Gunja Station private-room pub for a date after overtime: Saechamjip

Today I'm writing up a date near Gunja Station with my partner after overtime: Saechamjip (새참집) Gunja branch. ヽ(*´＾｀)ﾉ

It was so late that we weren't sure where to go, and I got lured in by some spicy-looking braised pork bones. The inside was so clean and the food so good that it put me in a great mood!

This time it was just the two of us, but the food is so good that I think it would also work for a group get-together with friends! So here's my day at "Saechamjip Gunja branch."

Where is Saechamjip Gunja branch?

Saechamjip is within a 5-minute walk of Exit 6 at Gunja Station (Lines 5 and 7), on the 2nd floor of a building in the Gunja food alley. The alley starts right outside Exit 6, and even on a weekday evening it was packed.

It's inside the Gunja food alley, the restaurant street. There are tons of places, but the signs are clear and it's very close to the station, so it wasn't hard to find.

Saechamjip is on the 2nd floor of the building.

There were lots of posters inside the building, and the one saying "private Korean pub" caught my eye right away.

There aren't many room-style pubs in Gunja, and most places are loud group restaurants. Saechamjip has rooms and is spotless inside, so I thought it would be great for a date.

Opening hours

Saechamjip Gunja branch is open daily from 17:30 to 02:00 the next day.

The building has an elevator, and when you go up you'll see it right away! The entrance is to the left of the elevator and the Tabling tablet is to the right.

How do reservations and waiting work at Saechamjip Gunja branch?

You can book through Naver reservation (2 to 5-person rooms / group hall), and for walk-ins you register on Tabling. Even though it was a late 9 pm when we visited, there was a wait...!

If you have a date or group get-together in Gunja, it's a good idea to book ahead through Naver reservation. The rooms you can book are a 2-person room and a 3-5 person room, and groups can only reserve the hall.

Inside Saechamjip Gunja branch: a private-room pub atmosphere

We waited about 10 minutes before getting in, and as I keep saying, the inside of Saechamjip is really clean.

The seats in the hall have partitions at each 2-person table, so they looked cozy and good for talking. There were plenty of couples on dates, and plenty of friends too!

The complimentary starters (acorn jelly soup and snacks) and a hovenia stick were already set out before we were shown to our seats..!

I mean, what a thoughtful hangover-stick touch... It's a service that put me in a good mood from the moment we sat down. ♪～(´ε｀ )

Personally I care a lot about pub restrooms, and at Saechamjip the restroom is inside and tidy, which I loved. It's stocked with sanitary pads, hair ties, mouthwash and floss, so I was impressed by the service all over again.

Saechamjip menu and signature dishes

The anju (drinking food) at Saechamjip includes a variety of soups, jeon (Korean pancakes) and stir-fries, plus bingsu (shaved ice) and gaeseong juak (fried rice-cake pastry) for dessert!

Everything looked so good that choosing was hard..(*´～｀*) The pork bones photo looked so tempting that we decided to order it, but!! Octopus and shrimp kimchi jeon, or roe cheese potato jeon... how am I supposed to pick just one...

The pork bones are limited in quantity per day, so I was worried we might miss out, and then I started agonizing again about what to eat if not the pork bones... nakgopsae (spicy octopus, tripe and shrimp) looked good, daedoritang (big chicken stew) looked good too...!!

Drinks: makgeolli, traditional spirits, Andong soju highball

As you'd expect from a Korean pub, the drinks include makgeolli and traditional distilled spirits, and the Andong soju highball and Boksosa (복소사, a blend of bokbunja wine and Sosa) looked special! The highball combination is hard to find elsewhere, and Boksosa is something you usually have to mix yourself, so having it ready-made is very very good~ d=(^o^)=b

The complimentary acorn jelly soup can be refilled, and rice refills and noodles (glass noodles, ramen or udon) are free!

What we ate at Saechamjip

We ordered the aged kimchi pork bones and the roe cheese potato jeon, and for drinks, the strawberry smoothie makgeolli.

1L strawberry smoothie makgeolli: sweet, barely tastes like alcohol

The strawberry smoothie makgeolli came out first, and it was a whole 1L of makgeolli..!

It's so sweet it goes down easily even without food...❤️ It was so good I thought, this is dangerous..! You can barely taste the alcohol, so I think even people who don't drink much would enjoy it.

My partner's one-line review: It's the best!

How spicy is the stone-plate aged kimchi pork bones?

You can adjust the spice level of Saechamjip's stone-plate aged kimchi pork bones. Level 1 is Shin Ramyun, level 2 is Yeol Ramyun, and level 3 is Buldak. I ordered it as both anju and a meal, and since I'm scared of spicy food I went with level 1. The cheese, sauce and white aged kimchi tamed the heat well, so it wasn't as spicy as Shin Ramyun.

If you like spicy food, I'd recommend level 2 or 3! Level 1 was spicy-sweet with the sweet side a bit stronger.

I added cheese too, and the sauce and cheese went together really well! Since it's anju I figured there wouldn't be much meat, but the meat was really generous. You can get full on the meat alone 🍖 I couldn't add noodles.. I was too full.

A shot with the makgeolli~

My partner's one-line review: Spicy-sweet and the meat was generous. The sweetness is strong, so level 2 spice would probably balance it better.

Roe cheese potato jeon with pajeori

The last dish was the roe cheese potato jeon.

The roe cheese potato jeon can be a little heavy, and the scallion and cabbage pajeori (seasoned salad) that cuts through it is honestly a stroke of genius.

The sour, spicy, sweet pajeori goes so well with the rich cheese and potato jeon!

The jeon is unusual in that it has two layers with cheese in the middle. The potato pancakes on both sides are nice and thick, and the crunchy bite of the potato is great; it seems they grate real potatoes rather than only using potato starch. Crispy + chewy + crunchy, the texture was perfect.

They even had candy ready after the meal, so it was a happy place right to the end.

Would I go back to Saechamjip Gunja branch?

Would I return to Saechamjip Gunja branch, the room-style Korean pub near Gunja Station? Very much YES! The anju suited me, and the sweet drinks put me in a good mood, so I want to visit again. The atmosphere is nice enough to come back with my partner, and the food is good enough for a casual chat with friends.

Today's recommended menu item is the "strawberry smoothie makgeolli"! You can barely taste the alcohol, so it's a happily sweet drink that has stuck in my memory. They have other flavors too, like misutgaru (roasted grain) and blueberry, and I'd love to try those. Welcome summer with a cool makgeolli on these hot days~!