Hongdae izakaya with clam sake steam and pasta: Midosawa Sangsu

Today I visited Midosawa Hongdae Sangsu Branch, an izakaya near Hongdae, Sangsu, and Hapjeong! Great atmosphere and every dish was delicious ｡ﾟﾟ･｡･ﾟﾟ｡

They have such a wide range of seafood dishes that I'd recommend this place to anyone looking for a sashimi spot in Sangsu or a good side-dish spot near Sangsu Station! Let's get into it 🍻

Where is Midosawa Hongdae Sangsu Branch, and what are its hours?

Midosawa Hongdae Sangsu Branch is located at 98 Dokmak-ro, Sangga-dong 1st floor 103ho, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea, right in front of Sangsu Station. Hours are 11:30-01:00, with Saturday opening at 17:30 and Sunday as the regular closing day. Reservations, Wi-Fi, separate men's/women's restrooms, and parking are all available.

Being right in front of Sangsu Station made it really easy to find! It's also close to Hongdae and Hapjeong, so it's a convenient spot for anyone searching for a good restaurant-bar near Sangsu Station, a Sangsu bar, a Hongdae izakaya, or a Hapjeong izakaya :)

It's famous as a go-to spot for side dishes near Sangsu Station, so when we visited it was nearly full! Only one table was open ㅜㅜ I'd really recommend booking ahead.

Floor-to-ceiling windows and the mood inside Midosawa

The exterior of Midosawa Hongdae Sangsu Branch is all floor-to-ceiling windows, so you can see the interior atmosphere well from outside — it had that cozy, late-night-diner vibe haha

I found this place while looking for a good-atmosphere izakaya in Sangsu, and the exterior is pretty stylish right from the start ✨ Rather than feeling like a loud, rowdy bar, it felt more like an izakaya for enjoying good food and drinks 👩❤️👨♥️

From outside you could easily check the menu, prices, and hours!

They have a wide variety of fish dishes and sashimi, so it seems to be popular as a sashimi spot in Sangsu too 🐟🐟 And besides drinking snacks, they also have meal options like hot pot rice and pasta, so it looked like a good pick for anyone looking for lunch near Sangsu!

Once inside, there were dachi (counter) tables and 4-person tables set up!

It was so crowded I couldn't get a full shot of the whole interior ㅜㅜ but the window seats had great atmosphere too, perfect for a date!

Overall, the lighting was soft and the interior and props were nicely styled, giving off a very upscale izakaya feel ₊˚⊹♡ There were couples on dates, people drinking solo, and it seemed like a good spot for small work dinners or drinks with friends too!

What's on the menu at Midosawa?

This Sangsu Station bar had a really wide range of seafood-based dishes! True to being a Sangsu izakaya and Japanese food spot, they had everything from sashimi to fish dishes, tempura, and wine-steamed dishes ✨

Since they're especially known as a sashimi spot in Sangsu, sashimi and fish dishes really feel like the main event! They said the menu can change a bit day to day depending on which ingredients are good that day 🐟 So I think people who care about fresh ingredients would really like this place ♥️

Beyond that, there was a wide range of seafood-based side dishes like tempura and wine-steamed dishes, plus meat dishes like sweet and sour pork and cold pork slices!

There was also a good variety of drinks — highballs, sake, Japanese shochu 🍶 We ordered squid tempura, giant clam wine-steamed dish (with pasta noodles added), and Hallasan soju!

While waiting for our order, we could watch the chef cooking right in front of us! Seeing each dish made with care right before our eyes made us look forward to the food even more 🥹

Squid tempura with cheese and mayo sauce

Midosawa's squid tempura comes topped with a generous amount of cheese, served with lemon and mayo sauce. Looks pretty hearty just from the visual, right?! The portion was bigger than I expected too, perfect as a drinking snack ✨

Maybe because it was fried fresh, the texture of the tempura was seriously perfect! Crispy on the outside, chewy squid on the inside 🦑 One bite and I could taste the crunch and the savory flavor right away haha

I also tried squeezing on the lemon that came with it! The lemon's tartness cut through the richness and I kept reaching for more 🍋

I liked that the squid pieces were nice and big! The squid itself wasn't tough and had no fishy smell, so it was really tasty 🍻 It didn't feel like frozen squid tempura at all — the chewy texture felt like fresh squid fried right away, which I especially liked!

And the cheese combo was great 🧀 As the cheese melts slightly on top of the crispy tempura, the savory flavor doubles! Adding the cheese made it feel like a proper dish rather than just plain squid tempura!!!

Dipping it in the mayo sauce that came with it was also delicious!!

If you like squid tempura, I think you'd love this dish no matter your taste! Total tempura winner haha

Why adding pasta noodles to the sake-steamed giant clams is a must

The dish I was most looking forward to at Midosawa was the giant clam wine-steamed dish, and we added pasta noodles to it 🤍 I really love clam wine-steamed dishes, but at other places the clams are often so small they're annoying to eat ㅜㅜ

But true to its name, Midosawa's dish has giant clams in it, so I loved the visual right away! The clams being big made picking out the meat much easier, and the meat was plump and satisfying to eat haha

Best of all, the clams were really well cleaned of sand, so there was no grit at all, it felt very clean! The clams themselves were fresh, so the broth had a clean taste too 🐚

We added pasta noodles to the giant clam wine-steamed dish and it's seriously highly recommended ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧ The butter-and-garlic-based broth soaked right into the pasta noodles, turning it into a fancy seafood pasta!

If you order the giant clam wine-steamed dish, adding pasta noodles is an absolute must!! It works great as a drinking snack and also as a way to wrap up the meal like a main dish, so if you're torn on what to order at Midosawa, I really recommend this combo ♥️

With the squid tempura, giant clam wine-steamed dish, and pasta noodles all together, the spread felt really generous 😋 Above all, the dishes didn't feel like simple bar snacks — each one felt carefully made!

Especially since sashimi and fish dishes are the main focus, you could really taste that they use good ingredients 🐟✨ I'd genuinely recommend this as a Hongdae izakaya side-dish spot or a Sangsu izakaya side-dish spot haha

If you're looking for a good-atmosphere izakaya in Sangsu or a spot for fresh seafood side dishes, definitely visit Midosawa Hongdae Sangsu Branch 😊♥️