Daejeon octopus stir-fry with ₩35,000 beef special: Chongil Nakji

Chongil Nakji 📍23-19 105-ho, Gyeryong-ro 571beon-gil, Seo-gu, Daejeon, South Korea 11:00 - 21:00 (B.T 15:00 - 17:00) Closed Sundays Parking available (Pine Ormier building)

What kind of restaurant is Chongil Nakji, Tanbang branch?

I went to Chongil Nakji, famous in Tanbang-dong — a go-to neighborhood for Daejeon dining — as an octopus stir-fry spot! I visited in the evening and seats filled up fast~ apparently there's even a wait at lunchtime.

Chongil Nakji started as a delivery-only octopus stir-fry place in a tiny 4.5-pyeong space, and now runs both the Tanbang and Gwanpyeong branches!

Chongil Nakji menu and the price of the Special Octopus Stir-fry

They serve Pork Octopus Stir-fry, Chongil Assorted Special, Special Octopus Stir-fry, Beef Octopus Stir-fry, Scallop Octopus Stir-fry, Octopus Stir-fry, Soy Bulgogi Set, and Octopus Hot Pot! I ordered Chongil Nakji's best-selling menu, the Special Octopus Stir-fry, for ₩35,000.

If you join the review event, you get a ₩8,000 taster bulgogi plate, and after 5 visits you can get a free octopus hot pot! I'm filling up my 5 stamps so I can try the hot pot next time~

Soy bulgogi and cheonggukjang served first with the set

The soy-marinated bulgogi and cheonggukjang that come with the Special Octopus Stir-fry set arrived first. The side dishes were radish salad, bean sprouts, and pickled onion — a good lineup to pair with the octopus stir-fry!

I tried the soy bulgogi wrapped in a leaf! I didn't expect much since it's just a side item in the set, but the well-cooked meat went great with the salty-sweet sauce. It was nice to eat alternately with the octopus stir-fry too haha.

Even for someone like me who struggles with cheonggukjang's distinct smell, this was mild enough to eat comfortably! It was savory and rich, and I kept reaching for more.

The Special Octopus Stir-fry, loaded with beef and scallops

The octopus stir-fry finally arrived! My Special Octopus Stir-fry had beef, octopus, and scallops all together. I was surprised at how generous the portion looked the moment it came out.

Octopus stir-fry is all about the spicy kick, right? I ordered regular spice level, and it was a bit spicier than expected~ The smoky char hit me right away, which made me even more excited.

It wasn't just octopus — there was plenty of beef and scallops mixed in too, so it was fun picking through everything!

The octopus pieces were big and plump, giving a really satisfying chew! Not rubbery at all — just springy, with the sauce evenly coating the octopus so it was tasty even on its own. There was so much big octopus that I never felt like it was running short haha.

Mixed with rice, rolled in lettuce wraps, finished with somyeon noodles

I put the plump octopus on top, added radish salad and bean sprouts, and mixed it all into rice. Adding a splash of the cheonggukjang broth made it moist and well-blended with the sauce — really good.

I made a few wraps in between too. The octopus was thick, and once I piled on scallops and beef as well, the wraps got huge lol. It was fun combining things to my taste!

About halfway through, I added the thin noodles that came with it! The spiciness came through much more clearly than with the rice haha. That rich, smoky sauce really needs noodles — it was spicy but I kept craving more and finished it all.

Is 35,000 won enough food for two people?

We went as a couple and the portion was more generous than expected, so we left really full haha. It didn't feel like just one main dish — we got to eat the soy bulgogi, cheonggukjang, wraps, and noodles too, so I never got tired of it throughout the meal! If you're looking for a hearty meal in Tanbang-dong, Chongil Nakji, Tanbang branch is worth a visit (ദ്ദി˙ᗜ˙)