Yeonnam-dong pasta restaurant 2 min from the bus stop: Hey Joji

Where is Hey Joji, and what are its hours?

• 📍 Location: 1F, 42-24 Donggyo-ro 46-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🕒 Hours: Daily 12:00–21:00 / last order 20:00

Outside and inside Hey Joji

I wanted good pasta or risotto in Hongdae, so I went to Hey Joji. Even the exterior has that American-style interior, giving it a different feel like being in the US? Excited, excited.

It's about a 10-minute walk from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 3, but I took the bus and only walked about 2 minutes from the stop to get there.

The first thing I felt stepping inside was the exotic, American-vibe interior. 🇺🇸 Rather than a typical clean-cut restaurant feel, it had the atmosphere of a casual overseas dining space, so the mood was already great before the food even arrived.

It's a space that suits the free, individual vibe unique to Hongdae, so it'd be good for a date or a meal with friends too.

The two plates we ordered at Hey Joji

📝 Order details

• ✔️ Garlic squid oil pasta
• ✔️ Jambalaya rosé risotto

Garlic squid oil pasta

The squid in Hey Joji's garlic squid oil pasta was really tender. If the squid is even a little chewy, it can drag down the whole dish's satisfaction, but here it was soft enough to eat easily along with the noodles. What I especially liked was how thoroughly the sauce had soaked into the noodles.

The oil sauce didn't sit on top but was well absorbed into the noodles, so every bite carried a strong garlic and oil flavor.

Overall it had a slightly thick, rich texture, so even as an oil pasta it wasn't bland — it was delicious. The tender squid and sauce paired well, and twirling the squid together with the noodles made for a great combo.

Jambalaya rosé risotto with rice and barley

Next was the jambalaya rosé risotto. It has sausage, squid, and shrimp, made with a chipotle jambalaya sauce, so it had a different flavor profile from a typical rosé risotto. What stood out was that it wasn't just rice — rice and barley were used together, giving it a really good texture.

Between the soft risotto, the barley gave a subtle chewiness, so every spoonful had a fun, interesting texture. The sausage wasn't too salty either, and since the saltiness wasn't overpowering, it went perfectly with the risotto rice.

With squid and shrimp added on top, every bite delivered a variety of savory flavors.

Is it worth ordering both dishes together?

The two dishes had such different charms that I was glad we ordered both. The garlic squid oil pasta had that rich flavor with sauce thickly coating the noodles, while the jambalaya rosé risotto offered a hearty mix with the texture of rice and barley plus sausage, squid, and shrimp.

It's fine to visit on foot from Hongik Univ. Station, and taking the bus makes it even more convenient, so accessibility wasn't bad either. It's a place that suits everything from an atmospheric date to a meal with friends, so if you want to enjoy an exotic vibe along with pasta and risotto in Hongdae, I recommend Hey Joji 😎