Hapjeong shabu-shabu weekend lunch with kkoburi noodle add-on, Seoul

Hi, this is DIDI! I made a reservation ahead of time and visited Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch for weekend lunch. It's located in Delight Square, connected to Hapjeong Station, so it was easy to find, and since I booked ahead, I got to sit comfortably without waiting for a table. The shabu-shabu ingredients were really varied too — it was fun picking one after another!

Where is Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch, and where do you park?

Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch is at 14 World Cup-ro 1-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, B2 Delight Square 1. It's open daily from 11:00 to 22:00, and if you use the Delight Square 1 parking lot, you get up to 3 hours free parking with store use.

What the entrance in Delight Square looks like

Since Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch is inside Delight Square, it wasn't hard to find from Hapjeong Station. Once you go down to B2, you find the store right away, and overall the vibe was clean and calm.

Do you need a reservation for weekend lunch in Hapjeong?

I was worried it would be crowded for weekend lunch, but since I reserved in advance, I got to sit with plenty of room. The seats weren't crammed together either, so it was comfortable to eat, and it seemed like a good spot for a family meal, a date, or a gathering.

Menu and the five broth choices at Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch

Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch offers a wide range of meat types and five broths to choose from. Which finishing dish you get depends on which broth you pick, so you need to choose carefully! I was curious about the rose risotto, so I went with the spicy mushroom broth.

This time I ordered two shabu sets, mixing meat types.

• 1st-grade black pork neck shabu set ₩23,000 — chewy texture and deep flavor from 1st-grade black pork neck.
• Prime Angus eye of round shabu set ₩25,000 — rich marbling and savory flavor from prime-grade Angus eye of round.
• Kkoburi kalguksu (curly wheat noodles) add-on ₩4,000

The spicy mushroom broth I chose this time was personally a real favorite of mine.

Side dishes, dipping sauces and the vegetable platter

After ordering via kiosk at the table, they bring out side dishes and three kinds of sauces. Personally, the pickle-flavored yeolmu kimchi (young radish kimchi) was so fresh and delicious!

They brought out vegetables along with the spicy mushroom broth. There was a really wide variety of vegetables from the start.

Napa cabbage, sweet pumpkin, oyster mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, rice paper, mung bean sprouts, bok choy, shiitake mushrooms, glass noodles, and more — the variety was great and the ingredients all looked fresh.

Black pork neck vs. prime Angus eye of round: which set wins?

I deliberately ordered both beef and pork so I could compare the two, and both were fresh with no off smell, which made them delicious. Cooked lightly in the broth, the meat went down smoothly, and each had a different texture, which made comparing them fun. The beef was clean-tasting with a nicer chew, while the pork was a bit softer and full of juice!

The spicy mushroom broth in particular was right up my alley. It wasn't just spicy for the sake of being spicy — the broth was clean yet spicy, and I kept reaching for more.

The more vegetables and meat we added, the deeper and more delicious the broth got.

Kkoburi kalguksu noodles and the rose risotto finish

After eating our fill of shabu-shabu, we added in the kkoburi kalguksu we'd ordered as an extra. Adding the noodles to the spicy mushroom broth was a really great combination too. Since the broth was already fully infused with flavor from the meat and vegetables, the noodles ended up tasting great as well.

And at the end, rose risotto came out as dessert. Going from shabu-shabu to kalguksu to risotto made for a pretty hearty finish to the meal.

The omija tea (schisandra berry tea) that came out as the final dessert cleansed the palate nicely.

Final verdict on Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch

On this visit to Shabu in Seoul Hapjeong Branch, I ordered the black pork neck and the prime Angus eye of round separately to compare the two meats, and I loved the overall composition — not just the meat, but the variety of vegetables and the spicy mushroom broth too.

Above all, the spicy mushroom broth plus kkoburi kalguksu combination was what stuck with me the most. Adding the noodles to the clean yet spicy broth meant I could eat well all the way to the end, and getting rose risotto on top of that made for a great finish.

Reserving ahead for weekend lunch meant I could eat comfortably without waiting, so if you're planning to visit, I'd recommend booking in advance. If you're looking for clean, well-made shabu-shabu in Hapjeong, this is a place worth visiting.