Euljiro tteokbokki restaurant with fried rice finish: Hyeonseoni-ne

Hi, it's Babi, back from eating some seriously good instant tteokbokki! This is an old-school tteokbokki spot in Euljiro.

Where is Hyeonseoni-ne Cheonggye Instant Branch, and when is it open?

Hyeonseoni-ne Cheonggye Instant Branch 112 Namdaemun-ro, 1st floor, Jung-gu, Seoul - Hours Weekdays 10:40–21:00 *Regular closed days: Saturday, Sunday

It's an old-school tteokbokki restaurant in Euljiro, just a one-minute walk from Exit 3 of Euljiro 1-ga Station on Line 2.

If you look inside the building with the big Mega Coffee sign, you'll see it's packed with people — that's Hyeonseoni-ne Cheonggye Instant Branch!

What is the restaurant like, and how long is the wait?

Inside, Hyeonseoni-ne Cheonggye Instant Branch has a bit of that old-school, bustling energy. The space isn't huge, but there are tables tucked into every corner, so we got seated sooner than expected! Since orders are taken in advance, the food arrives right after you sit down, so the turnover seemed pretty good too.

How to order at the entrance kiosk

The ordering kiosk is near the entrance! If you're eating in and there's a wait, staff will guide you first, and you order and wait from there.

This old-school Euljiro tteokbokki spot, Hyeonseoni-ne, has everything from basic tteokbokki, fried snacks, and sundae (blood sausage) to instant tteokbokki and alcohol like draft beer... and the prices were great too! A proper snack bar.

Since they serve alcohol, we actually saw office workers from around the area coming for a team dinner haha. It seems perfect for a light team gathering rather than a big blowout dinner. (But be ready to wait a bit, haha!)

What two people ordered, and what it cost

Today's order (2 people) 1) Instant tteokbokki for 2: ₩22,000 2) Curly fish cake: ₩4,000 3) Fried rice: ₩3,500

Our order arrived! Getting it as soon as we sat down was the kind of speed Koreans love haha. Hyeonseoni-ne's tteokbokki lets you choose your spice level: mild, medium, or spicy. Being a total spice wimp, I went with mild.

Instant tteokbokki for two at 22,000 won, jjolmyeon noodles included

Instant tteokbokki at Hyeonseoni-ne Cheonggye Instant Branch can only be ordered for two or more, so you have to order at least two servings. It's the kind of dish you simmer bubbling away right at your table.

Usually places give you instant ramen noodles, but Hyeonseoni-ne's default is jjolmyeon noodles, so I had to stir it often while it cooked to keep them from sticking to the pot. The staff explained everything clearly when serving, so all I had to do was follow along. Once it's cooked through, all that's left is to enjoy it!

How mild is the mild spice level?

Wow, but the rice cakes were seriously... so soft and chewy! And the portion was pretty generous too. Since we ordered mild, it was sweet and spicy but never actually felt hot at all, so as a spice wimp I enjoyed it even more haha. My coworker was calling for medium spice, but I talked them out of it, apparently.

Toppings, plus two boiled eggs

The yaki-mandu (pan-fried dumplings) were soaked through with tteokbokki broth and soft, but the edges of the dumpling skin still had a bit of crispness left, so they were really delicious. Fish cake, rice cake, jjolmyeon noodles, dumplings, boiled eggs, and all kinds of vegetables — the toppings were really varied.

And since it was a serving for two, they gave us two whole boiled eggs! Such generous portions, honestly. This is a bit of a tangent, but these days when you go to a naengmyeon (cold noodle) place, a bowl is already over ₩10,000, and they usually give you half an egg, which I always grumble about — so getting one whole egg per person here was really touching. You know how with a soup dish like instant tteokbokki, you're supposed to mash the yolk and mix it into the broth, then scoop it up in one spoonful, right?.. Eating it that way is truly the best.

Curly fish cake side for 4,000 won

This is the curly fish cake we ordered as a side. They also have plain long fish cake, but I like the curly kind, so I went with this.

It came with a ladle for easy sharing, and small plates, paper cups, water, and aprons are all available to grab yourself from the self-serve bar. The fish cake broth was really tasty and had a refreshing quality to it. So it was great to enjoy it between bites of tteokbokki with a satisfied "ahh-!" and "kuh!!"

Finishing with fried rice for 3,500 won

The reason we ordered instant tteokbokki in the first place — to eat the fried rice at the end..! We were already full from the generous portions, but the broth tasted so good I couldn't give up on it. We asked them to cook fried rice with the tteokbokki still left in the pot, and they took the whole pot away to fry it up, then served the rest in a separate bowl. It's a flavor you'll regret missing, so make sure to try the fried rice too.

Final verdict on Hyeonseoni-ne

I visited Hyeonseoni-ne Cheonggye Instant Branch, an old-school tteokbokki spot right by Euljiro 1-ga Station. Even though I'm not usually a big tteokbokki fan, I ate so happily that it surprised me! The sauce was delicious and the toppings were generous. Being able to eat this filling a meal for this kind of price was really great. The staff were all kind too, so it made for a genuinely pleasant meal. If you're looking for a great tteokbokki spot in Euljiro, definitely stop by~