Anyang seafood restaurant with cheese fondue: Taegine Jogae Jeongol

A reserved clam hot pot dinner near Anyang Art Park

Yesterday after work, we decided to have clam hot pot at Taegine Jogae Jeongol (택이네조개전골) near Anyang Art Park for the first time in ages~ Anyang Art Park felt especially familiar because I used to work part-time at Waterland there. I visited often for work, but I don't think I ever got to look around the neighborhood much.

It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11:00 to 21:00, with last orders at 20:00. Group visits, separate men's and women's restrooms, parking, takeaway, and delivery are available; the restroom is inside, and you can park along the road or behind the restaurant.

We dropped in for dinner near Anyang Art Park, haha. Actually, when Taegine Jogae Jeongol had a branch at Bakdal Market, my younger sibling said it was delicious, so I had gone there for hot pot once before~ My friend also recommended this Art Park branch, so this time I reserved a whole week ahead and visited.

When we walked in, they were even selling little snack treats!

Indoor seating for group diners

When I visited, lots of groups were there, including company dinner parties and church groups. The restaurant had plenty of seating to accommodate that many guests.

Clam hot pot menu and self-serve side dishes

Taegine Jogae Jeongol has lots of menu options, from clam hot pot to haesintang (seafood and chicken soup) and kalguksu (knife-cut noodles), all prepared for at least two people. We decided to try their signature clam hot pot~

Before the meal, side dishes and boribap (barley rice) arrived. They were similar to the side dishes usually served at seafood restaurants in Oido or alongside kalguksu.

Self-serve side dishes and barley rice

The barley rice and side-dish station lets you have unlimited refills, so do make use of it. I mixed up a proper bowl of barley rice and ate it as an appetizer before the hot pot.

The enormous clam hot pot after a 14-minute wait

Finally, the clam hot pot arrived! A gigantic pot appeared, so eye-catching that it covered more than half the table!! They set a timer, and we waited around 14 minutes in anticipation. As it neared readiness, steam rose and water dripped from the lid. When the timer rings to say it is done, the owner comes over and opens the lid for you, haha.

Bubble, bubble~~

Pen shell, scallops, white clams, mussels, squid, fish cake, and even shrimp! The pot was packed without a gap, leaving us with the happy dilemma of what to eat first, haha. The types and quantities of seafood can vary seasonally because of supply, so it is good to keep that in mind before you go~~

Once the owner cuts up the squid and pen shell into easy-to-eat pieces, you can comfortably dig into the seafood~

If you order ahead, you can enjoy an even wider variety of ingredients.

There was one abalone and one pen shell per person, so it was fun to eat according to our group size~ There were also white clams that made the broth taste clean and refreshing, and those were my favorite because there were so many of them!

Besides the seafood, I liked having whelk, fish cake, and vegetables such as napa cabbage and mushrooms to go with it. There are various topping options beyond what we ordered too, so enjoy them!

You can also dip everything in the chojang (sweet-and-tangy chili sauce) or soy sauce served alongside, whichever you prefer. And above all, you know how nutty and clean clam broth from a clam hot pot is, right? Just as clear as it looks in the photos, Taegine Jogae Jeongol's broth had a deep flavor. We ate it refreshingly and got ready to finish with kalguksu.

Cheese fondue wrapped around scallop adductor muscle

The clams are delicious simply dipped in chojang or soy sauce, but the real charm of Taegine Jogae Jeongol is the cheese fondue set in the middle of the hot pot. I wrapped tender, perfectly cooked scallop adductor muscle generously in stretchy mozzarella cheese.

The nutty cheese gently wrapped around the seafood's naturally salty flavor and made for perfect savoriness!! I really love cheese for both its texture and taste, so it suited my palate perfectly! It is a flavor that not only kids but adults cannot help falling for too! I kept eating and couldn't stop, so later it got a little rich, haha. Whenever that happened, I reset my palate with the refreshing broth, haha.

Kalguksu finished in clam broth

And the grand final touch! We chose kalguksu noodles as our extra, but since there was so much food and we were full, we decided to order just one serving. I keep eating more even when I am full, and I have been gaining weight lately ㅠ

The broth steeped with so many clams grows richer over time, so once you have picked out and eaten most of the clams, adding kalguksu noodles to the broth is not optional—it is essential! Mom was diligently cooking them~ Finally, the kalguksu was ready! We topped the chewy noodles, soaked through with broth, with kimchi and finished the meal perfectly.

A proper nom~

A walk through Anyang Art Park after dinner

By the time we came out after eating, it had gotten dark. Since we had eaten so much, I wrapped up the evening by walking through the art park with my family to digest.

The commercial area around Anyang Art Park was still lively. There were bindaetteok (mung bean pancakes), various game arcades, karaoke rooms, lots of cafés, and the pasta restaurants, cafés, and bars that are popular these days. There were not many people yesterday because it was a weekday, but it is such a well-developed area that I found it a shame to see it quiet. I should come back for walks along Anyangcheon Stream from time to time. We ate well, looked around, and headed home!