Gojan-dong kimchi jjigae set with self-serve side dish bar: Choburi

+ Honest review — I paid for the extra dishes myself!

I was looking for somewhere to eat in Gojan-dong lately and ended up at Choburi Kimchi Jjigae Gojan Main Branch. I love kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew) so I tend to go hunting for good kimchi jjigae spots,

and this time I wanted to try the buckwheat pancake alongside the kimchi jjigae too — it had been a while since my last visit, so I was curious. There are actually a lot of lunch options around Gojan Station, which oddly makes it harder to decide what to eat. That day I was craving something warm and soupy, so I went with Choburi Kimchi Jjigae Gojan Main Branch. Kimchi jjigae is a dish I eat often so it's familiar, but a properly simmered kimchi jjigae from a good place still has a different charm than the one I make at home.

More than anything, I didn't just want kimchi jjigae that day — I ordered buckwheat pancake alongside it to switch things up a little. I wasn't sure how kimchi jjigae and buckwheat pancake would work together at first, but once the table was set, the combination turned out to make a warm, filling meal.

How to walk to Choburi Kimchi Jjigae from Gojan Station

Choburi Kimchi Jjigae Gojan Main Branch is in Gojan-dong near Gojan Station, so it wasn't hard to set as a meeting place. When I arrived, the sign was easy to spot, so even a first-time visitor shouldn't have much trouble finding it. It also seemed like a solid pick to have in mind if you're meeting someone around Gojan Station or looking for somewhere to eat in Gojan-dong.

These days, when I'm looking for a good restaurant, I care less about one famous dish alone and more about how filling the meal actually is and whether the dishes pair well together. On that front, this meal was pretty satisfying. The kimchi jjigae came out bubbling, which made me think of warm rice the moment I saw it, and the buckwheat pancake was served in a generous size that looked appetizing the second it hit the table.

What caught my eye most that day was what was piled on top of the kimchi jjigae. Instead of the usual look of just kimchi and broth, several ingredients were mixed in together, so it looked hearty just from the visuals alone.

Bottom line — it was a memorable place to get a filling meal.

Does Choburi have baby seats for dining with kids?

There are baby seats too, so it's perfect for eating with a baby haha. Every single dish at this place — haha — looked so good I wanted to photograph it, and my appetite spiked the moment the broth started bubbling.

If you're searching for restaurants near Gojan Station and often check menu photos before deciding where to go, seeing the food actually plated made it clear why kimchi jjigae is the signature dish here. With warm broth over rice, and buckwheat pancake to snack on in between, it didn't feel like a light meal at all.

Kimchi jjigae is a dish you eat with rice, so the flavor matters more the further you get into the bowl than in the first few spoonfuls. Eating slowly — spooning broth and kimchi over rice, taking a bite of buckwheat pancake in between — turned out to be more fun than eating either dish on its own.

If you're craving Korean food in Gojan-dong, especially on a day when you want something warm and filling rather than light, this menu combination fits the bill. If you're searching for restaurants in Gojan-dong or near Gojan Station like I was, Choburi Kimchi Jjigae Gojan Main Branch is worth putting on the list.

If you're looking for somewhere to eat near Gojan Station, it's worth noting the location too. This was a solid choice for anyone searching for restaurants near Gojan Station like me.

I liked that this visit, which I went in thinking would just be about the kimchi jjigae, turned into a more varied meal once I added the buckwheat pancake. Now let me go through the kimchi jjigae and the buckwheat pancake one by one and share what I liked about each in more detail.

What comes in the kimchi jjigae set: stone-pot rice and a perilla oil fried egg

These are what I ordered — the set kimchi jjigae along with the stone-pot rice and fried egg that come standard, haha. I drizzled perilla oil on top and cleared the whole bowl solo, no shame lol. I hadn't been able to eat all day because of work and was struggling, so I really dug in and finished every bite, haha.

They recommended booking through Naver Reservation, and if you do, they make sure to add these delicious mushrooms. I think this is either white jelly mushroom or silver ear mushroom — it's basically a collagen bomb, so it's really good for your skin.

How the kimchi jjigae tastes and what's on the self-serve side dish bar

The first thing I ordered after sitting down at Choburi Kimchi Jjigae Gojan Main Branch was, of course, the kimchi jjigae. Kimchi jjigae is a familiar dish that goes well with rice, but if the flavor is bland, you get tired of it fast. Here, though, the broth carries a distinct kimchi flavor right from the start, so I was already thinking about rice by the first spoonful.

The side dishes are on a self-serve bar and extra rice is ready to go, so you can eat comfortably without holding back. I usually come here for dinner with my family every so often, and this time the kimchi tasted even better than before, so I was happy ^__^ The owner is still just as kind as ever~

Is the buckwheat pancake worth adding to the meal?

And the dish that surprisingly won me over the most this meal was the buckwheat pancake. I went in thinking about only the kimchi jjigae, but trying the buckwheat pancake alongside it, the pairing of the nutty pancake with the hot kimchi jjigae worked better than I expected. The buckwheat pancake had a light yet nutty flavor, making it a good thing to alternate with bites of kimchi jjigae.

Also, among the side dishes here, the seaweed (gim) is really tasty haha. I couldn't finish all my rice because of the break time, but still.

Would I return to Choburi for Korean food in Gojan-dong?

Personally, the combination of kimchi jjigae and buckwheat pancake was the most memorable part of this visit. The rich broth of the kimchi jjigae and the light, nutty flavor of the buckwheat pancake complemented each other well, making it more satisfying than eating just one dish alone.

If you're looking for a place to eat in Gojan-dong, or somewhere filling near Gojan Station, Choburi Kimchi Jjigae Gojan Main Branch is worth keeping in mind. Especially if you love kimchi jjigae — try the hot stew with a bowl of rice, plus the nutty buckwheat pancake alongside it.

This is a place I think I'll come back to the next time I'm craving Korean food near Gojan Station. Hope this helps anyone who loves kimchi jjigae or is searching for restaurants in Gojan Station or Gojan-dong :)