After-work seafood bar near National Assembly Station: Gaetbeol-ui

An impromptu after-work meetup near National Assembly Station: Gaetbeol-ui Jogae

A sudden after-work meetup got called together, and picking the menu and the spot mattered. I'd been to Gaetbeol-ui Jogae Yeouido Main Branch before for a filling drinking-food menu that pairs perfectly with soju, so that's where we went. It's about a five-minute walk from National Assembly Station, so easy to gather at after work — and above all, it's a great place to eat seafood by the mountain-load while having a drink alongside it.

Gaetbeol-ui Jogae Yeouido Main Branch / 15-1 Gukhoedae-ro 70-gil, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, 2nd floor / Daily 11:00–22:00, last order 21:00 / Corkage-free, free parking

Hall and room seating

This National Assembly Station restaurant has a fairly spacious main hall, with plenty of room between tables so you can spread out comfortably. That makes it great not just for group get-togethers or small parties but also for dates. There are also private rooms available if you'd rather have a more private meal.

The menu at Gaetbeol-ui Jogae

This National Assembly Station restaurant has apparently been building up its clam-and-seafood expertise for a long time — every morning they prepare fresh clams and seafood for their dishes. Looking at the seafood that came out that day, both the variety and the quantity were impressive, which had me looking forward to the giant clam hot pot.

Self-bar hutgae tea and yeolmu bibimbap

The first thing that caught my eye after sitting down was the water. We came for a drink, and the water was hutgae tea (raisin tree tea)!! Bonus points right there haha. The self-bar also has kimchi and side dishes, and since there's yeolmu kimchi (young radish kimchi), you can make yourself free yeolmu bibimbap (young radish kimchi mixed rice) too! The hot pot takes a bit of time to come to a boil, so that's the perfect window to whip up a bowl. Getting sides and rice on top of all the seafood made the whole thing feel like a proper meal.

Giant clam hot pot (large), four servings, seafood piled like a mountain

Our first order that day was the giant clam hot pot for four! The moment the pot arrived, the generous portion and freshness were shocking. Seafood was piled up like a mountain in the pot — everything from razor clams, abalone, scallops, hard clams, and mussels to octopus, whole squid, and shrimp.

What I liked most was that once the pot starts boiling, staff come and clean the seafood for you!! Octopus and squid, which are a hassle to prep yourself, get cut into easy-to-eat pieces, so all you have to do is eat — no fuss even for a group dinner.

Looking at the giant clam hot pot, soju was obviously a must. Fishing out pieces of seafood one by one from the cool clam broth as a drinking snack was a perfect match! Picking through razor clams, abalone, scallops, and shrimp was fun on its own, and the octopus and whole squid had a chewy texture that kept my chopsticks coming back. As all the clams opened up, the broth kept getting deeper and more flavorful — cool and rich at the same time.

The giant clam hot pot also comes with cheese, so you can enjoy the seafood fondue-style too. Look at that cheese stretch!!!

Round two: seafood boiling, small size

After thoroughly working through the giant clam hot pot, we ordered seafood boiling for round two!! We got the small size, and even that came with a serious amount of food. This place really does seem to pile on the seafood without holding back.

The seafood boiling comes with an assortment of seafood tossed in a red sauce, and the sauce itself is genuinely delicious — plus it's served with buns, fried rice, and spaghetti noodles, so you can enjoy the seafood in several different ways!! It's on the spicier side, so it really calls for soju. Between round one and round two, we thoroughly enjoyed some seriously good seafood.

To sum up

The giant clam hot pot at this National Assembly Station restaurant let us enjoy a cool broth and fresh seafood while filling up properly on a meal, and the seafood boiling with its spicy sauce and variety of sides was really appealing as a drinking snack. The owner was also super kind and even sent us off with hutgae tea sticks, which I really appreciated. If you're looking for a restaurant near National Assembly Station for food and drinks after work, I highly recommend Gaetbeol-ui Jogae!!