Cheese rice cake soy jjimdak at a Songdo Korean restaurant: Eonyang

Jjimdak (soy-braised chicken) is my husband's favorite food ever! There just aren't many places that do proper traditional soy jjimdak, so we usually gave up and ate something else. (And when I make it at home it never tastes quite right either, ugh.) Today he absolutely had to have jjimdak, so I went looking for a good spot and we headed to Songdo!

Eonyang Dak Kalguksu in Songdo 1-gongu: exterior and first impression

Eonyang Dak Kalguksu Incheon Songdo Branch is a chain Korean restaurant on Haedoji-ro in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon. I'd tried this brand's kalguksu (noodle soup) before when I lived in Suwon, and it was delicious — I especially remember the kimchi being amazing!

The Songdo branch was big and clean! Looked like it'd be easy to park too, haha. Feels like a spot a lot of office workers in the area would come to.

What's on the menu at Eonyang Dak Kalguksu

The menu is broadly split into dak kalguksu, dak gomtang, Eonyang-style kalguksu, chewy mandu (dumplings), jjimdak, and suyuk (boiled sliced meat). I'd never heard of Eonyang-style kalguksu before — turns out it's dak kalguksu with perilla seeds mixed in! I love places that only do a few things really well — those spots tend to be the most delicious. They said they use house-made noodles and homemade kimchi.

Inside the restaurant and the self-serve kimchi bar

The inside was way more spacious and comfortable than it looked from outside. It could easily seat a big group!

They make fresh gutjeori (lightly seasoned cabbage kimchi) every morning with domestic napa cabbage. There are two versions, spicy and mild, so you just grab whichever suits your taste. It's one menu item per person, and they have baby chairs, so it seems like a fine place to bring a baby too (you can ask for the broth mild). Seems like a good spot for older family members as well!

Half spicy kimchi, half mild kimchi

We're both pretty weak with spice, so we got half spicy and half mild kimchi. Can you even tell which is which? Haha. Mixing them like this meant it wasn't too spicy, which was great! The kimchi was clean-tasting with a nice savory depth. If you're proud of your spice tolerance, give the spicy one a go.

Traditional soy jjimdak: how big is it, and what's in it?

The jjimdak at Eonyang Dak Kalguksu is labeled as 2–3 servings, and it really was a good amount for 3 adults. It came out faster than expected! And wow, the portion was huge. But since we're both big eaters, we each ordered a bowl of rice and cleaned the whole thing out.

Inside there's chicken, flat glass noodles, rice cake, onion, carrot, potato and more. Looks really good, right?

I'm not usually into regular glass noodles, but I love the flat kind for the chewy texture — this place uses the flat kind, so I was happy!

The chicken was fresh and well soaked in the soy seasoning — total rice thief. We're the type who loves jjimdak that nails the classic, no-frills flavor. (If you like it spicy, they also have gochu jjimdak.)

The garaetteok that turned out to be a cheese-stuffed rice cake

There was a big rice cake in there that I assumed was plain garaetteok, but it turned out to be stuffed full of cheese! The cheese was so nutty, and the chewy rice cake paired perfectly with the sweet-savory soy seasoning — I loved it.

Potato, of course, which is a must in any jjimdak! There weren't as many vegetables as I expected, but meat lovers will probably be happy since there's more meat instead. The sauce was thick and concentrated, so it was perfect for mixing with rice!

Final verdict on Eonyang Dak Kalguksu in Songdo

If you're in Songdo and craving something warm and restorative like dak kalguksu or traditional jjimdak, or if kimchi quality matters to you, I recommend Eonyang Dak Kalguksu!

[Hours] Daily 11:00–21:00 / Last order 20:30