Terrace seats and steamed egg at a Sangbong jjukkumi spot: Joajukne

📍 17 Bongujae-ro 37-gil, 1st floor, Jungnang-gu, Seoul, South Korea

⏰ Wed–Sun 11:00–24:00 (last order 23:00, break 14:00–16:00), Mon 11:00–23:00 (last order 22:00, break 14:00–16:00), Tue 16:00–24:00 (last order 23:00)

🛎️ Group seating, takeout, high chairs / 🚘 No parking (use nearby paid lots)

The weather's been making me want to go out lately, so we headed to the food alley for some outdoor dining, and something spicy sounded good — so we ended up at Joajukne Jjukkumi! I'd been once before, right when it opened, and remembered enjoying it. But baby octopus isn't exactly something I crave as often as, say, chicken, so it had been a while since our last visit.

Inside Joajukne Jjukkumi: terrace seats, not just the open-air tables

Joajukne Jjukkumi sits deep in the Sangbong food alley, at 17 Bongujae-ro 37-gil, 1st floor. The outdoor tables out front are unusually spacious, and there's a separate terrace section inside.

Outdoor dining season is finally here.. maybe because we went a bit early, it wasn't too crowded.

This place's biggest advantage is having a terrace. Outdoor tables are great, but with people constantly walking by it can get uncomfortable — having a terrace tucked inside means you can still get that outdoor feel without the hassle.

Joajukne Jjukkumi's menu and side dishes: the cold cucumber soup steals the show

Joajukne Jjukkumi has a variety of set menus. It's not just plain octopus — there's octopus with pork belly, and even an octopus-and-pork-belly hot pot. If you want to add rice-crust soup or noodle add-ons, the sets are probably the best value. We planned to eat rice too, so worried about getting too full, we just ordered the basic option — figured we could always order more later!

There are also rice and noodle add-ons, plus a lunch special menu. Octopus-pork-belly bibimbap and octopus bibimbap — now I want to come back for lunch too.

The banchan (side dishes) come out clean and simple, but that cucumber cold soup is the real kick. When the octopus gets too spicy, one sip of that cold soup basically resets you.. (my husband hates cucumbers so he never touches it — which honestly works out great for me haha, I ate it all myself.)

And if you check the kiosk, there's a special gift option — ice cream, Americano, hangover remedy, or digestive aid. The owner's sense for detail is real. 👍

Baby octopus stir-fry for two, 29,800 won: how spicy is it really?

Joajukne Jjukkumi's baby octopus stir-fry for two costs ₩29,800. The octopus pieces are big and tender, but it's spicy enough to make two spice-wimps cry.

The visual is honestly insane. Once they bring it out, you just wait — the staff check on it, flip it, and stir it for you, so you can eat comfortably. (They even shielded us with their hand in case it splattered.. ❤️)

The portion is bigger than expected, and more than anything, the octopus itself is genuinely huge. At some other octopus places you only get baby octopus and it's gone in a few bites, but here the pieces are big, chewy in a good way, never tough, and so tender you can taste the freshness right away. 👍

But fair warning — it's really spicy. Really, really. Both of us spice-wimps left in tears. But it's a good kind of spicy, so eat it on a day you need to blow off some stress. Highly recommend.

Rice balls at 3,500 won and fluffy steamed egg at 6,900 won

Joajukne Jjukkumi's rice ball costs ₩3,500 and the steamed egg costs ₩6,900. Both portions were so generous that the two of us ended up leaving some behind.

The fried rice portion was massive, which I loved. I ended up giving up partway through.

The steamed egg was absolutely wild. How do they even make this..? It was the perfect example of that 'pongsil-pongsil' (fluffy-soft) texture — so smooth and creamy it was almost like milk.. this place seems to be generous with portions on everything. We ended up leaving some of this behind too.

Verdict: is Joajukne Jjukkumi the jjukkumi place to pick near Sangbong Station?

With so many restaurants in the Sangbong food alley, it can be hard to decide what to eat — but if you're craving something spicy, go here without a second thought! And not all outdoor dining is created equal.. sitting at tables squeezed onto a narrow sidewalk means getting jostled by passersby constantly. But here, the outdoor tables out front are unusually spacious, and even if you skip those, there's a terrace inside for anyone who wants that outdoor feel without the crowd. As for the taste, no need to say more — when it comes to jjukkumi near Sangbong Station, Joajukne Jjukkumi is a strong recommend!