Hapjeong Station pizzeria, olive-sauce O'Pizza for three: Pizzeria O

Why I went to Pizzeria O near Hapjeong Station

It had been a while since I'd had wood-fired pizza, so I went looking for a place that would actually be good, and ended up at Pizzeria O (핏제리아오) near Hapjeong Station. I usually just grab discounted takeout from chains like Pizza Hut, Domino's or Papa John's, so I don't eat wood-fired pizza often. The one I do eat now and then is Rimini wood-fired pizza at the New Core Outlet in Gangnam, so I was excited to try a new wood-fired pizza specialist.

Pizzeria O is said to be a Neapolitan pizza restaurant run by Chef Lee Jin-hyeong, who took first place at the Pizza World Cup. It has also appeared on TV several times, including Kang's Kitchen and Running Man, which made me even more curious. I read a bunch of blog reviews beforehand, and there weren't as many "it's delicious" ones as I expected, so I went half excited, half worried.

From the photos I wanted the Stella or the salmon pizza, but that day I wanted to start with the basics, so I picked the O'Pizza and the Quattro Funghi. There were three of us, and two pizzas didn't seem like enough, so we added carbonara and aglio e olio, four dishes in total.

Pizzeria O Hapjeong Station: location, hours and parking

• Address: 14-5 Yanghwa-ro 11-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, 1st floor
• Hours: Tue–Sun 11:00–21:30 (last order 20:30)
• Parking: Not available

Atmosphere at Pizzeria O Hapjeong Station

Pizzeria O is a wood-fired pizza restaurant near Hapjeong Station. It's known as a place for Neapolitan pizza, so it's worth a look if you like wood-fired pizza.

Looking over the menu inside, there was a wide range of pizzas and pastas. I chose hoping for that distinctive wood-fired taste, different from the chain pizza I usually eat.

How many dishes should three people order at Pizzeria O?

Three of us ordered four dishes: O'Pizza, Quattro Funghi, carbonara and aglio e olio. The short version: the portions were very generous. I ordered four because I worried it wouldn't be enough, but the pasta was far bigger than I expected, and I think three dishes would have been plenty.

• O'Pizza
• Quattro Funghi
• Carbonara
• Aglio e olio

By the way, Pizzeria O offers refills on soda like cola. We ordered two drinks and refilled each once, and it was nice that you can share without ordering one drink per person.

What is the wood-fired pizza dough like at Pizzeria O?

Each pizza came cut into six slices, and the dough was very chewy. The dough is one of the things I look forward to most in wood-fired pizza, and the edges had that slightly charred flavor from the oven.

How chewy? I tried to cut it with a knife and it wouldn't cut as easily as I expected. In the end I gave up on the knife and ate it by hand. Wood-fired pizza really is best picked up and bitten into. The lightly charred flavor, the chewy texture and the savory saltiness of the dough together had a different charm from chain pizza.

O'Pizza: the dish I'd recommend most

Of everything we ordered at Pizzeria O that day, my personal favorite was the O'Pizza. It's said to combine ricotta, cherry tomatoes and rucola (arugula) with a special wine sauce.

What stood out first when it arrived was the black sauce on top. I thought it might be some tangy raspberry jam, but looking closer, it was a sauce made of finely chopped olives. The first bite had a slightly tangy, balsamic-like flavor, followed by the mild nuttiness of the ricotta and the fresh aroma of the rucola.

The ricotta went especially well. It had a soft, curdy texture with a gentle milky richness, and with the freshness of the cherry tomatoes and the aroma of the rucola, the whole pizza felt balanced. The chopped olive sauce on top gave it a different flavor from a pizza with just cheese and vegetables.

It wasn't intensely bold or some unique flavor I'd never had; rather, each ingredient worked well together and left nothing lacking. Personally, it suited my taste better than the Quattro Funghi. I was already quite full, but it felt wasteful to leave any, so I finished it down to the last bite.

If I visit Pizzeria O again, I'll definitely order the O'Pizza. If you can't decide which pizza to eat, I'd recommend the O'Pizza.

Quattro Funghi: truffle aroma filling your mouth

The Quattro Funghi at Pizzeria O is a mushroom pizza where the truffle aroma hits your mouth from the very first bite. The staff told us to eat it right away before it cooled, so we dug in as soon as it arrived.

With several kinds of mushrooms on top, you get that chewy mushroom texture, and the strong truffle aroma paired really well with them. If you like mushrooms or the scent of truffle, I think you'd be happy with this one.

Before visiting, I agonized over which pizza to pick, but after one bite of the Quattro Funghi I was glad I chose it. The O'Pizza suited my taste more, but I enjoyed the Quattro Funghi too.

Carbonara: a generous portion of pasta

The carbonara at Pizzeria O is a pasta where you break the egg yolk on top and mix it into the noodles, and above all, the portion was big. We ordered it because pizza alone didn't seem like enough.

At the first bite I thought the sauce was a bit thin, but the more I ate, the richer the carbonara flavor became. The portion felt much bigger than at a typical pasta restaurant, so we filled up faster than I'd planned. With two pizzas and two kinds of pasta, we were quite full by the end.

If three of you visit, rather than automatically ordering four dishes, a mix of pizza and pasta, about three, is probably enough to start. It depends on appetite, of course, but there's no need to over-order out of worry that it won't be enough.

Aglio e olio: a little short on savory depth

The aglio e olio we ordered at Pizzeria O felt a little lacking in savory depth (umami) to me. The food overall was satisfying, but compared with the other impressive dishes, its flavor was relatively forgettable.

Tastes differ, of course, but if I had to pick which of the four dishes I'd order again, I'd choose the O'Pizza and the Quattro Funghi first.

Pizzeria O near Hapjeong Station: if I go again

I went to Pizzeria O after a long while without wood-fired pizza. Before the visit, reading reviews left me both hopeful and worried, but actually eating there, it was a satisfying meal overall. I liked the lightly charred flavor and chewy texture of the oven-baked dough, and each pizza had its own character, so ordering two and comparing them was fun.

The Quattro Funghi stood out for its truffle aroma and mushroom texture, and the O'Pizza was the most satisfying, with its combination of ricotta, rucola and cherry tomatoes. The carbonara was also generous and filling.

Do keep in mind that three people ordering two pizzas and two pastas was a lot of food. Next time I could order a bit less and still be fine. If you want wood-fired pizza near Hapjeong Station, it's worth a visit, and of all the dishes, I'd personally recommend the O'Pizza most. It was so good that even when I was full, I wanted to eat it down to the last slice.