Balsan Station pub: nakgopsae perilla wraps and mixed rice, Gungmin

Today I'm sharing a review of Gungmin Nakgopsae (국민낙곱새), a pub near Balsan Station that's great for a hearty dinner and a drink after work. There are so many good restaurants around Balsan Station, but that day I was craving something spicy, so I came for nakgopsae loaded with octopus, gopchang (beef small intestine) and shrimp. I'd recommend it if you're looking for a dinner meetup or a pub.

How do you get to Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch from Balsan Station?

Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch is 351 m from Balsan Station Exit 6, about a 4-minute walk. It's on the first floor across from the Balsan 119 Safety Center, so it wasn't hard to find, and being so close to the station makes it convenient for dinner or drinks after work.

Parking at Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch

If you're driving, turn into the alley next to Ogong Gimbap and park in the lot there. If it's full, you can double-park and leave a phone number where you can be reached, so keep that in mind before you go!

Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch hours and lunch specials

Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch is open daily 11:00–23:00, with last order at 22:00. On the last Monday of each month it closes at 22:00. Group seating, reservations, takeout and delivery are all available, and there's parking too.

They also run a good-value lunch special from 11:00 to 14:00. You get a filling meal at a reasonable price, so it looked like a solid office-worker lunch, haha.

• Nakusae rice bowl ₩9,000
• Beef gopchang rice soup ₩12,000
• Perilla kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) ₩11,000

What is the atmosphere like at Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch?

The restaurant has a modern, clean interior with a big high-definition screen. It feels pleasant overall for a meal, and on days with soccer or baseball games you could probably watch them in vivid detail. It's also a nice space for cheering with friends over drinks.

There's a restroom inside, and unlike a typical restaurant bathroom, it was neat and stylish, like a café. I was impressed. It was clean too, good! You can feel how carefully the place is run even in the restroom.

I also spotted a visit photo from Osaka Ojo Gang, the winning crew of Street Woman Fighter 3, and since I enjoy watching the show, it made me extra happy haha.

They also have a wide range of alcohol, so this Balsan Station pub lets you choose to suit your taste.

Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch menu and what we ordered

You order easily through the tablet at the table, and what we ordered was... drumroll... the beef gopchang nakgopsae (medium) for ₩34,900! Besides nakgopsae, the menu has hot pots, dakdoritang (braised chicken), chicken feet, sides, and drinks, so it's great for drinking as well as eating.

Receipt review event

They were also running a receipt review event with quite a few options, so if you visit, you might want to join in too.

• Photo review: choose one of extra noodles/rice cake, sliced beef, or one canned drink
• Video review: choose one of fried rice with flying fish roe, pineapple sorbet, or one highball

There's also a guide on how to eat nakgopsae at its best, so we followed it exactly haha.

Side dishes at Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch

The basic spread came with seaweed soup, perilla leaves, white kimchi, mustard-leaf kimchi, mayonnaise, and pickled radish wraps.

How was the beef gopchang nakgopsae (medium)?

Here comes the star of the day, the beef gopchang nakgopsae! You can order daechang (large intestine) instead of gopchang, but I was craving gopchang that day.

Plump octopus and shrimp, plus glass noodles, rice cakes and plenty of gopchang, made it look great too. Stir everything evenly so the glass noodles don't burn, and after adjusting the heat as the eating guide explains,

eat the glass noodles first so they don't stick to the pan! The spicy sauce soaked right into them, so they were chewy and savory at the same time.

The gopchang comes out in long pieces, so cut it up so the filling doesn't run out. I loved how much gopchang there was haha. There are rice cakes in there too, so you get chewy rice cake as well,

The best way to eat nakgopsae: a perilla leaf and pickled radish wrap

You can enjoy the gopchang, shrimp and octopus on their own, but the best combo is to lay pickled radish on a perilla leaf, add all three, and eat it in one bite! This was the tastiest way, for real.

The gopchang was well filled with creamy fat, the octopus was bouncy yet tender, and the shrimp were plump, so every ingredient was good quality overall.

Finish with rice mixed into the pot

It would feel wrong to skip the carbs, so we ordered a bowl of rice and mixed it in. The spicy sauce soaked into the rice, making it a perfectly satisfying finish to the meal.

Is Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch a good dinner pub near Balsan Station?

At Gungmin Nakgopsae Gangseo Branch, we enjoyed a hearty nakgopsae that was spicy and deeply flavored overall. It's satisfying as a meal, and with its wide range of alcohol I think it also works well as a dinner pub near Balsan Station, so if you're deciding on dinner or a drinking spot around Balsan Station, it's worth a visit!