Spicy chicken stew with aged kimchi in Hadae-dong, Jinju: Tongkeun

A new pot-lid chicken stew restaurant in Hadae-dong, Jinju

Smope Yangnyeom Tongdak & Tongkeun Sotddukkeong Dakbokkeumtang (통큰솥뚜껑닭볶음탕) Jinju Hadae branch is a newly opened chicken stew (dakbokkeumtang) restaurant on Dodong-ro in Jinju, and I went on the evening of July 26, 2026. We had visited my parents in Jinju and needed dinner before heading home. It was new and I was curious, and it was so good that I fell for it.

Our family loves chicken stew. Cooking it on a giant pot lid instead of a regular pot is unusual, so I was excited. Word is spreading that this is a great chicken stew spot in Jinju, so it was full of customers and delivery orders kept coming in.

Parking at the Jinju Hadae branch

There is no private parking lot, so we parked in the spaces in front of the restaurant. They are run by the city of Jinju, so the parking fee is cheap!

The first thing you see when you walk in is the huge pot lid.

Every table has a big pot lid set into it.

Pot-lid set for two: what's included and the price

We ordered the most popular item, the pot-lid set for two, for ₩46,000. It comes with chicken stew for two, potato jeon (pan-fried pancake), 3 perilla-oil fried eggs, 3 fish cake skewers and ramen noodles. The set is so well put together that there was no need to agonize over the menu.

• Chicken stew (for 2)
• Potato jeon
• 3 perilla-oil fried eggs
• 3 fish cake skewers
• Ramen noodles

The menu has a lot of variety, so I put in a video for reference.

The food is cooked on the huge pot lid and carried to your table. A totally different vibe from regular chicken stew~~~

Side dishes and the self bar

The side dishes were bean sprouts, anchovies, kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi) and cucumber salad. My kid loved the bean sprouts so much that the owner refilled them, and the cucumber salad goes well with spicy chicken stew, so I kept refilling it at the self bar.

The best order to eat pot-lid chicken stew

The restaurant has instructions on how to eat. A must-read!

• When the timer rings at 10 minutes, call a staff member to add the ramen noodles.
• Once the ramen is cooked, enjoy the rice cakes, potatoes and sweet potatoes first.
• When the broth gets thick, scoop up the chicken together with the broth. That's when it tastes best.
• Finish with fried rice, of course!

Stir-frying nicely.

Perilla-oil fried eggs as an appetizer

The perilla-oil fried eggs in the set have a wonderfully nutty flavor. Fried eggs taste good when I make them myself, but they taste even better when someone else makes them.

The nutty, soft fried eggs were a great appetizer before the chicken stew.

How spicy is the chicken stew here?

The chicken stew here is quite spicy. The chicken is tender with no gamey smell, and the seasoning soaks all the way in.

The more the broth reduces, the thicker it gets, so I took out some chicken for my kid before it reduced, but it still had a kick. (If you're eating with a child, I recommend the steamed chicken, jjimdak.)

The potato jeon exceeded expectations

The potato jeon that came with the pot-lid set for two was far better than I expected. Shredded potato is pan-fried until it's super crispy. It tastes different from french fries, and with the spicy chicken stew the combination was really good.

Add the aged kimchi (₩4,000), definitely

I love kimchi, so I added aged kimchi (mugeunji) for ₩4,000. If you like aged kimchi, absolutely get it! The spicy sauce and the aged kimchi go together wonderfully. As the broth reduces, the sauce soaks deeper into the kimchi, and it goes so well with the chicken stew.

Fish cake skewers, potatoes, sweet potatoes and other add-ins

The fish cake skewers are tasty but really spicy. I was huffing and puffing while eating, and my kid asked for some too, which made me feel bad haha.

The soft, fluffy potatoes were absolutely delicious too.

The sweet potatoes are even sweet, which makes them even better. With potatoes, rice cakes, sweet potatoes and fish cakes, there's plenty of variety, which makes eating fun.

The more the broth reduced, the stronger the flavor got. It kept getting better and I couldn't put my spoon down.

The cucumber salad I kept refilling.

Fried rice to finish, or steamed rice if you're with a kid

Fried rice at the end is a must here, but since we were eating with our kid, we ordered steamed rice instead.

If you love spicy chicken stew, you'll definitely love this Jinju chicken stew spot, Smope Yangnyeom Tongdak & Tongkeun Sotddukkeong Dakbokkeumtang Jinju Hadae branch. I recommend it for family meals, dinners with friends, or company get-togethers.