Hongdae Japanese spot: sake-don with Mom before perfume making, Jongno

Jongno Donburi Yeonnam: location, hours and reservations

Jongno Donburi Yeonnam is in the basement (B1) at 9 Donggyo-ro 46-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul. It is open Mon–Fri 11:30–21:30 and Sat–Sun 11:30–21:00. Reservations are possible, but there is no parking.

Lunch at Jongno Donburi before making perfume with my mom near Hongik Univ. Station

My mom and I were heading to Hongik Univ. Station to make perfume, and we figured we should eat lunch first. So we went to Jongno Donburi, a Japanese restaurant in Yeonnam-dong not far from the station. The outside is so cozy! It looks different from the places around it, so it stands out and wasn't hard to find.

You can check the menu outside before going in, but I always look up what I'm going to eat beforehand, so we went straight inside.

Is there a wait at opening time on a Sunday?

You can book ahead on Naver, but we walked in. It was a Sunday and we arrived almost right at opening, so we got to be the very first customers. While we were eating, the place filled up fast, so I think booking ahead would be better.

Still, the restaurant is fairly big with lots of seats, so I suspect you wouldn't usually have to wait.

Solo-diner tables and a good atmosphere for a date

Lots of people eat alone around Hongdae and Yeonnam, right? Jongno Donburi Yeonnam has plenty of solo tables so you can eat without feeling awkward, so it seems easy to drop in for a quick meal.

And the atmosphere is nice too! Sunlight pours in, so I thought it would work well as a date spot.

We had already decided what to order, so we checked the menu quickly and ordered!

Table setting and side dishes

Under the table, spoons, chopsticks, tissues and wet wipes are all set out generously, so you don't need to ask for anything. Having to ask every time is a hassle, so having it all ready was a big plus.

We also ordered an ade (fruit soda), and they brought the ade, soy sauce, side dishes and a soup. The side dishes seemed homemade, and I normally don't eat many side dishes, you know? But they went so well with the sake-don and bukkake udon that we finished them quickly.

How the peach lemon ade tastes

There are lots of ades to choose from, and I picked the peach lemon ade since I don't think I've seen it elsewhere. A pretty glass and a pretty muddler too, so it photographs well. And it tastes good! Some places make it too weak or too sweet, but this one is just right, sweet and sour, perfect for whetting your appetite.

The food came out quickly! It looks delicious at first glance, doesn't it? Everything arrives at once rather than course by course, which is great for taking photos.

Jongno Donburi's bukkake cold udon: does the tempura stay crisp?

Jongno Donburi has carried on since 2010 in Jongno, and they say they prepare the best ingredients every day and sell only same-day. Maybe that's why everything tasted fresh from start to finish.

I mixed the cold udon first. I popped the poached egg on top and stirred it into the deeply aged, chilled broth, and a rich nutty aroma rose up.

And I don't know how they do the tempura, but even sitting in the broth it was crispy right to the last bite. It had shrimp tempura, my favorite, so it was even more delicious.

Maybe because the broth is cold, the noodles were really springy too. I still can't forget the cold udon I had on a trip to Japan, but this bukkake udon at Jongno Donburi Yeonnam can replace it!

My mom's favorite sake-don at Jongno Donburi: how thick is the salmon?

Next is the sake-don my mom really loves. They said they source top-grade salmon directly every dawn, then trim and age it, so it looked delicious just from its color.

Each piece of salmon was seriously thick and big, too much for one bite, so we split them in half. Even so, the salmon and the sauce underneath went so well together that I decided that next time I'd order this same combo of sake-don and bukkake udon.

Finding a place that suits you around Hongik Univ. Station and Yeonnam isn't as easy as it sounds, but this place has crowd-pleasing dishes that also taste great. If you're going on a date this weekend, I really recommend this Yeonnam-dong Japanese restaurant, Jongno Donburi!