Daejeon Korean restaurant for perilla gamjatang: Hanppong

I was looking for a hearty meal in Dunsan-dong and stopped by Hanppong (한뽕), which apparently gets a lot of visits for gamjatang and galbitang.

It is one of those names that sticks in your head after hearing it once. I was told it means, “We serve you with a whole lot of care.” The menu focuses on brothy Korean dishes such as galbitang, gamjatang, and dogani-tang, so it looked like a nice spot for lunch too.

• 1F, 27 Dunsan-ro 74beon-gil, Seo-gu, Daejeon (Dunsan-dong 1210)
• About 470 m from City Hall Station Exit 2
• 10:50–20:30 / break time 15:00–17:00 / last order 20:10
• Regularly closed every Sunday
• Closed for the Chuseok holiday, September 24–26

A more spacious dining room than expected

Inside, it had the overall comfortable feel of a Korean restaurant. There were quite a few tables, and the spacing between seats was not cramped, so it was easy to eat comfortably.

High chairs for children were available, along with tables that could seat larger groups. At lunchtime, I saw quite a few people dining alone or in pairs over galbitang. It had just the right atmosphere for an office-worker lunch or when you are looking for a place to eat in Dunsan-dong.

Hanppong menu and prices

For hot pots, pork-bone gamjatang is ₩41,000 large, ₩35,000 medium, or ₩29,000 small; aged-kimchi gamjatang is ₩43,000 large, ₩37,000 medium, or ₩31,000 small; and boiled beef platter is ₩36,000.

The soup rice dishes include mountain-pile galbitang ₩12,000, herbal bak kut teh ₩12,000, dogani-tang ₩12,000, mountain-pile green-onion galbitang ₩11,000, Korean beef head-meat gukbap ₩11,000, beef-bone pork gukbap ₩10,000, and brisket and radish-greens soup ₩9,000. Extra ingredients were available too.

Silbi kimchi makes a bold first side dish

After ordering, kimchi and kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi) arrived first.

What immediately caught my eye was the spicy Silbi kimchi. It had a much stronger kick than ordinary restaurant kimchi. I already like Silbi kimchi, so I personally enjoyed it.

If you run out of kimchi, you can get more from the self-service corner. But since I was having gamjatang that day, pairing spicy gamjatang with Silbi kimchi made my mouth properly, seriously hot haha.

Next time, I actually want to try the Silbi kimchi with the milder galbitang. Disposable aprons were provided on the wall, which was handy for gamjatang, and each table was neatly stocked with pepper, seasoning, paper cups, wet wipes, and more.

Small pork-bone gamjatang, ₩29,000

At last, the pork-bone gamjatang arrived. It came in a generously filled pot, topped with plenty of enoki mushrooms, green onion, and perilla-seed powder. There were also loads of ugeoji (dried radish greens) and kimchi, so it looked abundant from the start! The potatoes were cut large, and the broth was rich and savory.

Eating it as it bubbled away, the nutty perilla flavor went really well with the savory depth of the greens.

Big bones with plenty of meat

The bones were quite large too. There was a good amount of meat attached, so it was fun to hold them with tongs and pull the meat away.

It had been cooked until tender, so the meat came off the bone fairly easily. Dipping it in the broth made it even better.

It was good to eat the greens and meat together, and the fluffy cooked potatoes were a nice treat in between. It was the small-size gamjatang, but it still felt quite generous for two people. With a bowl of rice, it was definitely filling.

Next time, I have to try the galbitang. I had gamjatang this time, but I noticed lots of people ordering galbitang at lunch. The mountain-pile galbitang, with its large beef ribs, seemed to be one of Hanppong’s signature dishes. I especially liked the Silbi kimchi here, so next time I am planning on the galbitang + Silbi kimchi combo.

There was also a coffee machine and a tea-time drink machine for guests to use after their meal.

An ice maker was set up beside them, so you can conveniently serve yourself iced coffee before or after your meal.

Hanppong is a good place to visit when you want a hearty Korean meal like gamjatang or galbitang in Dunsan-dong. The pork-bone gamjatang had generous meat and greens, and its perilla-seed broth was pleasantly savory. Above all, the spicy Silbi kimchi served as a basic side dish was pretty memorable!