Seorae Village Korean restaurant with private rooms: Naegohyang Jeju

Guys, I found an absolute gem!!!!!!!

Hunting down good food on weekday evenings has become my only pleasure lately. This time my husband and I headed out to Seorae Village for the first time in a while. While walking near Bangbae-dong Café Street, one building really caught my eye

Where is Naegohyang Jeju Bangbae? Basement of TERRACE BLDG in Seorae Village

Naegohyang Jeju's Bangbae location is in the basement of TERRACE BLDG near Bangbae-dong Café Street. The building exterior itself looked so clean and sleek. As I got closer to the entrance, there was a row of banners lined up.

Wait, is it in the basement? Yep. There's a step down, so you can take the elevator, and if you turn this corner the entrance is right there.

They had summer specialties like mulhoe and hoe-guksu, plus weekday lunch specials — the menu was seriously stacked. Since it was evening, we came in dead set on the set meal.

Inside Naegohyang Jeju: Jeju stone walls and a hanji-lattice private room

The interior of Naegohyang Jeju Bangbae mixes stone, wood, and white. The moment we walked in, a wall that looked like it had lifted a Jeju stone wall straight out and placed it inside really caught my eye.

Every table has this stone-wall backdrop, so it was great for photos too. Once we sat down, two thermoses were already set at the table. That pairing caught my eye! Let's have a glass of water first and go through the menu.

Even though it's a small room, the wood interior felt cozy, and you could tell they'd put thought into even the framed art on the walls. The room's door was designed with a hanji-lattice look too, giving the whole thing a quietly elegant mood!

Looking around the whole hall, every table was neatly set, and the staff were moving briskly, getting service ready.

What comes with the set meal, and which one to order for two

The moment I opened the menu at Naegohyang Jeju Bangbae, the Songaksan Set, Sanbangsan Set, and Hallasan Set immediately caught my eye.

• ✨ Several kinds of seasonal sashimi
• ✨ Grilled hairtail
• ✨ Nourishing abalone hot pot rice
• ✨ And fish bone soup

It's a course meant for two or more people, which felt perfect for me and my husband, so we ordered it right away.

First they set out a neat lineup of sauces

What even is this quality? What is this basic side dish situation?! Why is it this good!!!

Abalone hot pot rice and the abalone soup

The hot pot rice, loaded with abalone and greens, came out first, and the second I took a spoonful, the aroma just exploded. The rice grains were glossy and whole pieces of abalone meat were mixed in — every bite had such great texture, ㅠㅠㅠ

Perfect... An abalone soup came out alongside it too, and the broth was genuinely deep and refreshing. They'd added plenty of green onion, so the aroma was still alive too.

Every side dish at Naegohyang Jeju was worth finishing

Look at the side dishes that came with the assorted sashimi. From the seasoned bean sprouts to the seasoned bellflower root to the seasoned eggplant, not a single side dish was made carelessly. And there was zero fishiness, so I thought, ah, this place really knows what it's doing. The sea squirt was so refreshingly tangy ㅠㅠㅠ it's been a while since I found a place like this.

Grilled hairtail deboned at your table: the highlight of the set

This restaurant's real highlight was the grilled hairtail. A staff member grilled the hairtail whole and deboned the flesh right in front of us at the table.

That feeling of the glossy, fatty hairtail flesh melting in your mouth — this is a taste you truly can't understand until you've had it.

I'm so happy, so happy ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ My husband and I clapped like seals, saying we'd found an amazing restaurant. And that salad was seriously delicious too. They dressed the radish with a sauce that was genuinely so good.

Seeing the sashimi and side dishes reset again, the table was completely full, which felt so satisfying. The colorful salad added a cute touch too, and wrapping a piece of sashimi with a dab of sauce in a perilla leaf was a real delicacy. I couldn't stop reaching for that combination.

An unhurried couple's dinner in Bangbae-dong

Sorry for the bare face haha. It was nice to have such a relaxed date like this for once.

Last, they brought us a thoughtfully made plum tea! It wrapped up a delicious dinner nicely after a long time. Great atmosphere, great food — that's what I call the perfect dinner.

Looking at the fridge next to the register, they had things like hallabong (Jeju citrus) juice and barley ssanghwa tea lined up. If I'd come with my niece she definitely would have made me buy her one lol

Final verdict: worth booking the private room for a family gathering

This time it was just my husband and me, but next time I really want to pay out of my own pocket and book the room for a family gathering.

The hairtail was insane, the hot pot rice was insane, and every single side dish was delicious. If you're heading near Seorae Village, definitely stop by.