Yeonnam-dong rice bowl lunch after a café: tendon and gyudon, Jongno

After a café visit in Yeonnam-dong with my boyfriend, we headed to Jongno Donburi Yeonnam for a slightly late lunch! Neither of us was that hungry, but we still walked out with nearly empty bowls — let me introduce this Yeonnam-dong Japanese restaurant 🍤🍜

Where is Jongno Donburi Yeonnam, and what are the hours?

Jongno Donburi Yeonnam is located on the basement floor of 9 Donggyo-ro 46-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, about 589m from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 3. Walking further into the Yeonnam-dong alleys, the wood-toned exterior of Jongno Donburi Yeonnam came into view.

The large windows paired with the noren curtain matched the alley atmosphere nicely 🌿

A standing sign out front with the Jongno Donburi name made it easy to find even on a first visit 👀

An outdoor menu board next to the entrance showed photos of signature dishes with prices. We took a quick look before heading in haha

The Jongno Donburi Yeonnam logo was also visible on the wall by the entrance! Even though the restaurant is on the basement level, sunlight coming through the windows kept it from feeling cramped ☀️ Visiting on a Sunday lunch, we got seated right away with no waiting 😊

Inside, there was a note about Jongno Donburi's origin story — starting in a small backstreet in Jongno. What caught my eye was that they prep ingredients fresh every morning and only use what's prepared that day 👀

• 📌 Jongno Donburi Yeonnam
• 📍 9 Donggyo-ro 46-gil, B1, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🚇 About 589m from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 3
• ⏰ Mon–Fri 11:30–21:30
• ⏰ Sat–Sun 11:30–21:00
• ⏸️ Weekday break time 16:00–17:00
• 🕰️ Last order 30 minutes before closing
• 🚗 No dedicated parking lot

Being close to Gyeongui Line Forest Park made it easy to pair with nearby cafés for a Yeonnam-dong date course 👫🏻

Inside the basement wood-toned dining room and its seats

Inside Jongno Donburi Yeonnam is a wood-toned space with tables lined along a big window. There are window tables, counter seats facing the open kitchen, and group tables — a layout that works for both dates and solo dining.

Walking in, the first thing I saw was the tables along the large window and the warm wood-toned interior. Sunlight streaming through the windows made the whole place feel bright and comfortable 🌿

Further inside there were counter seats facing the open kitchen along with tables for groups. The seating setup looked comfortable for dates as well as eating alone!

The spacing between tables wasn't cramped, and menus were already set out at each table. We sat at a table near the window and picked our lunch menu haha

On one side there was even a separate coat rack for outerwear 🧥

The open kitchen was fully visible, and the counter seats put you even closer to the cooking area. The staff were genuinely friendly too, so we started the meal in a good mood 😊

Menu and prices: what we ordered

What we ordered at Jongno Donburi Yeonnam: tendon (tempura rice bowl) ₩14,500, gyudon (beef rice bowl) ₩13,000, tori-karaage (fried chicken) ₩7,000, and Coca-Cola ₩2,500. The menu had a wide range — donburi like katsu-don, ebi-don, and buta-don, plus sake-don, nabe (hot pot), udon, and side dishes.

My boyfriend picked the tempura-loaded tendon and I went with the warm gyudon 🍜

• ✔ Tendon ₩14,500
• ✔ Gyudon ₩13,000
• ✔ Tori-karaage ₩7,000
• ✔ Coca-Cola ₩2,500

We debated just ordering the mains, but curiosity won and we added the tori-karaage too haha

The restaurant was also running a receipt review event. Participation methods and what's offered may change, so check the current details when you visit!

Eating the tendon and the gyudon

Jongno Donburi Yeonnam's tendon is a rice bowl piled high with various types of tempura, while the gyudon is a warm udon-style bowl with clear broth loaded with beef and vegetables. After ordering, we were first served broth, pickled radish, and pickles.

Sipping the warm broth while waiting, our ordered dishes arrived on the table one by one.

Once the tendon, gyudon, and tori-karaage were all out, the table filled up in an instant! We weren't that hungry, but seeing everything laid out so generously, our chopsticks went straight for it haha

Two mains plus a side turned out to be plenty for two people! We each dug into what we ordered 😋

My boyfriend's tendon came piled high with several kinds of tempura 🍤

Picking up a piece of tempura, it had a slightly salty seasoning that was really tasty.

The seasoning went so well with rice that I kept stealing a few bites from the gyudon side too lol. My boyfriend clearly said he was full at one point? But even while saying he was full, he kept saying it was too good and kept eating — he ended up finishing the whole bowl of tendon 🤣

My gyudon had beef and vegetables generously piled over clear broth! Eating the warm broth, udon noodles, and meat together was so good that I kept eating too 🍜

Chatting and picking up bite after bite, I ended up almost finishing the whole gyudon before I knew it haha. My boyfriend cleared his tendon completely, and I nearly cleared my gyudon!

It felt like we'd really picked the right lunch at this Yeonnam-dong Japanese restaurant ❤️

Tori-karaage and the bear-shaped sauce bottle

The tori-karaage we ordered looked different from the karaage I usually see. I expected round fried chicken pieces, but here they were elongated, like sweet and sour pork — pretty unusual 👀 Taking a bite, the outside was crispy and the chicken inside was tender and delicious!

It was great to pick up a piece here and there between the tendon and gyudon, and we ended up polishing off the side dish too haha

A sauce came alongside the tori-karaage, cutely served in a bear-shaped dish 🐻 I'm not sure of the exact ingredients, but it tasted smooth and savory, like mayonnaise.

Dipping the crispy tori-karaage into the sauce gave it a whole different, softer flavor compared to eating it plain.

We wrapped up our filling lunch sipping cola in between bites, with my boyfriend haha 🥤

Is Jongno Donburi Yeonnam good for a Yeonnam-dong lunch date?

Even though we visited Jongno Donburi Yeonnam not very hungry after a café stop, we both walked out with nearly empty bowls. The tendon with its pile of tempura had a slightly salty seasoning that was delicious, and we enjoyed the gyudon and the crispy-outside, tender-inside tori-karaage 🍤 What stuck with me most was my boyfriend saying he was full but still finishing his tendon to the last bite lol

The staff were genuinely kind too, which made the whole meal comfortable. If you're looking for a Yeonnam-dong Japanese restaurant or a Yeonnam lunch date spot, Jongno Donburi Yeonnam is worth checking out!