Makgeolli pub in Hapjeong, Seoul with corn pancake fire show: Deogiwa

It's getting harder to find a place in the middle of the city that feels warm from the moment you walk in. Now that I've crossed forty, I find myself drawn less to flashy interiors and more to places where a warm feeling greets you the second you open the door.

Finding the company dinner spot always falls to me. Oddly enough, whenever I pick a place with this kind of cozy vibe, the reaction is always great. So these days, when I spot a decent place on my own time, I go check it out first.

This time I visited Deogiwa Hapjeong. It sits in an alley off Dokmak-ro, between Hapjeong and Sangsu stations, so it's an easy walk from either one. If you're after a good spot for makgeolli after work, but want the side dishes to be good enough to count as a full meal, keep reading.

Where is Deogiwa Hapjeong, and what are the hours?

• Address: 25 Dokmak-ro 3-gil, 1st floor, Mapo-gu, Seoul
• Hours: Daily 11:30 – 1:30 (next day), no break time
• Lunch menu: Orders accepted until 4 PM
• Parking: No store parking; nearby paid lots recommended
• Subway: Hapjeong Station (Lines 2·6), Exit 3, about 6–7 min walk / Sangsu Station (Line 6), about 5 min walk
• Bus: Get off at Seoul Thermal Power Plant Entrance stop, about 2 min walk (routes 271, 3000, 5714, 7011, etc.)
• Reservations: Available via Naver Reservation and Catch Table
• Ordering: Table order (T ORDER); if you're not used to it, staff can walk you through it

Roof tiles and rafters inside: how many people fit in a room?

Walk in and you're greeted by traditional Korean roof tiles, vintage weathered wood, and ceramic decor pieces. It's not flashy at all — it's calm and warm, and I felt at ease the moment I stepped in.

The first floor has a spacious terrace and hall that recalls the stone wall path around Deoksugung Palace. The second floor is a cozy space with exposed rafters and ceramic pendant lights, and its terrace lets you drink while looking out over the Hapjeong-dong night view. It would work just as well for a blind date or a regular date.

As the person who books company dinners, what caught my eye was the rooms. There are rooms for 6 to 12 people, which seems perfect for a team dinner or year-end gathering. Just keep in mind that on Fridays, Saturdays, and holidays, both the hall and rooms are limited to 2.5 hours.

Three things that set Deogiwa Hapjeong apart

1. Fusion Korean cooking from a chef with 20 years of experience

There are more than 30 menu items that reinterpret traditional Korean food in a modern way. The honey corn pancake and matcha tteokbokki (stir-fried rice cakes) have even been featured on TV (Sixth Sense), which says a lot about how distinctive each dish is.

2. Signature makgeolli you can only drink here

They serve what they call Korea's first ube makgeolli (rice wine), along with tiramisu, the original matcha, misugaru (roasted grain powder), and even a limited-edition macaron makgeolli. Enjoying makgeolli like dessert isn't an experience you find easily elsewhere.

3. Lunch to late night: a meal and a drinking spot in one place

With no break time and lunch set orders accepted until 4 PM, you can get a table full of side dishes during the day and switch to anju (drinking snacks) with traditional liquor at night.

Deogiwa Hapjeong menu and prices

🍚 Lunch menu (orders until 4 PM)

• Deogiwa baekban (Korean set meal) ₩10,000
• Jeolla-do sugar noodles with bossam (boiled pork wrap) / Haenam yeolmu noodles / Iksan chogye noodles, each ₩12,000
• Jeyuk-ssam (spicy pork wrap) set / Kkomak (cockle) set, each ₩13,000
• Bossam set / Beef bulgogi set, each ₩15,000
• Grilled mackerel set ₩17,000
• Abalone rice pot / 1++ Hanwoo beef yukhoe bibimbap, each ₩18,000
• Eel rice pot ₩22,000
• Switch to rice pot +₩3,000

🍶 Evening anju: bossam and suyuk (boiled pork)

• Sampler bossam ₩13,500
• Pork belly suyuk with bossam kimchi ₩35,000
• Garlic pork belly suyuk with bossam kimchi ₩37,000
• Scallop bossam with minari salad / Hwaseong stone-ground tofu bossam, each ₩43,000
• Squid vinegar salad bossam ₩45,000

🥘 Hot pots and stews

• Skewered fish cake stew / Spicy skewered fish cake stew, each ₩28,000
• Beef bulgogi hot pot ₩29,000
• Mille-feuille nabe ₩30,000
• Iron-pot kimchi hot pot ₩34,000

