Mango cream shrimp and welcome drink at Kkoko Land, a Hongdae outdoor

With the weather this nice lately, a lot of people are hunting for outdoor bars instead of staying indoors, right? I went to Kkoko Land, a new spot that just opened in Hongdae, and I left really satisfied — the outdoor vibe was great, and above all, everything we ordered was so good! It's within walking distance of Sangsu Station too, so I really want to recommend this new place to anyone looking for outdoor bars in Hongdae or Sangsu!

Kkoko Land hours and location

Hours: Mon-Fri 16:00-02:00 / Sat-Sun 12:00-02:00, last order 01:00. Reservations can be made through Naver. It's close to Sangsu Station Exit 2, and also a fine spot to head to after hanging out in Hongdae!

Since Kkoko Land just opened, the whole place felt clean and fresh, with exactly the kind of vibe you want for drinks outdoors. The entrance alone was huge — almost overwhelming, honestly.

The full outdoor-bar mood, Hongdae style

Overall the place was big, with lots of seats and plenty of space. There's also a room-style space up what feels like a second floor, so it looked like a good option for larger groups too! At the outdoor tables you get more of a lively, buzzing atmosphere, while the room seems like it'd be more comfortable for a group gathering.

What really got me was that the top isn't closed off like a normal indoor space — the ceiling is completely open, so it genuinely feels like you're drinking outdoors!!! On a cool evening like these lately, the vibe there must be amazing! (I loved it so much I really made the most of it haha)

Big screens too

There are also large screens on both sides, so it looked great for watching a soccer match or videos together with a group! On a World Cup day or during a big match, coming here with a bunch of friends to drink and cheer would be a whole vibe lol.

So it seemed like it'd work for everything — a casual Hongdae date for two, a friend hangout, a birthday, or a big group drinking session. Above all, with the outdoor seating plus big screens plus a group room, this is a Hongdae bar worth remembering if you're looking for a place for a group to gather on a nice-weather day!!

A great start: welcome drink plus the basic side dish

On your first visit here, they give you a non-alcoholic welcome drink, and it's genuinely more delicious than you'd expect! On its own it's sweet, easy to drink like a regular beverage — but I poured in about 2-3 soju-glass shots of soju, and it turned into something like a sweet vodka cocktail, which was totally my style. The chicken-leg-shaped snack came as the basic side dish, and of course it was tasty too haha!

What we ordered

• Signature charcoal-grilled chicken neck (spicy) + extra tortillas
• Sweet mango cream shrimp

Sweet mango cream shrimp, ₩19,000

Sweet mango cream shrimp! Crispy, plump shrimp with sweet-tangy mango and a smooth cream sauce — this was genuinely delicious too. I'm not usually a mango person, but the mango flavor wasn't overpowering, just subtle and well-matched, so this ended up one of my favorite dishes! The shrimp were especially plump and the batter crispy, so the sauce and shrimp went together perfectly — I kept reaching for more.

You can't resist a drink with this side dish!!! After a round of drinks we dug in even harder — they also gave us a variety of sauces on a small plate, so we got to enjoy different flavors, and the plate being extra-large was a nice touch too!

Signature charcoal-grilled seasoned chicken neck, ₩24,000

Signature charcoal-grilled chicken neck, seasoned. This is chicken neck — a special cut — given a charcoal aroma. The seasoning was great, and the chicken neck had that chewy-yet-tender texture that made it genuinely so good... It's tasty on its own, but wrapping it in a tortilla with the chicken neck was even better. The tortilla seems to mellow out the spiciness a bit? You might run out of tortillas as you go, but you can order extra, so I'd personally recommend adding more and wrapping it up!

If the chicken neck is all about strong charcoal smokiness and seasoning, the mango cream shrimp is sweet and soft, so ordering both together made a perfect combo. Everything we ordered was delicious, so next time I'd love to try other menu items too! I have a feeling I'll be coming back often 😙

To sum up

A new outdoor bar in Hongdae that starts you off with a sweet welcome drink and lets you properly enjoy side dishes like charcoal chicken neck with tortillas and mango cream shrimp! If you're looking for a great outdoor bar in Hongdae on a nice-weather day, I highly recommend it :) One thing though — many of the staff are foreign and can get confused with orders, so double-check when your dishes arrive!!