Yangjae gamjatang restaurant with hand-breaded pork cutlet: Chomu

Sometimes I crave gamjatang (pork bone stew) like crazy. Actually pretty often... which just proves how good gamjatang is!!

Sometimes it's ppyeo-haejangguk, sometimes gamjatang, but this time we went to eat a hearty gamjatang together, just the two of us!

Where Chomu Gamjatang is and where to park

The restaurant we visited was Chomu Gamjatang (초무 감자탕) in Yangjae. It's right near Yangjae Citizen's Forest Station, and this neighborhood spot is already famous for its gamjatang — a well-known Yangjae favorite! It's a bit of a distance, but I bet a lot of Hyundai/Kia employees come here too...?!

Anyway, first — the location of Chomu Gamjatang! We came by car, and parking was available, which felt like a great choice.

My wife and I wanted something with warm broth, so we headed to Chomu Gamjatang.

Even though we came a bit late for dinner, the place was packed.

The self-serve kimchi corner at Chomu Gamjatang

Chomu Gamjatang is originally famous for its kimchi!! And honestly, just by looking at it, the kimchi's color alone looked amazing.

There's even a self-serve kimchi corner like this.

There was a sauce dispenser at the table, so we poured some out ahead of time.

What two people ordered: small gamjatang and hand-breaded pork cutlet

And finally, the menu! True to a gamjatang restaurant, they had everything from ppyeo-haejangguk to gamjatang to ppyeo-jjim, but for the two of us to share that day, we ordered gamjatang small + hand-breaded pork cutlet.

A pork cutlet paired with a gamjatang restaurant might sound a little unusual, but once we actually ate them together, it turned out to be a pretty good combo, haha.

First, the basic side dishes came out. For a gamjatang restaurant, I don't think you need a huge variety of banchan — as long as the kimchi and kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi) are good, that's basically all you need. And sure enough, picking up a bite of kimchi or kkakdugi in between spoonfuls of hot gamjatang worked really well.

Is the small gamjatang enough for two?

And then the gamjatang small arrived! We ordered the small size since it was just the two of us, but once it landed on the table, it looked more generous than expected. Big chunky bones and plenty of broth — the visual alone felt satisfying, haha.

Why order the hand-breaded pork cutlet as well

And the hand-breaded pork cutlet we ordered alongside it. You might think, why cutlet at a gamjatang place, but as a side to share, it worked surprisingly well. Eating only gamjatang can start to feel a bit heavy toward the end, but throwing in a crispy piece of cutlet here and there gave the whole meal a nice change of pace.

Broth that deepens as it simmers, and meat that slips off the bone

Once it starts bubbling away, you ladle the broth over the bones every so often, and then it's time to dig in properly, pulling out one bone at a time. What matters most in gamjatang is really how much meat clings to the bone — and picking the meat off was genuinely fun.

Pulling the meat off with chopsticks and dipping it lightly in the broth — that taste makes you think of rice right away, haha. And I think gamjatang tastes better once it's simmered a bit longer than when it first arrives.

At first the broth is relatively clean, but as it keeps simmering and the meat and vegetable flavors come out, it turns richer and richer. A spoonful of broth, a bite of meat, a piece of kimchi... keep going like that and a whole bowl of rice disappears in no time, haha.

A hand-breaded cutlet done in classic old-school style

Watching the cutlet get sliced really does look crispy even now, looking back. It's put together in that classic old-school (gyeongyangsik) cutlet style.

There's a bit of satisfaction in eating cutlet once it's all been sliced up like this..!!

Even looking at it now, I want another bite...

Then it's back to the gamjatang after the cutlet. Layering one delicious thing on top of another delicious thing.

The gamjatang was bubbling away nicely.

You just move the chunks of meat to your bowl like this and keep picking it apart, haha. The meat in this gamjatang is really tender..!!

Why Chomu Gamjatang works for couples and for families with kids

Since it was just my wife and me, adding one extra dish to share felt better than ordering just gamjatang alone. Getting to eat both gamjatang and cutlet made the meal so much more filling, haha.

And since hand-breaded pork cutlet is on the menu, this place also seems like a good option for families with kids. The adults can eat gamjatang while the kids eat cutlet, so it'd be an easy pick for a family meal out too!

At first I wondered if it might be too much for two people, but if you enjoy sharing a variety of dishes, it's a good combo. Picking meat off the bones one by one also stretched out the meal time more than expected, which was nice for taking things slow and chatting with my wife over the meal.

On a slightly chilly day like these, when you're craving hot broth, nothing really beats gamjatang, haha. Rich broth, meat picked off the bone, kimchi and kkakdugi in between, and a piece of cutlet on top — that adds up to a pretty satisfying meal.

If you're going as a couple, I'd recommend this gamjatang small + hand-breaded pork cutlet combo. Getting to enjoy two dishes together was personally more satisfying than just gamjatang alone! Next time, I'd like to try the ppyeo-jjim (steamed pork bone) instead of gamjatang, haha.