Army stew with baked-bean broth in Paju: Mom's Uijeongbu Budaejjigae

An honest review of a budae jjigae (army stew) restaurant near Heyri Village in Paju: Mom's Uijeongbu Budaejjigae.

On a day when it was drizzling on and off and the air had turned a little chilly, I found myself craving hot soup, so I headed to Mom's Uijeongbu Budaejjigae. It happens to be near Heyri Village, so it was also a convenient stop for a meal!

Why army stew hits the spot on a rainy day

Budae jjigae really is a dish that's affected a lot by the weather, so eating it on a rainy day like this one made it taste even better haha. It was just that kind of day where a warm bowl of soup and a bowl of rice sounded perfect.

Where do you park?

Parking was available at the back of the building, and there was an entrance right there too, which was nice.

After parking, you don't need to walk all the way around to the front — you can go straight in through the rear entrance, which made getting around much easier.

Inside the restaurant and the seating

Overall the seats were spaced generously and the tables themselves felt roomy, so it was comfortable to eat. We visited on a weekday during lunch hour, and there were quite a few office workers around, plus — probably because Paju has a lot of film sets — groups who'd clearly come straight from a shoot were dining together too.

If you're planning to visit as a group, it seems like a good idea to call ahead. It looked like if you make a reservation in advance, they'll set the food up so you can start eating right away — worth keeping in mind if you're coming with several people!

On the way out I noticed baby chairs were on hand, so it looked like a fine spot to bring kids too.

Is budae jjigae the only thing on the menu?

As the name suggests, budae jjigae looks like the main event at Mom's Uijeongbu Budaejjigae, but they also serve dakgalbi (spicy stir-fried chicken), and surprisingly a lot of people order that too. I wanted to try the dakgalbi on a future visit, but since it was rainy and a little chilly that day, there was no hesitation — budae jjigae it was haha. We ordered budae jjigae for two.

How does the baked-bean broth taste?

Even before it started boiling, the pot was loaded with ham, rice cake, bean sprouts, and glass noodles — plenty for two people.

Since it's Uijeongbu-style, baked beans go into the pot, and that added a subtle richness to the broth, giving it a different character from typical budae jjigae.

As it started bubbling away, broth from the ham and meat came out, and the baked beans' quiet sweetness and toasty flavor built up, making the soup grow richer and richer.

It felt a bit heavier and deeper than a typical budae jjigae, but it wasn't heavy-handed or overly sharp in flavor. The saltiness of the ham combined with the soft sweetness of the baked beans made the broth genuinely delicious.

Self-serve side dishes and extra noodles

The basic side dishes — kimchi, fish cake, and bean sprouts — could be freely refilled at the self-bar, so if you ran low you could just grab more without any hassle. Sides like kimchi and bean sprouts tend to disappear fast while eating budae jjigae, so it was nice to be able to help myself to as much as I needed without feeling awkward about it.

My husband had been here once before, so he kept saying the glass noodle sari (noodle add-in) was really good haha.

In the end we added both glass noodle sari and ramen sari while eating. We agreed that the real joy of budae jjigae is adding extra noodles and tossing in whatever you want haha.

There was already plenty in the pot from the start, but since it was just the two of us eating, we got greedy for more noodles and ended up confidently ordering extra.

The pot had meat, ham, rice cake, bean sprouts, and glass noodles all in it, so it was fun picking through the ingredients too. Maybe because it was raining, but eating the hot, rich broth with rice made me feel properly full and satisfied!

The bean sprouts added a crunchy texture to what could otherwise be a heavy broth, and the glass noodles soaked up the soup and turned pleasantly chewy — now I understood why my husband liked it so much haha.

Does topping up the broth change the flavour?

You could also add more broth, which was convenient — if it ran low while we were eating, we could top it right up. That said, after adding the extra noodles and topping up the broth a few times, it felt like the flavor gradually softened from how rich it was when it first boiled.

Personally, I felt the broth was richest and most delicious right at the start, so it might be best to fully enjoy that first flavor before adding the noodle sari. Still, on a rainy, chilly day like this one, nothing beats a hot bowl of budae jjigae haha.

Final verdict on Mom's Uijeongbu Budaejjigae

With ham, rice cake, bean sprouts, glass noodles, and ramen sari all going in, the two of us ate a genuinely hearty meal, and we got the full experience of that distinctive Uijeongbu-style budae jjigae flavor with baked beans. It's a good spot to visit if you're looking for a budae jjigae restaurant in Paju or craving a warm soup dish near Heyri Village.

Eating it on a rainy day especially, the weather and the dish that day were an absolutely perfect match ☔️🍲