Hongdae chicken feet set with Vienna sausage: Cheongnyeon Dakbal 1987

Today I suddenly had a craving for chicken feet, and while looking around I found a set combo that looked so good I had to visit — Cheongnyeon Dakbal 1987 Hongdae Branch!!

It's not far from Exit 3 of Hongik University Station!

What is the outdoor tent seating like at Cheongnyeon Dakbal 1987 Hongdae?

Cheongnyeon Dakbal 1987 Hongdae Branch has a really well set-up outdoor tent area, perfect for eating outside in this kind of weather. The shop itself is pretty, and the outdoor seats had great atmosphere too! Even though the weather's cooling down, the AC is on inside, so if you run hot you don't need to worry!

Ordering the Cheongnyeon Dakbal Set: every side included

We went straight for the Cheongnyeon Dakbal Set! Usually chicken feet places just throw in a steamed egg or a rice ball as their set side, but here even the side dishes were part of the set! That meant we didn't have to agonize over what else to order haha. There were so many sides and drink options too, definitely a spot women would like a lot!

We went with the boneless soup chicken feet, and for my spice-wimp boyfriend, spice level 1 (shin ramyeon heat)! There were also a ton of topping options, but we just added Vienna sausage! I did consider adding glass noodles, but the set already had so many sides that we skipped it this time!

When you order, they give you tips on how to eat the chicken feet the best way — looking back now, I never got to try tip number 3 haha.

What comes on the set tray, and how to eat it the recommended way

Finally the set I ordered arrived! Isn't the spread pretty solid? The chicken feet were the main goal of course, but honestly the fried chicken skin was my real target, while my boyfriend loves mukguksu (acorn jelly soup) so that was his goal haha. Whoever designed this menu combo really knows their food...

Following the tip, we added the bean sprout broth and bean sprouts and boiled it hard until it thickened up a bit.

My boyfriend carefully made a rice ball, and I put a piece of chicken feet on top and tried the second tip. Yep — tuna mayo rice ball with chicken feet is an unbeatable combo!! The chicken feet had a smoky char to them, somewhere between direct-fire chicken feet and soup chicken feet!

Cheonsachae kelp noodles with bean sprouts

Second up: mayo cheonsachae (shredded agar noodles) with chicken feet and bean sprouts! It was my first time trying cheonsachae, and the crunchy texture actually paired really well with the chicken feet! I knew it existed but this was the first place I'd seen it served with dakbal! Since the cheonsachae was coated in mayo, it also seemed to tone down the spiciness a bit. With the crunchy bean sprouts too, this combo was a genius texture pairing.

How spicy is spice level 1 at Cheongnyeon Dakbal 1987?

I ordered level 1, but as I kept eating it did get a bit spicy ㅠㅠ It's the kind of spicy-delicious that's stress-relieving, but my mouth got a little numb haha. When that happened, eating it with mayo and pickled radish together toned it down enough to keep going~ Honestly I don't even think of mayo as an 'extra' — it's basically essential.

Soju with the chicken feet, draft beer to finish

There are lots of drink options here, but since we're not into fruity drinks, it was soju again today! You can't have chicken feet without soju, right? It just goes down so smoothly.

The kalguksu noodles that surprised us

And this kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) was a surprise! It tasted like the real deal from a dedicated noodle shop. The broth was rich, thick, and refreshing, so you just keep spooning it up haha. Whenever the chicken feet got too spicy, I'd take a sip of the kalguksu broth to cool my mouth down.

Fried chicken skin: the dish I looked forward to most

The fried chicken skin I was most excited for!! No words needed, it's great for light snacking. If we hadn't gotten the set, I'd have just ordered two servings of chicken feet plus this. Perfect light side dish — crispy, and when dipped in the broth it's not greasy at all, spicy and good.

Muksabal, my boyfriend's top pick

My boyfriend's number one pick, mukguksu! The acorn jelly cubes were huge, and it was loaded with kimchi and cucumber, so it was nice and refreshing. Perfect for chasing a shot of soju with a spoonful of the cold broth.

8:30pm on Chuseok eve at a Hongdae outdoor drinking spot

The two of us usually finish with 3 bottles of soju, but the atmosphere here was so good and we still had so much food left that we didn't want to stop, so we got draft beer to finish up! Perfect refreshing way to end the night haha.

We got there around 8:30pm after work, the night before Chuseok, and people kept coming in even after us! I used to think chicken feet was mainly a girls' dish, but there were groups of guys too, and the table behind us was foreign visitors! That's basically confirmation this is a legit Hongdae chicken feet spot, right?! With this kind of weather being perfect for outdoor seating, if you're looking for a Hongdae bar or a Yeonnam-dong bar, I'd recommend Cheongnyeon Dakbal Hongdae Branch!