Cheongdam pufferfish restaurant: 16,000 won skin salad, Bogi-o Boguk

Bogi-o Boguk (복이오복국). A Cheongdam-dong favorite: a pufferfish restaurant with private rooms and course meals for business dinners.

A Cheongdam-dong gem I can eat at any time, and perfect for business entertaining: I went to Bogi-o Boguk for a solo dinner (❁´◡`❁) Let me introduce this classy restaurant with its private rooms!

Bogi-o Boguk location, directions and parking

Bogi-o Boguk is on the 2nd floor of Cheongdam Deokyoung Building, 540 Dosan-daero, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Valet parking is ₩3,000 at lunch and ₩5,000 at dinner 😌

From Cheongdam Station, walk toward Yeongdong Bridge past Dress Garden, turn at Hotel Rivera Cheongdam and head down a little, and you'll find it. I've been back many times, so this is a proper local favorite for me. It opened in 2013 on the first floor of the Prima Hotel annex, then moved to its current spot in 2024, and it has been loved steadily all along.

Can you use this Cheongdam room restaurant for business dinners?

The restaurant has roomy hall tables that comfortably seat 6, and on the side there is a private room that holds up to 6 ✔️ The Cheongdam street view is nice and the room is cozy, so you'll enjoy it wherever you sit.

About Bogi-o Boguk

It has plenty of regulars in Cheongdam-dong, and given how long it has been around, the chef seems to keep studying the flavor, quality and cooking methods of pufferfish. There were all kinds of whiskies that pair well with pufferfish dishes, plus lots of reference books.

A Cheongdam favorite for people who love pufferfish. They even link how to eat the soup to a QR code in the restaurant, so first-timers can enjoy it without a hitch. Gyeongsang-style, you sprinkle in a little vinegar, use the basic seasoning, and dip into the special gochujang-vinegar sauce, which is a joy to eat. No wonder it's a pufferfish place known even in Gangnam 🙌🏻

Bogi-o Boguk menu and course meal lineup

Lots of people come here on purpose for the course meals. I really like the lineup, which centers on seafood: pufferfish sashimi, boiled pufferfish slices (suyuk), assorted seafood, blanched octopus and live octopus (sannakji) sashimi.

Still, it's centered on pufferfish, so it serves the whole range you can't get elsewhere: pufferfish skin, pufferfish karaage (Japanese-style fried), pufferfish bulgogi and more. Soup options are wide too: milbok, chambok, live chambok and hangover soup.

Check the photos above for the course menu. Start with the regular set and work your way up to the finer chambok and even live chambok. If you want a really fancy meal, I strongly recommend this Cheongdam-dong spot.

Pufferfish skin salad, ₩16,000: too much for one person

The pufferfish skin salad (복껍질무침) here is a true treat, heaped high for just ₩16,000. It's tossed in a tangy chojang (sweet chili-vinegar) sauce that feels just right for summer, with no fishy smell at all, and the tender pieces are chewy like collagen.

It isn't just onions and vegetables: it's half pufferfish, half vegetables, so you get to enjoy pufferfish in a seasoned style, and the sweet chojang made in-house does a lot of the work.

As a side dish it was quite a lot for one person, so if you come as a pair, I'd suggest ordering it as a side. If you eat it on its own, it's also great with other dishes or as drinking food 🧡

The salad came out first and the soup took a little while, so I got a peek at the side dishes, which change a bit each time. Tasty kkakdugi (radish kimchi), anchovies, peppers and fish cake were laid out Gyeongsang-style.

How was the milbok soup with wild minari?

I tried the milbok (a type of pufferfish) soup piled high with wild minari (water dropwort). Milbok is a basic, much-ordered item: no fishy smell, light yet moist, and a heap of minari adds a lovely aroma 🤭 The clear jiri broth is already seasoned just right, with a spicy-ish sea scent, and even one sip of the broth gives you that "so this is it" depth 😁 A soup place so addictive I don't think I'd get tired of it, even eating it often ‼️

The soup is made with big pufferfish prepped on the spot, so the portion is generous, and the rice comes separately so you can add as much as you like, which was convenient. No fishy taste, yet plenty of meat, so I was very satisfied. Thanks to the plain, clean pufferfish, the radish, bean sprouts and minari all support the aroma, so it's harmonious overall, and I thought again, yes, this is milbok.

Don't miss the final bite: the "how to eat pufferfish soup well" guide ❤️ Add a little vinegar to the handmade chojang and use it as a pufferfish sauce. A great dinner spot where you can enjoy a variety of pufferfish dishes: sashimi, bulgogi, katsu and salad!

Tastes good enough to eat every day.

Bogi-o Boguk opening information

• Address: 2nd floor, Cheongdam Deokyoung Building, 540 Dosan-daero, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
• Hours: Daily 11:00–22:00 (last order 21:30)
• Parking: Valet, ₩3,000 at lunch / ₩5,000 at dinner