Konkuk Station salad restaurant: smoked duck tofu noodles, Y-Stave

Where is Y-Stave Konkuk?

Y-Stave Konkuk is at 141 Neungdong-ro, 102-ho, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, right next to Konkuk University, an easy walk from Konkuk University Station on the main road. The spot is easy to spot in passing, right there on the street.

I stumbled onto this salad place walking home from work. I didn't want anything heavy for dinner and was thirsty, so I went in. There are quite a few similar salad places around Konkuk, but this one seemed to lean even more into the diet-friendly concept.

You can check the menu from outside without even going in, and there's a kiosk set up out front that's handy for paying for takeout.

How to build your salad or poke box at Y-Stave Konkuk

Y-Stave Konkuk offers four protein options — chicken, duck, salmon, beef — and you can choose a light all-veggie base or swap in oat pasta, mala pasta, tofu noodles, mala tofu noodles, or cauliflower rice. Sauce options are just as varied: wasabi mayo, teriyaki honey mustard, oriental, yuzu dressing, a staff-recommended sauce per menu item, or no sauce at all.

Drinks are varied too — I got zero-sugar kombucha in lemon and berry, plus there's americano, zero Pepsi, Welch's, sparkling water, zero Narangd cider, and bottled water. True to the diet concept, most drinks are zero-calorie.

You choose dine-in or takeout first, then see the menu — I went with a set menu.

What the shop feels like inside, and who eats there

The restaurant is decorated in fresh, bright colors, with a wall featuring the brand's character illustrations. There were more customers than I expected while I was eating, so I had to wait for a lull to take photos. And since it was evening rush hour, there were a lot of delivery riders coming in and out for pickup orders.

How much food is in the smoked duck mala tofu noodle side set?

The side set comes with one protein box (salad/poke) plus one side. I went all out and ordered a soup too, worried a salad alone wouldn't be filling enough — but it turned out to be way more than I expected. Next time I'd skip the soup and just get the salad with a drink! The idea that a salad means small portions and not feeling full is completely wrong here. I ordered the smoked duck option with mala tofu noodles, and the tofu noodles were so generous I couldn't finish them. It was so filling that even nearly two hours after dinner and over an hour of walking, I still felt full. The kombucha was tangy in a way that whetted my appetite, and since I was thirsty I gulped it down.

I love olives and green beans, and there's finely chopped lettuce plus some kind of garlic or onion flakes that add a nice crunch. The smoked duck paired well with the mala tofu noodles too.

There was plenty of mala sauce drizzled on, so the noodles never tasted bland — I was able to finish almost all of them.

The side: sweet pumpkin soup

The sweet pumpkin soup, one of my personal favorites, suited the recently chilly weather well. I figured a salad alone might leave me feeling empty, but the lightly warmed pumpkin soup was like having soup with rice — a nice touch. It was a huge portion so I got very full, but if you order it, saving some for breakfast the next day would work great too.

Delivery or pickup at Y-Stave Konkuk: which is better?

Once I got my food, I realized Y-Stave was actually a salad place I'd ordered from a couple of times before on Coupang. Since it's near Konkuk and not far from home, I'd used it before when I wanted a filling salad with pasta in it. Last time I ordered chicken, and it wasn't dry at all — surprisingly tender.

Ordering through Coupang costs a bit more than picking it up in person, but on days I didn't feel like going out, Coupang Eats was an easy option. True to its name, it really is a place where you can eat a filling meal without any reason to stay hungry. As it gets colder and walking out feels like a hassle, I'll probably order delivery more. There's also a menu called 'Protein Pastang' that seems perfect for fall and winter. Pickup orders can also be paid with Naver Pay — for anyone living nearby, you can just order ahead and pick up without waiting, which is convenient, and I use it often too.