Hongdae naengmyeon restaurant with a hanok daecheongmaru hall: Anok

A quiet, newly-discovered spot in Hongdae, perfect for a late lunch with friends I hadn't seen in a while.

After more than three hours of coaching, I searched "Hongdae restaurants" online for lunch, and the moment I saw Anok's elegant, old-fashioned look, I couldn't look away. "I'll take you to a Pyongyang naengmyeon place in Hongdae today" — and off we went!

It was still broad daylight, sunlight everywhere, but the classic atmosphere really caught my eye — the kind of quiet, old-fashioned feel that's hard to find anywhere near Hongdae.

Where Anok is in Hongdae, and its hours

• Address: 13-4 Hongik-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Hours: 11:00–22:00 (last order 21:00)
• Closed Mondays
• Parking: Not available. Use nearby public parking lots
• 7-minute walk from Exit 9, Hongik University Station
• Corkage: ₩30,000 per bottle (no limit on number of bottles)
• Group seating available for up to 12 (reservation required in advance)
• Pets not allowed

What Anok's hanok courtyard and daecheongmaru hall feel like

Anok is a Korean restaurant housed in a hanok (traditional Korean house) with a courtyard and a daecheongmaru (raised wooden veranda). Sitting on the sunlit veranda in the courtyard made me want to sit and have a day drink right there. The clean, tidy feel was so charming.

The interior is exactly the kind of aesthetic that would win over international visitors. It's clean inside too, and with group reservations available for up to 12, it seems like it would work well for foreign families or company dinners alike.

It has a Korean feel that's rare to find around Hongdae, and the menu is straightforwardly Korean, so it seemed quite busy around lunchtime. It looked like a wave of diners had already come and gone.

Traditional Korean painted scrolls hang on the walls, adding to the classic feel, but without being stuffy — there's a strange charm to the interior.

If I'd come as a couple, I'd have wanted the window seat. The sunlight filtering through the wooden lattice window was really something — a quiet, cozy spot perfect for a couple chatting softly over a meal. There were three of us that day, so I had to let it go, sadly...

What the three of us ordered at Anok, and the side dishes

The three of us ordered two Pyongyang naengmyeon, one clear gomtang, and one braised pork tail. I'm not usually a big noodle person, but noodles made with this much care deserve to be tried.

I'd wanted to order potato pancake or kimchi pancake too, but my companions convinced me to try the main dishes first and order more later if we were still hungry... if we had ordered them, we probably wouldn't have finished everything, haha. Next time I'd like to try the other menu items.

A neat, tidy table setting. Since naengmyeon is the main dish, there weren't many side dishes. Diced radish kimchi, jangajji (pickled vegetables), and dipping sauce for the meat. Overall a simple side dish lineup that didn't overpower the mild noodle flavor.

The jangajji wasn't too salty or too sweet — just the right crunch and flavor.

Anok's clear gomtang: why the broth stays transparent

Anok's gomtang looked completely different from the gomtang you'd see at most other places, right from the start. Instead of the usual milky white broth, it's a clear, transparent style.

One spoonful and the mild flavor was really gentle — and most importantly, there wasn't much of an MSG taste and no gamy smell, so it felt genuinely clean. One of the main reasons I avoid naengmyeon is the carb overload, but also because the broth is often made with seasoning powder. Here, I could eat without that worry — a genuinely wholesome flavor.

The rice doesn't come as a separate bowl — it's tucked underneath the meat. The amount of meat was more than I expected, so eating the warm broth with rice and meat would be really filling, haha. I have a feeling this place is going to become known as a top gomtang spot in Hongdae.

Both the gomtang and the naengmyeon had thinly sliced meat. Because it was thin, it wasn't heavy, and the meat itself was tender with a clean, light flavor — highly recommended for anyone who likes a mild, delicate taste! The clean yet deep broth paired with the thin, light meat was really excellent.

How Anok's Pyongyang naengmyeon tastes, plus vinegar and mustard tips

Anok serves its Pyongyang naengmyeon (buckwheat cold noodles) as a mul-naengmyeon style — a light, cold-broth dish. The broth is truly mild and subtle, so people used to MSG-heavy flavors who don't know real broth might find it bland, but anyone who knows would recognize it. I have a feeling this place could soon be named among the best Pyongyang naengmyeon spots in Hongdae.

The noodles kept the distinctive buckwheat texture without just snapping apart abruptly. Perfect for eating the broth, meat, and noodles all together! If you find it too bland, adding a bit more vinegar and mustard makes it even tastier. My companions were so hungry they dove right in, and I was the only one who added vinegar and mustard later — adding even more gave it a completely different, delightful flavor.

How spicy is Anok's braised pork tail, and what is the texture?

Anok's braised pork tail is a dish you rarely find at other naengmyeon restaurants. It was also the dish I was most looking forward to. I don't usually go for heavily seasoned meat, but this one just looked too good.

Pork tail is packed with collagen, and the chewy-yet-soft skin along with the plump, springy texture was genuinely delicious. It's a fatty cut that can feel a bit greasy, but the seasoning made it much easier to keep eating. The gomtang and naengmyeon are mild, while the pork tail jjim is bold — the balance between them felt just right.

The pork tail jjim just melts softly in your mouth. If I hadn't already been full, I could've kept eating forever. It looks super spicy from the color, but the actual taste wasn't that hot — just a sweet-and-spicy flavor that made it easy to eat a lot, haha.

Is Anok worth a return visit, and who should go?

If I'd come in the evening, I think it would've been great to pair the meal with one of Anok's traditional liquors. A truly Korean atmosphere with a properly made gomtang, naengmyeon, and pork tail jjim! It's not well known yet, which is why it's like this now, but once word gets out, I feel like there'll be a line out the door. I think international visitors especially would love it. Word-of-mouth potential, guaranteed.

In a Hongdae area packed with trendy global restaurants aimed at twenty-somethings, finding a place with such a genuinely Korean atmosphere and properly made Korean dishes was really impressive. I have a feeling I'll keep craving the buckwheat naengmyeon, gomtang, and pork tail jjim made with such a well-drawn broth, in that quiet, old-fashioned Korean setting. This is Anok, a Hongdae restaurant where even someone who doesn't love noodles like me would say I'd come back 100% of the time.