200-seat group eel buffet in Jijok-dong, Daejeon: Songrimbok

Today's goal is just one thing: an all-out showdown with eel.

Songrimbok Jangeo Daejeon Direct Store: location, hours and parking

Songrimbok Jangeo Unlimited Eel Daejeon Direct Store (송림복장어 민물장어무한리필 대전직영점) is at 60 Jijokbuk-ro 66beon-gil, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 1st floor, units 106 and 107, near Jijok-dong and Banseok Station. It is open daily from 11:50 to 23:00, and there is a private parking lot in front of the restaurant.

Today I visited an all-you-can-eat freshwater eel place, and the big parking lot won me over right away. A lot of you love eel but can't eat it often because of the price, right? Songrimbok's buffet is ₩29,900, so it's a great spot for family dinners, meals with your parents, or company get-togethers! The roomy parking space out front made arriving by car easy, and the inside was bigger than I expected, so it looked great for groups.

Why is it good for group gatherings in Jijok-dong, Daejeon?

Songrimbok's Daejeon Direct Store is reportedly a huge restaurant of 130 pyeong (about 430 sq m) that can seat up to 200 people. That makes it a good fit not only for family meals but also for company dinners and alumni reunions.

The size wasn't a "huh, bigger than I thought" kind of thing; it was a "wow, this is really big~" kind of thing 👀 The wide hall and relaxed seating layout leave plenty of room for all kinds of group events. I'd recommend it as a group gathering spot in Jijok-dong, Daejeon 🤍 There are even baby chairs, so the adults can grill eel while the kids sit comfortably and eat, and parents can relax a bit more too.

Where does Songrimbok's eel come from?

Songrimbok is said to be a partner business of the freshwater eel farming fisheries cooperative, and it prepares live eel by hand every morning. Just because it's all-you-can-eat doesn't mean the quality is all-you-can-eat-level ✨

You can actually see the origin and the eel preparation process posted around the restaurant, which made me trust it even more. They use domestic freshwater eel at a lower price point, and you can feel they've thought about how to let people enjoy eel more easily.

Songrimbok all-you-can-eat price and lineup

The buffet runs for 2 hours, and the lineup includes domestic freshwater eel plus pork belly, duck neck and chicken neck. It's ₩29,900 for adults and ₩14,000 for elementary school kids, so the whole family can visit without worrying about the bill.

• Adults ₩29,900
• Elementary school children ₩14,000
• 2-hour time limit
• Table setting fee ₩3,000 per person (young children excluded)

There's also a good range of meal dishes: house-simmered eel soup, galbitang (beef short rib soup), yukgaejang (spicy beef soup), buckwheat makguksu (cold noodles) and spicy ramen, so you can finish up feeling full 😃

How do the first table setting and the self-serve bar work?

After you order, a full first plate of domestic freshwater eel, pork belly and chicken neck is set out, and from then on you fetch meat and side dishes yourself from the self-serve bar. Basic side dishes, vegetables and sauces come with the setting too, so all that's left is to grill and eat!

The table setting fee is ₩3,000 per person (young children excluded), but considering you can take as many extra sides and meat as you like from the self-serve bar afterward, it didn't feel like a burden.

Best of all, not just eel but pork belly and chicken neck are at the self-serve bar too, so you can bring over as much as you want. You don't have to hunt down staff or feel awkward every time you want a refill, and you can grab the amount you want right away, so the meal never loses its rhythm.

At buffets, refill speed often decides how satisfied you are, but Songrimbok is self-serve, so there was none of that frustration and I could just enjoy myself.

Opening event: a free bottle of Sejong bokbunja

The Daejeon Direct Store opened in April, so it's a brand-new spot, and when I visited there was an opening event giving away a bottle of Sejong bokbunja (Korean black raspberry wine) as a freebie 🍷 Please check the event period separately.

I came for eel and got bokbunja too, so I was in a good mood from the very start~

Warming up with pork belly and chicken neck

At Songrimbok I grilled pork belly and chicken neck before the eel, and even though it's an eel specialist, the meat quality was decent. First I filled the grill with no gaps at all 🔥 Just hearing it sizzle makes you hungry.

I planned to enjoy the eel properly a bit later, and the pork belly I ate first gave off savory juices the more I chewed, a perfect warm-up before the eel. The chicken neck is a cut you don't often come across, and from the first bite I could see why so many people look for it. The chewy, springy texture is appealing, and the clean, mild meaty flavor kept me reaching for more. My "I'll only eat eel" plan fell apart right from the start 🤣

How thick and tasty was the all-you-can-eat freshwater eel?

The star of the day was of course the eel. From the moment it went on the grill, the thick cut stood out, and I could barely smell any fishiness.

If you were picturing thin, scrappy eel because it's all-you-can-eat, you're totally wrong! The flesh was plump, and just looking at it, "solid" was the word that came to mind. Grilled myself and bitten into, it was chewy outside and tender inside, and I think even people sensitive to eel's distinctive smell could enjoy it without trouble. The most surprising thing was that you can get this quality of eel all-you-can-eat 👀 I instantly understood why Songrimbok has a word-of-mouth reputation among eel lovers!

Eel + ginger + lettuce wraps, and bokbunja

Put sharp ginger on a piece of eel and wrap it in a leafy vegetable: the richness stays while the greasiness is cut, and the combo is crazy good. Ginger tends to vanish quickly while you eat eel, but you can just fetch more from the self-serve bar, so there's no need to feel awkward.

Eel with bokbunja, isn't that cheating? The sweet, deep flavor goes surprisingly well with eel, and my energy shot up all through the meal. And that was a freebie, remember? Isn't that too generous?♥️

Three extra plates from the self-serve bar: overall verdict

At Songrimbok the eel, pork belly and chicken neck were all so good that I went back and forth to the self-serve bar many times and refilled about three extra plates. I kept bringing a bit of everything.

• 🖤Eel, rich and nutty
• 🖤Pork belly, golden brown
• 🖤Chicken neck, chewy

Each has its own charm, so alternating between them left no time to get tired of any, and before I knew it my belly was packed. Honestly, I'm almost scared to calculate what this amount would have cost at a regular eel place or BBQ restaurant, haha. I could eat as much as I wanted without worrying, so I was really satisfied with this meal. If you're looking for a great group-gathering restaurant in Jijok-dong, Daejeon, I think it's well worth a visit to Songrimbok Jangeo Unlimited Eel Daejeon Direct Store ☺️