Oak charcoal-roasted chicken near Jeongja Station: Seowoone

Today's post is about Seowoone Jangjakguyi (서우네 장작구이), a chicken restaurant near Jeongja Station that I'd been wanting to visit! A friend recommended this Bundang Jeongja spot to me, and every time I passed by there was a long wait, so I really wanted to check it out.

Seowoone Jangjakguyi: location, hours, parking

• Address: 17 Neuti-ro 87beon-gil, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Hours: Mon–Fri 4:30 PM–10:30 PM / Sat–Sun 4:00 PM–10:30 PM
• Parking: on-site parking is limited, so use the nearby public parking lot

The outside and inside vibe — there are outdoor tables too

There are plenty of seats inside! They also have outdoor tables, which would be perfect for eating outside in this cool weather these days. The restroom is inside too, so it's convenient to use haha.

They use fresh domestic chicken delivered every dawn, brine it themselves 100%, and roast it over oak charcoal for over 1 hour and 30 minutes — that's their charcoal-roasted whole chicken!

Seowoone Jangjakguyi menu and prices

Whole chicken menu — Nurungji Hanbang Whole Chicken ₩22,000, Seasoned Whole Chicken ₩27,000, Cheese Whole Chicken ₩27,000, Half-and-Half Whole Chicken ₩27,000, Garlic Cheongyang Cream Chicken ₩28,000

Side dish menu — Dakbal Set ₩27,000, Bone-in Dakbal Soup ₩20,000, Cream Pasta ₩18,000, Potato Pancake ₩15,000

We ordered the half seasoned, half cheese whole chicken! You get a ₩2,000 discount for takeout too. I noticed the people around us were eating a lot of dakbal (chicken feet) — I'll have to try that next time haha.

Whole chicken roasting as it rotates over oak charcoal

They roast the chicken while rotating it over oak charcoal like this... it looks so delicious! The fat drips straight down, a subtle oak aroma comes through, and the chicken turns out tender and juicy. We went late so there wasn't much chicken left, but if you go when they open, you can see tons of chicken rotating haha.

Honest review: half seasoned, half cheese whole chicken

The basic side dishes are cabbage, radish, and yeolmu kimchi (young radish kimchi)! I love places that give you cabbage salad like this! If you run out, you can grab more from the self-serve bar haha. There's also seasoning sauce, mustard sauce, and salt, all refillable, so you can dip as much as you want.

The half-and-half chicken arrived! There was so much seasoning sauce and cheese! It's served on a hot stone plate, so the sauce and cheese keep sizzling, and you can eat it warm right to the end haha. There was so much cheese it looked like the chicken was wrapped in a cheese blanket.

The sauce isn't spicy — it's a sweet seasoning! And maybe because it's simmered on the stone plate, it doesn't taste like a typical sauce, but has a deep, rich flavor. Such a rich seasoned taste!

Check out the cheese pull~ The cheese is so savory..! I was amazed after one bite haha. The sauce is sweet, the cheese is savory, and eating them together with the chicken was so delicious!

I couldn't resist and ordered a beer too~ Cold beer with chicken is always great! Maybe because it's roasted over oak charcoal for over an hour and a half, the meat was so tender it melted in my mouth! The skin, with all the fat rendered out, was crispy and delicious!

The nurungji (scorched rice) under the stone plate is a special treat

Another highlight is the nurungji (scorched rice) that forms under the chicken! It really forms properly on the stone plate! It's basically nurungji roasted whole chicken. Eating just the chicken feels like it's not enough, but taking a bite of the nurungji with it is so good! Protein + carbs = a dream combo 👍 Since the nurungji forms so well, it's a real special treat!

Oh, and the cheese that stuck to the stone plate turned into a cheese crust, and that was also so savory...

So we finished every last bit of it haha. A restaurant with a wait really does have a reason for it! I think I'll be coming back haha. If you're looking for delicious charcoal-roasted chicken in Bundang Jeongja, I recommend Seowoone Jangjakguyi!