Namdong Korean restaurant for spicy pork bone stew: Cheongchun

Today, we had some errands near Incheon Nonhyeon and heard there was a place serving truly delicious bulppyeojjim (spicy braised pork bones) and gamjatang (pork bone soup), so we stopped by.

Honestly, pork-bone specialties such as bulppyeojjim and gamjatang were some of the Korean foods that were really hard to get while living abroad~! Even when we visited Korean restaurants, they were never quite as delicious as what we ate in Korea, so these were dishes I always planned to have as soon as I came home! Then I heard there was a famous specialty restaurant in Incheon Nonhyeon, and we rushed right over~!

That place was Cheongchun Bulppyeojjim Gamjatang Incheon Nonhyeon Branch (청춘불뼈찜감자탕 인천논현점). Just as its sign says, it specializes in bulppyeojjim and gamjatang.

Cheongchun Bulppyeojjim Gamjatang exterior, a walk from Incheon Nonhyeon Station

It took about five minutes on foot from Exit 3 of Incheon Nonhyeon Station~! Since it is right by the station, I thought it would be really convenient to reach by public transport too~! The sign is red, and with the main dishes displayed right at the entrance, it was easy to find. I thought customers would have a hard time walking past this place~!

A cozy, spotless interior

Ta-da, this is what the inside looked like~ It is not huge, but it was very cozy and clean~! It had the feel of a modern Korean restaurant, perhaps~!?

We visited at around 11:30 on a weekday, but it was already fairly busy~! It seemed like lots of people who work around Incheon Nonhyeon Station come here~!

There were especially lots of people dining alone too~! Haejangguk is one of those dishes solo diners often look for, right? Haha. Here, you can also enjoy the braised pork bones as an individual dish, which is great~

A menu for solo diners through to two-person sets

The menu included bulppyeojjim, gamjatang, royal-style braised pork bones, muksabal (chilled acorn jelly soup), and cold kimchi noodles~ There are dishes for solo diners, but there are also two-person set menus, so I think a set would be nice if you want a hearty meal! Aren't the prices quite reasonable in this era of high prices?

From the side dishes to haejangguk and bulppyeojjim: what we tasted

Neat side dishes arrived~! At franchise restaurants, I have often seen side dishes that were skimpy or not properly maintained~ But here, we got chive salad that tasted freshly dressed, crisp sweet-and-sour white kimchi, and refreshing kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi). My husband had already polished off a bowl of rice before the haejangguk even arrived~

Finally, my haejangguk arrived~! They also had an extra-large size, but I ordered the regular. Wow... it was seriously such a huge portion!!!! At poorly run pork-bone soup places, the meat can be dry or difficult to pull off the bone, but here it was wonderfully tender, the meat was good quality, and there was absolutely no off smell~! Can you see the generous topping of bean sprouts, scallions, and perilla seed powder? You can tell this is a place that does not skimp on ingredients, haha.

Ahh, the broth was so deep and spicy...! It had a distinctive flavor of its own, and I thought carefully about what it could be... Compared with other haejangguk restaurants, the broth here is richer and spicier! If you like bold flavors, you really should go, hehe.

Next came the long-awaited bulppyeojjim!!!! My husband had come here looking forward to this alone~~ Even though it was not the extra-large size, the portion was enormous just like the haejangguk, and I was especially impressed by how neatly it was served~~ When we smelled it, it had such an incredibly delicious aroma..!

As you can see, it also came with flat glass noodles!! We chose medium spice, and it was still quite hot~!! About as spicy as Buldak?! The sauce inside was so delicious... I am normally a huge haejangguk fan, but I came here and properly discovered how good bulppyeojjim can be..!

A place that stays on your mind for its rich sauce and fresh meat

At gamjatang restaurants, I have often found that the seasoning was somehow lacking or the meat was not fresh, but this place got both of those things right~! The owner was kind and the hygiene was perfect too... so there is no reason not to go, right?! We keep thinking about this flavor, so we are planning to return again soon, haha.

For anyone looking for Korean food or haejangguk around Incheon Nonhyeon Station, or wanting to properly enjoy braised pork bones, I highly recommend Cheongchun Bulppyeojjim & Haejangguk.

• Weekdays and Saturday 09:00–22:30 (last order 22:00)
• Sunday closes at 21:00 (last order 20:30)
• Closed every Wednesday