Dangjin Korean restaurant for squid hot pot after Eupseong: Ojjingeo

I love squid dishes, like squid soup, stir-fried squid and squid kimchi pancake, but the squid hot pot I had at Ojjingeo Dangjin (오찡어 당진점) was honestly amazing. I wanted something spicy and refreshing to end our trip, so I searched for a good Korean restaurant in Dangjin and stopped by. It completely won over me and my husband.

I cook squid soup at home fairly often, so why had I never thought of squid hot pot? Haha. We visited at lunchtime, and it was perfect both for office workers wanting a hearty lunch and for travelers in Dangjin like us. Let me introduce this Dangjin squid specialist.

On our way up from Taean, we took a slow walk around Dangjin Eupseong Fortress and also stopped by the much-talked-about Ami Art Museum. The trip was better than expected, with lots to see, and we ended it at Ojjingeo, a Korean restaurant in Dangjin.

Ojjingeo Dangjin: location, hours and parking

Ojjingeo Dangjin is at 17 Cheongnyong-gil, Daedeok-dong, Dangjin, Chungnam. It is open Tue–Sun 11:00–22:00, with a break time from 15:00 to 17:00. It is closed every Monday, and you can park in front of the restaurant.

• Name: Ojjingeo Dangjin (Daedeok-dong, Dangjin)
• Address: 17 Cheongnyong-gil, Dangjin, Chungnam
• Hours: Tue–Sun 11:00–22:00, break time 15:00–17:00
• Closed: every Monday
• Groups welcome, takeout available
• Parking: in front of the restaurant

We parked nearby, and there was plenty of parking space around there too.

Ojjingeo Dangjin menu and interior

The main dishes at Ojjingeo Dangjin are squid hot pot, stir-fried squid, squid pancake, boiled squid slices and squid tangsuyuk (sweet and sour fried squid). We ordered the lunch special squid hot pot for 2 (13,000) and the squid vegetable pancake (15,000).

I was going to order the "O Set," but the owner recommended the lunch special, which is hearty and cheaper, so we went with that.

• Squid hot pot for 2: 13,000 (lunch special)
• Squid vegetable pancake: 15,000

There are rooms in the back, so groups are fine, and customers kept coming and going, probably because it was the office lunch hour. You order easily by table ordering.

This was our first squid specialty restaurant. We've been to a raw squid place, but this was a totally new feeling, and I lost count of how many times we said we wished we had one in our neighborhood. Haha. Squid is high in protein and low in calories, so it often shows up on our dinner table at home too, lightly blanched. And after reading up, I found it's a really good food for the body.

Ojjingeo squid hot pot: portion and spice level

The squid hot pot for 2 at Ojjingeo Dangjin was big enough for 3 people. We ordered medium spicy, and it was still hot and sharp, so I think the spicy level would have been a bit too spicy.

Wow, there's a ton of squid! It's cut in big pieces, with plenty of minari (water dropwort) too. The squid hot pot and stir-fried squid can be ordered for 2 or more, and the portion was generous. Even at medium spicy, it was nicely hot and sharp.

Here are the squid vegetable pancake and the basic side dishes. Extra side dishes are available from the self-service bar.

The squid vegetable pancake we ordered after seeing the next table

The squid vegetable pancake at Ojjingeo Dangjin comes made like a pizza and cut into slices. Honestly, I ordered it because the next table was eating it and it looked so good, and now I see why it's popular. This Dangjin restaurant was the last stop of our 2-day, 1-night trip, and we were very satisfied.

While the hot pot was boiling, we started on the pancake, and wow, the crunchy texture and the springy squid made it the real squid pancake. There's soy sauce, but it was great even without it.

A squid hot pot broth that gets better as it boils

The hot pot looks more appetizing the longer it bubbles, and I was so curious about the broth. They say it's made with fresh, pure ingredients, simmered for up to 6 hours or more and then aged for 2 days. I really picked the right Korean squid specialist in Dangjin. Haha.

Even when we eat all kinds of food on a trip, we often end with spicy, flavorful Korean food, and squid hot pot and pancake in Dangjin were an excellent choice. It was packed with ingredients, and the broth, both sweet and spicy, felt comforting in the stomach.

The squid hot pot blends the squid's own sweetness with a sharp, spicy kick! The squid looked big, but it shrank as it boiled to a perfect bite size. It was a very satisfying lunch.

Would I recommend Ojjingeo Dangjin for a Dangjin trip lunch?

We added Ojjingeo Dangjin to our list of Korean restaurants in Daedeok-dong, Dangjin. We've been traveling around Korea a lot lately, and my husband keeps a list of every local restaurant we were happy with, to recommend to friends or anyone who asks.

You can't afford to get the food wrong on a trip. If you visit Dangjin, do stop by. We ate really well. If you're looking for a Korean restaurant in Dangjin, this is the place!!