Gwangmyeong thistle rice restaurant with spicy octopus: Maehwa

Thistle rice with my parents in Gwangmyeong's Bamil Village

I was trying to figure out where to take my mom, who's on a diet these days, and ended up at Maehwa Gondeurebap Gwangmyeong Bamil Village Branch, a place a lot of people visit for hanjeongsik (Korean set meal) in Bamil Village. I wanted something lighter than greasy food — namul (seasoned vegetable side dishes) or gondeure bap felt right — and the table setting here looked healthy from the start, so I figured my parents would like it.

Spoiler: my mom finished one bowl of gondeure rice and then had two more 😂 We came looking for a diet-friendly menu and she left having eaten three bowls of rice — that's how good the banchan and gondeure rice combo was.

Parking at Maehwa Gondeurebap and the mountain-side view

The first thing I liked when we arrived at Maehwa Gondeurebap was that the parking lot is big enough that you barely have to worry about it. When I'm eating out with my parents, taste matters but so does easy parking, and this place is a solid choice on that front. The building itself backs onto a mountain, so it felt more like a meal out in the countryside than a city restaurant.

The weather was overcast so the photos are a bit lacking, but the building looked pretty peeking through the green trees, and there were outdoor tables too — perfect for sitting a while after eating on a nice day. Right next to it a mountain trail continued on, and looking down I noticed a ton of chestnut burrs had fallen on the ground.

🌰 I searched hard hoping to find at least one intact chestnut, but it seemed like diligent people had already picked them all — only empty burrs left. With scenery like this, it felt less like just visiting a restaurant and more like a little countryside outing.

Is the dining room good for a family meal?

I'd heard it was a long-running hanjeongsik spot in Gwangmyeong, so I expected an older-looking restaurant, but the interior was more spacious and clean than I imagined. The tables weren't crammed together, and a lot of families were there eating, so it really did feel like a good fit for a meal with parents or family.

Why we ordered fire-grilled spicy octopus with the thistle rice

The menu is built around gondeure bap as the base, with a choice of main dishes like jeyuk bokkeum (stir-fried pork), scallion bulgogi, or fire-grilled spicy octopus. We ordered the set with fire-grilled octopus, and since gondeure rice comes as standard, it felt less like eating one main dish and more like a full hanjeongsik with several side dishes.

If you're in Haan-dong, Gwangmyeong, and want a healthy meal centered on namul and rice rather than something heavy or spicy, this should suit you well.

The namul side dish spread, served 10 minutes later

About 10 minutes after ordering, the side dishes started coming out one by one. Bean sprouts, amaranth greens, seasoned doraji (bellflower root), stir-fried anchovies, gopchang-gim (crispy laver) — the table filled up, and even looking back at the photos, there was quite a variety. And then, the cheonggukjang (fermented soybean stew) I'd been waiting for finally arrived — drumroll.

I especially liked that there were so many namul dishes that paired well with gondeure rice. A salad came out too, topped generously with a savory sauce, good for a light bite before digging into the main meal.

Fire-grilled spicy octopus and thick cheonggukjang

The best thing we ate that day was the fire-grilled spicy octopus. It came in glossy red sauce loaded with onion and green onion, and the amount of octopus was better than expected. The plump octopus wasn't chewy — it was tender — and the sauce was spicy with a savory depth that kept me reaching for more gondeure rice.

The cheonggukjang was the thick style with the soybeans still whole, with a savory bean flavor followed by a slight tang, and it went really well with the gondeure rice. As soon as the gondeure rice arrived, I scooped the rice out into a bowl first and poured hot water into the pot to prep the final sungnyung (scorched rice tea). The rice, loaded with gondeure, was savory even eaten plain, but I especially loved wrapping it in gopchang-gim.

The moment my dad saw the cheonggukjang, he mixed the octopus, various side dishes, and cheonggukjang all into his gondeure rice and said it was delicious. Everyone eats their own way, haha. With so many side dishes, a bowl of gondeure rice disappeared fast. Overall, rather than pushing one strong dish, it's a meal about enjoying gondeure rice alongside a whole spread of banchan — a place that really deserves the label 'good to visit with parents.' The portions were generous too.

Spicy octopus, thistle rice and gopchang-gim wrapped together

Amid a neat, namul-heavy spread, having one spicy octopus dish balanced everything out perfectly. Eating only gondeure rice on its own might feel a bit plain, but alternating a bite of octopus with a bite of gondeure rice blended the spiciness and savoriness really well. So personally, I'd recommend ordering the fire-grilled octopus set too.

Braised kodari (dried pollack) came out as well — though what caught my eye first wasn't the fish but the thick chunks of radish soaked in sauce. The radish was quite thick, but the seasoning had soaked all the way through, so it fell apart softly with a bite of the chopsticks.

My mom said at first she wouldn't eat much since she's dieting, but she finished a bowl and then had two more. Maybe because it's a healthy meal, it definitely felt less heavy than a regular meat-based menu, and with so many kinds of namul, there was fun in mixing and matching. It matched my parents' taste well enough that I think I'd come back to mind when looking for a Gwangmyeong hanjeongsik spot for a family meal.

After finishing the rice and side dishes, the sungnyung I'd been looking forward to. I opened the pot and scraped at the scorched rice at the bottom — there was more crust stuck to the bottom than I expected. It was nice for a warm sip to clean the palate, but there was a slight burnt taste at the very bottom, which was a bit of a letdown. Next time, instead of pouring water and leaving it too long, I'd probably open the lid once partway through to let the heat cool down. Still, ending the meal with a warm sip of sungnyung felt like a comforting way to wrap things up.

Meeting Ppobi the dog and a walk after lunch

After finishing our meal and stepping outside, we met an adorable poodle. Her name is Ppobi. She seemed to be the resident dog at the restaurant, and she didn't bark even when she saw people — very calm, so we spent a while making a fuss over her. The owner mentioned they also go hiking on the mountain nearby and told us to feel her leg muscles, which were genuinely firm — pretty funny.

With the mountain right there and outdoor tables available, it seemed like a good idea to take a slow lap around the area instead of just driving off right after the meal.

Instead of heading straight home after the meal, we went for a walk along Anyangcheon Stream. We watched herons, strolled slowly past the fields, and even took our dog Kkamsun for a walk — a pretty full weekend day.

Would I bring my parents back to Maehwa Gondeurebap?

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