 21,000 won and served whole

The mackerel we'd been waiting for. After our order went in, I saw the staff take out a whole mackerel to grill, and I thought, okay, they'll grill it and then cut it into pieces for us... but nope, it came out whole lol. I'd ordered it as a simple side dish, so I was pretty taken aback. It definitely had less of a fishy taste than mackerel pike and was clean and delicious. Make a little wasabi soy sauce and dip it lightly — this might just be the ultimate diet-friendly drinking snack~~

Hangover ramyeon, 9,000 won

Since it was grilled dish after grilled dish, we added this hangover ramyeon. It was better than the seafood ramyeon I had in Yeongjong-do. Bean sprouts were in it too, giving it that refreshing, spicy kick — literally felt like it was sobering us up as we drank haha.

Is Robadayakki Sodam worth it? Final verdict

The staff at Robadayakki Sodam Yeouido Branch were all so friendly, and above all, the side dish quality was so good that I'm planning to come back for sure next time I'm in Yeouido. All the grilled dishes were delicious, so I want to try the nabe (hot pot) next time too!!

If you're looking for an izakaya or bar in Yeouido, I highly recommend giving Robadayakki Sodam a visit haha.