Nowon sushi buffet with kids: ₩4,000 parking past 2 hours, Kuu Kuu

With the kids on summer break, I took my 6-year-old and 11-year-old to a weekday lunch at Kuu Kuu Nowon Branch (쿠우쿠우 노원점). It has all kinds of sushi, lamb chops, marinated shrimp, soy-marinated crab, pizza, pasta, fruit and cake, so every age group can pick what they like, and it has private rooms, which makes it good for a family gathering too.

If you have little kids, or you can't agree on what to eat, I recommend Kuu Kuu Nowon: it has an indoor playroom and parking isn't difficult.

Kuu Kuu Nowon: what to know before you go

• After you enter, the courtesy time limit is 1 hour 30 minutes! But they don't tell you to leave or charge extra if you go over. However, parking is free for only 2 hours!
• Open weekdays 11:00–21:30 (last order 20:00) / weekends 11:00–22:00 (last order 20:30)
• The indoor playroom is for ages up to 7, and a guardian has to go in with the child
• Unlimited draft beer (Terra, Kelly) for ₩5,900

Where is Kuu Kuu Nowon and where do you park?

Kuu Kuu Nowon is not near Nowon Station. It's roughly between Junggye and Hagye stations, near Daejin High School and Hyeseong Girls' High School. The address is 247 Nowon-ro, Nowon-gu, Seoul, 6th floor.

Going by the big main road, the parking lot is behind the building. There's a separate entrance for surface parking, which confused me a little, but look for that vertical Seoul Oncheon Building parking sign. That's where you enter the underground lot.

We came on a weekday at midday, so there were plenty of spaces, but the spaces felt a bit narrow for our SUV. The kind parking attendant guided us to a wider spot, though. Take the elevator to the 6th floor and you'll find it right away.

Kuu Kuu Nowon prices for weekday lunch, weekday dinner and weekends, plus booking

We came with the kids during the break, and at 12:30 on a Friday the restaurant was already full of guests. It was vacation season, a weekday, and the parking lot clearly had room... but inside it was packed.

We booked on Naver the day before, so we got in without waiting. If there's a queue, you can wait via Catch Table. Naver booking works for same-day reservations too!

<Kuu Kuu Nowon menu>

Kuu Kuu Nowon dining room and private rooms

Kuu Kuu Nowon is on the 6th floor of the Seoul Oncheon building. At the entrance, prices and waiting info are clearly posted, so you can check everything at a glance before eating, and the moment you step in, the spacious, pleasant room raised our hopes for a family meal.

A big hall and big tables. The tables aren't packed together, so it felt private, and there are rooms on the other side, where some people were holding family events and gatherings.

Unlimited Terra and Kelly draft beer for ₩5,900?

Not Filite (a cheap hopped-malt drink) — Kelly and Terra draft beer, unlimited??

The food is varied and tasty, and there's an unlimited Kelly and Terra draft beer option. Next time I'll come with my beer-loving daycare mom friends ^^

How thick is the fish on Kuu Kuu Nowon sushi?

I used to go to Kuu Kuu with friends 10 years ago, before I got married. My image of Kuu Kuu was lots of rice and a little fish, so I'd always set some rice aside. (Sorry to the staff. I was young then.)

Now the fish is overwhelmingly bigger than the rice! You can taste the fish without removing any rice. Compared with a traditional conveyor-belt sushi restaurant, the amount of rice and the size of the fish on top are about the same!

Sushi can't go without soy sauce and wasabi! They use fresh wasabi! Kids come here too, so the sushi has no wasabi inside, which I liked better. But I added fresh wasabi myself and dipped it in soy sauce like at a traditional sushi place.

Norwegian raw salmon sashimi?? When did Kuu Kuu become a sashimi restaurant? You can taste a sushi master's expertise.

Enjoying tuna sashimi and Norwegian salmon, I thought, Kuu Kuu has changed a lot. The world has changed a lot.

The tuna tasted similar to the tuna I had at the PIC resort in Guam.

Gleaming tuna sashimi, and this is Kuu Kuu in Nowon-gu, Seoul.

Flatfish sushi: how thick is the slice?

The fish is bigger than the rice. See how thick the flatfish belly is?? That belly sushi you get one piece of per plate at a conveyor-belt place is at Kuu Kuu!

I remember going to Kuu Kuu a lot before marriage. Even getting flatfish belly was a surprise, and seeing its thickness made me decide to become a regular at Kuu Kuu Nowon. The shrimp sushi melts in your mouth too, and above all the ingredients are fresh!

What else is on the Kuu Kuu Nowon buffet?

There's a made-to-order corner with jjajang (black bean noodles), jjamppong (spicy seafood noodles), udon, miso soup, cold soba and more.

Dongpo pork (braised pork belly), which older folks will like!

The pizza and pasta my little ones love were good, but I recommend the vongole pasta, which is nicely spicy.

There's mala tang too... I didn't eat much that day, just tasted it, but with so many kinds of food you can get full before you know it! I recommend picking a target: sushi if it's sushi, soy-marinated crab if it's crab, and so on!

The vongole pasta on the right is perfect for adult tastes! The Uljin snow crab pasta on the left is perfect for kids!

Why is there sake-steamed clams here?? I couldn't resist, so I ate them again.

Desserts at Kuu Kuu Nowon

The kids had bead ice cream and chewy gelato-like ice cream for dessert,

and I had soy-marinated crab and marinated shrimp one more time for dessert~ My 6-year-old had a waffle, and my eldest son and his dad had fruit and cake.

Kuu Kuu Nowon playroom: what is the age limit?

Let's go home!! It's been 1 hour 30 minutes!!!! I asked a staff member if we'd gone over time, and they said it was fine, so my younger one, who was only going to stop by the playroom after the meal, played there for over 30 minutes.

My younger one said, sorry we're over time, but I have to have a cold slush^^ If you're happy, I'm happy too!

After a lovely meal I went to settle the parking, and oh my!! The parking fee was ₩4,000! We'd parked for 2 hours 6 minutes. Six minutes over, and we paid ₩4,000.

Kuu Kuu Nowon parking: what we paid after 2 hours

Kuu Kuu has a courtesy time limit of 1 hour 30 minutes. If there's a waiting list, please try to keep to it. But they don't tell you to leave or charge extra when you go. However... parking is free for only 2 hours! After that you're charged.

School-break weekday lunch at Kuu Kuu Nowon with kids aged 6 and 11

During summer break, our family of four, with a 6-year-old, an 11-year-old and Mom and Dad, came to Kuu Kuu Nowon for a weekday lunch. Adults who love sushi and sashimi, older folks who love soy-marinated crab and marinated shrimp, and kids who love chicken, pizza, udon, pasta, jjajangmyeon and kkwabaroushi (crispy sweet-and-sour pork) all had plenty to choose from, and we had a great time, even using the playroom.

If you're looking for a restaurant or family dining spot in Nowon to go with kids, I recommend Kuu Kuu Nowon.

Kuu Kuu Nowon FAQ

Q1. Is Kuu Kuu Nowon good for kids?

Yes! There are lots of dishes kids like and there's even a playroom, so both of my kids, from little one to elementary schooler, ask to go again.

Q2. Is weekday lunch or dinner better at Kuu Kuu Nowon, and is unlimited beer time-limited?

For value, I recommend weekday lunch. The menu was varied, there were lamb chops, and you can get unlimited beer at lunchtime too.

Q3. Is there enough food for elementary school kids?

With salmon sushi, shrimp sushi, chicken, pizza, udon, ice cream dessert, waffles and more that kids love, it was hard to find any kids on their smartphones here.