Eel restaurant in Yeouido for a tonic dinner with Dad: Daedong Jangeo

A great eel spot in Yeouido. The eel soup at this private-room restaurant, Daedong Jangeo, was the winning move!

My dad has been looking pretty worn out now that the seasons are changing, so I thought we should go have a tonic meal together. There were quite a few good places, but I decided on Daedong Jangeo, famous as a freshwater eel spot in Yeouido. It was far better than I imagined, so let me introduce it!

Daedong Jangeo Yeouido location, hours and parking

Daedong Jangeo Yeouido is about a 3-minute walk from Exit 3 of National Assembly Station, on the ground floor of Oakwood Yeouido Park Hotel. Weekdays it's open 11:00–22:00 (break time 15:00–17:00), weekends 11:30–22:00, and last order is 21:00.

• Address: Oakwood Yeouido Park Hotel 1F, 24 Gukhoe-daero 68-gil, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul
• Hours: Mon–Fri 11:00–22:00 / break time 15:00–17:00 / last order 21:00
• Sat–Sun 11:30–22:00 / last order 21:00
• Reservations: available via Naver Reservation
• Other: wine pairing, baby chairs, group dining, pets allowed (carrier or bag required), corkage paid or free, rooms for 2–25 people, group rooms for 8–25
• Parking: first 60 minutes free

Daedong Jangeo Yeouido entrance and menu

Daedong Jangeo Yeouido has a beautiful exterior that looks upscale to anyone. It seemed great for company dinners too, and it felt private.

The menu is posted at the entrance. The lunch eel soup looks good too!

I checked the menu before going in. The prices aren't cheap~ I guess you can't ignore the power of atmosphere. I decided to treat Dad to the really expensive stuff next time and headed inside.

Is every table at Daedong Jangeo Yeouido a private room?

The whole interior of Daedong Jangeo Yeouido is made up of private rooms, and it's spotless. It looked just like a traditional Korean set-meal restaurant (hanjeongsik).

The fancy interior stands out too.

What Dad and I ordered: 330g freshwater eel for two and eel soup

We ordered the 330g freshwater eel for 2 people (₩48,000), the eel soup (₩28,000) and a bowl of rice (₩1,000). Note that at Daedong Jangeo Yeouido you have to order rice separately even if you order the soup.

We had booked ahead, so when we entered the room the basic side dishes were already set out. The sides are neatly put together. Because freshwater eel is oily, right? The lineup made sense.

The server brought vegetables and muksabal (chilled acorn jelly in cold broth).

Why the muksabal (cold jelly soup) side dish surprised us

Honestly, muksabal isn't a dish I crave. But we came late in the evening, so I decided to give it a try. Once I tasted it I kept saying, "Oh.. this is so good." It wasn't heavily seasoned, and the soft, jiggly jelly was easy and gentle to eat.

How does Daedong Jangeo grill its freshwater eel?

The 330g freshwater eel at Daedong Jangeo Yeouido is prepped and lightly grilled first, then the server cuts it and grills it again. It looked quite plump and delicious.

The eel gets a light brush of sauce and is grilled over the fire on both sides. Then the server cuts it and grills it again.

Once the eel is golden like this, it's done!

They gave me the tail first and I tried it. It was really nutty and rich! The ginger had lost its sharp bite too, so I could pick up several pieces at once. And the sauce was a bigger kick than I expected~

Dipping it in salt is even better. What on earth is in this salt that makes it so nutty? The eel itself is mild yet plump, so it seems to go well with any side dish.

I've gone to quite a few places for eel, and this one makes my top 3. Plump, right?

Why the eel soup at Daedong Jangeo was the best call of the night

The eel soup at Daedong Jangeo Yeouido (₩28,000) is a bit pricey, but it has a lot of sliced eel in it. The first taste is slightly tangy, and as you keep eating it gets seriously addictive.

Meanwhile the eel soup and rice arrived. The portion is generous.

It's a bit pricey, but it turns out there's a lot of sliced eel in it. The first taste is slightly tangy, and as you keep eating it gets seriously addictive. It's mild yet rich, clean and classy.

It felt like a waste to just eat it alone, so Dad and I split the rice too! It goes great with rice. I envy the people who work in Yeouido~ I'll have to come back for lunch next time.

I felt a lot of regret at the last bite. I'll have to work hard and earn money to come back again.

Finishing with the chef's homemade shiso tea

At the end they gave us something called shiso tea (perilla leaf tea)? They said the chef made it himself. And wow, it's the real deal. Cool, fizzy and sweet, it seems like a drink that's hard to find just anywhere. Even though the eel was clean-tasting, this tea made the ending feel refreshing.

Is Daedong Jangeo Yeouido worth it for a tonic eel dinner?

I've tried eel restaurants all over Seoul. It's hard for eel to be bad, right? I'd recommend Daedong Jangeo Yeouido as my top 2 (it moved up a spot before I knew it), together with the one near City Hall Station.