Gwangyang eel grill after Suncheon cockles, bokso-ju date: Deokeun

A Gwangyang, Jeolla restaurant pick: Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch

After Suncheon cockles, an eel stamina dinner at Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch

After a neat cockle set meal at Dowongyeong in Suncheon, this Gwangyang eel restaurant was the second stop of our Jeolla trip, and the goal was a proper stamina boost ☺️ As you know, our travel style is seriously all about food, right? hahahahaha

We'd treated our mouths to cockles in Suncheon, so this time we figured we had to have freshwater eel, the king of energy food! I searched Gwangyang restaurants like crazy, and Deokeun Jangeo, famous for its scale and eel quality, came up as the most well known, so I put it on the schedule right away~!

• 📍 Location: Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch, 101 Hangman 9-ro, Gwangyang-si, Jeollanam-do
• ⏱️ Hours: daily 11:00–21:30 (last order 20:30 / weekday break time 14:30–16:00)
• ✨ Large private parking lot, groups welcome, self-serve bar, takeout and delivery available

How do you order at Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch? Buy on the first floor, eat on the second

The system here is that you check the fresh, antibiotic-free eel with your own eyes at the first-floor shop, buy it, then head up to the second-floor restaurant. The building is really big and the private parking lot is roomy, so we parked easily without any worry 🫢

The eel is packed by weight, so it was easy to choose! But aren't these eels really big? I was surprised the price was so cheap for this quality~! They say there's a 10% discount at lunch, but sadly we came for dinner, so no discount for us T_T They also sell myeongi namul (wild garlic-like greens), eel extract, eel soup and more :)

The second-floor dining hall and ocean-view window seats

The second-floor hall is open, spacious and pleasant, and the ocean view by the windows looks wonderful! The tables are well spaced too, so it felt private and comfortable to eat.

Our window seat got lots of sunshine and the view outside was pretty, so it earns the title of view spot too!!

Charcoal grill, side dishes and the self-serve bar

Once you bring up the eel you bought, a charcoal grill is set neatly and tidy side dishes arrive one after another :)!! There was a huge variety: shredded ginger (a must for grilled eel), myeongi namul, pa-kimchi (green onion kimchi), seasoned onions, pickled perilla leaves, ssam-mu (pickled radish wraps), and fresh lettuce wraps, hahaha

If you run short of side dishes or sauces, you can help yourself at the cleanly kept self-serve bar, which was handy 🤍 I was amazed at how thick and plump the eel was, hahahaha. I worried it wouldn't all fit on the grill, but it just barely did, hahaha. Browning on the charcoal, the nutty aroma really teased my nose!🤤

How the grilled eel tastes and our favorite ways to eat it

The grilled eel was crispy outside and juicy and tender inside, sooooo good :) I like it with the plain, nutty flavor of the eel itself, plus shredded ginger and the special teriyaki sauce.

So for me, a clean salt-grilled feel dipped in sauce came out as number one, haha. My boyfriend's pick is brushing on the sweet-and-spicy sauce and wrapping it in pickled perilla leaf, which suits him best, hahaha. Even here our favorite styles differ, so we ate peacefully without any fights, hahaha

Bokso-ju and Bokso-sa mixing ratios to go with eel

With the eel we had bokso-ju, a mix of bokbunja wine (Korean black raspberry wine) and Ipsae-ju!! The golden eel looks delicious, right? The bokbunja is 15% and the Ipsae-ju is 15.5%, both fairly strong, yet maybe thanks to the sweetness of the bokbunja it went down glug glug 😆

• ✨ Bokso-ju ratio: bokbunja 1 : soju 1
• ✨ Bokso-sa ratio: bokbunja 1 : soju 1 : cider (lemon-lime soda) 1

It's so tasty you have to be careful not to overdrink!!! hahahahaha

Is Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch worth a return visit?

After Suncheon cockles, we got a proper stamina boost in Gwangyang at Deokeun Jangeo! It's no wonder it's famous as a Gwangyang landmark restaurant, I was completely satisfied 😊

The interior is pleasant and the view is good, and the eel had no gamey or fishy smell at all and was mild, so I wolfed it down happily from start to finish. Besides the food quality, the staff were kind, so we enjoyed the meal feeling genuinely well treated.

If you're looking for a restaurant near Gwangyang or Suncheon that works with anyone you bring, do visit Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch! It gave us one of the tastiest and most filling meals of this Jeolla trip, so if we travel to Gwangyang again, it's a 200% revisit for sure 💕