🥞 Jeon (Korean savoury pancakes)

• Baby shrimp and minari pancake / Whole pork belly kimchi pancake, each ₩20,000
• Truffle cheese potato pancake ₩21,000
• Spicy honey potato pancake (NEW) ₩23,000
• Boseong native honey corn pancake ₩24,000
• Flat iron beef pancake ₩28,000

🥩 Other anju (drinking snacks)

• Spicy chicken cold ramyeon ₩14,000
• Sangju dried persimmon cream cheese roll ₩16,000
• Perilla leaf beef pancake tteokbokki ₩18,000
• Pork belly wrap with napa cabbage / Tofu with spicy pork and kimchi / Jirisan handmade dried pollack, each ₩19,000
• Bossam kalbi bibim noodles / Mukbap (acorn jelly) with mini bossam, each ₩24,000
• 1++ Hanwoo beef yukhoe with sweet rice and gim bugak (fried seaweed), ₩38,000
• Seasonal summer croaker steam ₩42,000
• 1++ Hanwoo beef yuksashimi ₩51,000
• Deogiwa han-sang (full spread) ₩60,000

🍵 Signature makgeolli list

• Cup of makgeolli ₩2,000
• Misugaru makgeolli ₩16,000
• Original matcha makgeolli ₩19,000 (extra strong matcha +₩5,000)
• Tiramisu makgeolli ₩21,000
• Korea's first ube makgeolli ₩22,000
• Macaron makgeolli (NEW, limited edition) ₩38,000

🍾 Traditional liquor and soju

• Eohwadungdung ₩6,000 / Gangsoju ₩7,000 / Neurin Maeul Neulbom ₩7,500
• Neurin Maeul Makgeolli / Neurin Maeul Bangultok / Tiger Raw Makgeolli, each ₩8,000
• Dokdo Soju ₩14,000 / Seoului Bam ₩15,000
• Goheung Yujaju ₩24,000 / Boksundoga ₩25,000 / Haechang Makgeolli 12 度 ₩28,000
• Ilyeoppyeonju cheongju ₩65,000

What we ordered at Deogiwa Hapjeong

That day we picked two dishes: the Boseong native honey corn pancake and the iron-pot kimchi hot pot. One pancake, one soup — the ideal makgeolli pairing, everyone will agree.

🌽 Boseong wild honey corn pancake (24,000 won)

This dish is an event before you even taste it. The corn pancake comes to the table, and then comes the fire show — whiskey poured on and lit.

The moment the flames shot up, everyone at the table grabbed their phones. This was a dish that treats your eyes first.

Once the flames die down, the honeycomb sitting on top is revealed. The corn pancake was crispy outside and moist inside — genuinely crispy-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside. The bursting sweetness of the corn kernels combined with the honey, and one piece disappeared fast.

Honestly, at this point I couldn't tell whether it was a side dish or a proper dish. A sip of makgeolli, a bite of corn pancake. The sweetness and the makgeolli's tang kept propping each other up, and my glass kept emptying. I fully understood why it made it onto TV.

🍲 Iron-pot kimchi hot pot (34,000 won)

If the corn pancake handled the sweetness, the kimchi hot pot handled the heat. It arrives in a generous pot, packed with kimchi, pork belly, tofu, and mushrooms.

As it bubbles away, the pork belly juices soak into the broth and the flavor deepens. The kimchi's kick and the pork's savoriness came together so well I couldn't put my spoon down. Eating the sweet corn pancake and then taking a spoonful of the spicy broth resets your palate completely. I really felt like ordering this combo was the right call.

If you order the kimchi hot pot, you can add ramyeon noodles and flying fish roe rice at the end, so if you want a heartier finish, that's worth adding.

Is Deogiwa Hapjeong worth it? Final verdict

Deogiwa Hapjeong didn't come up short on atmosphere, menu, or drinks. The Boseong native honey corn pancake in particular grabbed our eyes with the fire show and satisfied our mouths with that crispy-outside, soft-inside texture. Add the spicy kick of the iron-pot kimchi hot pot, and the makgeolli just kept coming.

Between the warm space built around roof tiles and rafters, the 6–12 person rooms, and the no-break-time hours, this is a solid recommendation for a team dinner or small gathering. It's already on my shortlist for the next company dinner. Next time, I'm definitely trying the ube makgeolli and the hanwoo beef yukhoe.