Hyangdong gomtang restaurant for a hangover lunch: Doonjeong

After a light drinking session with a friend the night before, the next day I could only think about hot soup. Craving something clean and gentle on the stomach rather than spicy or heavy, my friend and I headed to Doonjeong, a Hyangdong restaurant.

Where is Doonjeong, and where do you park?

Doonjeong is located in Hyangdong, Deogyang-gu, Goyang, close to Sangam DMC. It sits on the first floor of a corner building right behind the Hyangdong Daiso, so it wasn't hard to find.

There's no dedicated parking lot for the restaurant, so if you're driving, you can use the nearby Hyangdong Public Parking Lot No.1. They support part of the parking fee, and the rate is ₩1,320 per hour, so bringing a car isn't much of a burden.

Sunday lunch at Doonjeong: is there a wait?

This place specializes in clear gomtang made from Korean female cattle. It's a Hyangdong Korean restaurant that's been Blue Ribbon certified for two years running, in 2025 and 2026.

Since it's a popular spot, there can be a wait during lunch hours, so I'd recommend making a reservation! We visited around 1:30pm on Sunday, September 13. I figured we'd arrived a bit past the lunch rush and it would be quieter, but the restaurant was already fully seated when we walked in. Luckily, our timing lined up with some diners finishing up and leaving, so we didn't have to wait long before getting a table. Since they're open as usual on Sundays, this is good to know for anyone looking for a weekend lunch spot in Hyangdong.

Inside Doonjeong: warm and cozy seating

The interior was clean and cozy. Rather than the heavier feel typical of Korean restaurants, the décor was tidy and comfortable enough for a casual lunch, a meal with parents, or a low-key meal with friends.

The tables weren't packed too tightly together either, so we could sit comfortably through the meal.

Doonjeong's menu of Korean dishes

Looking at the menu, besides the signature clear beef gomtang, there was also a spicy version and beef yukhoe bibimbap (raw beef rice bowl), among other meal options. For lunch you can pick something hearty like gomtang or yukhoe bibimbap, while dinner brings out meat-chive pancake, meat-kimchi pancake, shrimp-minari pancake, boiled pork, beef hot pot, and even beef tripe hot pot — good for a group sharing several dishes.

They also had a wide selection of Korean liquors — distilled soju, cheongju, and yakju — which pair well with the pancakes, boiled pork, or hot pots for a light drink. Doonjeong felt like a Hyangdong Korean restaurant that works equally well for a clean lunch, a dinner gathering, or drinks with food.

Clear beef gomtang (special): clean and deep

That day we ordered two clear beef gomtang specials and a shrimp minari pancake. Maybe because we'd both been drinking the night before, neither of us even considered anything but hot gomtang — haha.

The side dishes were napa cabbage kimchi and diced radish kimchi, both made in-house with domestic ingredients — a detail that made it clear they care about their ingredients.

After a short wait, the clear beef gomtang arrived, steam rising off it! Doonjeong's gomtang uses Korean female cattle, and even the rice is a single domestic variety, Saecheongmu, grown in Jeollanam-do — everything made with carefully selected 100% domestic ingredients.

The broth looked clear, so I expected it to taste fairly plain, but one spoonful in, the flavor was actually much richer and deeper than expected. With plenty of green onion piled on top, the broth had great aroma alongside its refreshing quality.

There was no gamy taste or greasiness at all — it went down clean while still warming me up from the inside. I felt like I'd made the right call on the menu that day.

Oh, one interesting thing — Doonjeong's clear gomtang comes with the rice already toremi'd, soaked right into the broth. Scooping up rice grains soaked in broth together with the soft beef, spoonful after spoonful just kept disappearing without me noticing.

Since we ordered the special size, the meat portion was generous, and the beef itself was soft rather than chewy, going down easily with the rice. A spoonful of warm gomtang followed by a piece of crunchy diced radish kimchi added a clean, savory kick that kept me reaching for more. The broth itself wasn't spicy or heavy, so alternating with kimchi or radish kimchi never felt overwhelming, even by the end.

Shrimp minari pancake and its fresh herb aroma

Feeling like gomtang alone might not be quite enough, we'd also ordered the shrimp minari pancake, and it looked appetizing from the moment it arrived, fried a nice golden brown.

Crispy outside, moist inside — that classic겉바속촉 (crispy-outside, tender-inside) style! And it stayed warm for quite a while as we ate it, which made it even better.

The fragrant minari (water celery) paired nicely with the springy, savory shrimp — the two ingredients worked really well together. It also matched well as a side alongside something as clean as gomtang, so if there are two or more of you, ordering it as a shared side is a great idea!

Is Doonjeong in Hyangdong worth it? Final verdict

Doonjeong was a great place to enjoy warm Korean food made with good ingredients, without any harsh or overpowering flavors. The clear gomtang, simmered from Korean female cattle, was deep and refreshing with no gamy taste, and with the soft meat and radish kimchi, I ended up finishing a hearty full bowl.

It's especially fitting for a day like ours, craving hot soup after drinking the night before, but with gomtang, yukhoe bibimbap, pancakes, boiled pork, and hot pots all on offer, it also works well for a clean lunch with parents, a dinner gathering, or a casual drink. If you're in Deogyang-gu, Goyang looking for a hearty yet easy-on-the-stomach Hyangdong restaurant, I'd recommend Doonjeong :)