Sangsu bar for stainless-cup draft beer, cabbage refills: Kkoko Land

My husband and I found an amazing open-air draft beer spot near Sangsu Station. Let me introduce it right away. Let's go!!

Kkoko Land hours and how to get there from Sangsu Station

Kkoko Land is an open-air bar at 18 Wausan-ro 19-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, a 6-minute walk from Sangsu Station. It's open daily from 18:00 to 02:00, last order at 01:00. Group bookings are fine, but there's no parking.

From Exit 3 of Hapjeong Station, walk straight toward Hongdae, turn right where you see Bobo Hotel, go straight about 350m, and cross the crosswalk. After crossing, walk straight about 70m, turn right where you see a Hongdae café, and walk another 130m — and Kkoko Land pops right up!

It's only about a 6-minute walk from Sangsu Station too. The entrance with the spinning waterwheel is so distinctive you'll spot it at a glance, haha.

Second-floor open-air seats: a charcoal grill bar with no smoke

Kkoko Land's dining floor is on the 2nd floor. The interior was really spacious with a wide-open view, so it had that full outdoor-patio feel.

All the windows were fully open, so even though it's a charcoal barbecue place, there was no smoke at all — clean as can be, haha. The vibe was the best. My husband was surprised too, saying he didn't know a place like this existed in Hongdae. And because the windows are open, the inside wasn't loud at all — perfect for actually talking. We're two happy people in our thirties who finally found a quiet, conversation-friendly spot in Hongdae, lol.

If I ever meet friends in Hongdae, I'm coming back here.

The waterwheel I saw at the entrance is also on the 2nd floor!! Is that dry ice or something? Smoke kept rising from it, and it really added to the atmosphere, haha. It felt strangely like we'd driven far out of the city for dinner, not just stepped into Hongdae, lol.

The free snack and QR code ordering at Kkoko Land

Kkoko Land's basic side snack is a chicken-leg-shaped cracker! I never buy this kind of snack normally, but as a side dish it's somehow so good. The kind of addictive cracker you can't stop picking at.

To order, you just scan the QR code stuck to each table.

What's on the Kkoko Land menu?

I photographed the menu board too, haha. The signature charcoal-grilled kkodeulsal (chewy chicken neck meat) comes in salt or sauce flavor — you choose. There's also yuringi (crispy fried chicken with tangy sauce), icy mak-guksu (cold buckwheat noodles), kalbaengi (kalguksu noodle soup with whelk), charcoal-grilled rib patties, grilled sausage, odeng-tang (fish cake soup), open-flame charcoal chicken barbecue, and so much more!! Tons of side dishes.

We'd already eaten dinner and came here for a second round, so we just ordered one plate of the signature charcoal-grilled kkodeulsal in sauce~~~! For drinks there's draft beer, soju, light beer/soju, highballs, and more! We'd heard the draft beer here was good, so we got a glass each of Terra and Kelly draft, plus a bottle of Light Jinro.

Why Kkoko Land serves draft beer in stainless steel cups

Ta-da~ Kkoko Land's draft beer glasses aren't glass but stainless steel cups, so you can drink it ice-cold all the way to the last sip.

How good is a cold draft beer in that outdoor patio atmosphere. Everyone, go try it, please.

Signature charcoal-grilled kkodeulsal (chewy chicken neck) in sauce

The charcoal-grilled kkodeulsal (sauce) arrived. It comes with cabbage salad, grilled corn, and sweet potato. Who knew kkodeulsal (chicken neck meat) could taste this good?

My husband and I were both clearly already full when we got here, but we kept picking at it while chatting and somehow finished the whole plate, lol. Is this even real. No bones to pick through, just pure chewy meat — the texture was amazing. It's a bit spicy, but eaten together with the cabbage salad, the combo was insane. Fully charcoal-smoky and so delicious!!!! Next time I need to try the salt flavor too.

Cheers with somaek (beer and soju mixed)!~~~

You have to get the draft beer here, got it?

Free cabbage salad refills

Kkoko Land lets you refill the cabbage salad! The kkodeulsal gets a bit spicy as you go, so the cabbage is essential. We asked for a refill and they brought us two heaping plates.

In the end, one more beer!!haha. It had been a while since I'd been to a place with this outdoor bar vibe, and this excited middle-aged lady chatted away with her husband and ended up overeating and overdrinking, haha.

Arsenal vs Man City on the screen at Kkoko Land

The owner must be a huge football fan — he was wearing an Ødegaard jersey and put on Arsenal vs Manchester City on the screen, lol. Three minutes into the match, Arsenal scored the opener — what a moment!!!

My football-loving husband sat next to me chattering away, explaining every play, lol.

Final thoughts on a night at Kkoko Land

While paying at the counter, there was this adorable little chicken-shaped bowl sitting there!! So cute, right, T-T. It had dental floss inside. That kind of thoughtful touch is so nice, haha.

1000% planning to come back to Kkoko Land near Sangsu Station!! Highly, highly recommend it if you're looking for an outdoor bar that isn't loud. Skip the fried chicken and come here for healthy chicken barbecue and a drink — let's go~~~!