Beef-bone broth naengmyeon and bossam for two near Gwangjin: Sosa

I was heading to a jazz bar in Gwangju and wanted a good dinner beforehand, so I looked around and found this Hamhung-style naengmyeon spot that's also known as a bossam restaurant near Gwangjin Station — it's got a Blue Ribbon and the Korean Food Master title, so I went to check out Sosa Myeonok! I was going to just get bossam, but the naengmyeon looked so good in photos that I ordered both, and I'm glad I did!

Hours, parking, and how to get there from Gwangjin Station

⏰ Hours: Daily 10:50–21:00 / last order 20:30 Groups ⭕️ Takeout ⭕️ Reservations ⭕️ High chairs ⭕️

It's a close 5-minute walk from Gwangjin Station Exit 6.

Parking is available right in front of the restaurant.

A hanok-style exterior — what's the vibe like inside?

The building looks like a traditional hanok, clean and a bit upscale. There's parking right out front so it's easy if you're driving, and it's close to Gwangjin Station so it works fine on foot too.

Interestingly, this restaurant has received the Korean Food Master title. On top of that it's got Blue Ribbon and Red Ribbon recognition too — restaurants with a Blue Ribbon really are always good!

There's a waiting area inside, but when we visited around 6pm on a Saturday we got seated right away with no wait. The waiting area walls are packed with celebrity autographs!

Korean Food Master citations are hung all over the restaurant. So interesting — I looked it up out of curiosity, and it's a title given to people with 20+ years of experience who've contributed to the development of Korean food culture. Wow.

Disposable aprons and high chairs are ready too, so it's a good spot to bring a baby along.

Menu and prices at Sosa Myeonok

+ Daega Mandu Gomtang (dumpling soup, ₩12,000) True to a Hamhung-style naengmyeon spot, the noodle menu stands out — codfish, mul (water), bibim (mixed) — and there's also bossam, warm jeyuk (spicy stir-fried pork), dumplings, yukjeon (beef pancake), and galbitang (short rib soup).

Mul-naengmyeon ₩11,000 Daega Bossam (small) ₩36,000 Order complete!

Side dishes and the self-serve bar

You order through the tablet on the table, and the side dishes come out once you order. We got pickled radish, great with the naengmyeon, and dipping sauces good with the bossam.

And warm broth that goes well with the naengmyeon too...! Nice to have something hot on the side.

You can help yourself to extra items at the self-serve bar, and vinegar and mustard are conveniently left right on the table.

Beef-bone broth, squid-ink noodles — how's the mul-naengmyeon?

The mul-naengmyeon I ordered arrives! Given the restaurant's name and its Korean Food Master title for naengmyeon, I was genuinely excited.

First off, there's a layer of ice flakes floating on top, and unlike most naengmyeon places that use dongchimi (radish water kimchi) broth, this one is made from 1+ grade beef bone broth. So visually it looks closer to pyeongyang-style naengmyeon, but the broth is far richer than pyeongyang naengmyeon — that's the whole point. The broth was genuinely delicious.

The noodles are unusual too — they're made from dough kneaded with squid ink. Definitely a naengmyeon that stands apart from other places! Loaded with meat and absolutely delicious. If I lived near Gwangjin Station I'd really come here often.

There's half a boiled egg on top too, so you get some protein in!

Small daega bossam — is it enough for two?

We also ordered the small daega bossam. Looking at blog photos beforehand it seemed like a modest portion, but in person it was a lot! Two of us, a man and a woman, ate the small bossam plus naengmyeon and ended up super full!

The boiled pork comes out tender and well-cooked, stacked in two neat rows.

There are three side dishes — codfish salad, radish kimchi, and cabbage kimchi — and this is the first time I've seen codfish salad served with bossam! I'm not usually a fan of codfish, but it wasn't chewy at all, super soft, and paired really well with the boiled pork. The radish kimchi and cabbage kimchi were both sweet and delicious too.

I tried the bossam dipped in both sauces that come with it — one chili-flake based, one ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste) based — and both were great.

It's even better wrapped in the cabbage leaves that come with it. Like the last photo shows, it's also great eaten together with the codfish salad — the kimchi is tasty, the pork is soft, and it all goes perfectly alongside the naengmyeon.

Overall verdict

The interior alone is upscale, and with the Blue Ribbon and Korean Food Master hype I went in with high expectations — and it still exceeded them! The mul-naengmyeon in particular had a genuinely distinctive, refined flavor compared to other places. The bossam served alongside was super tender, the kimchi was tasty, the codfish salad was delicious — it feels like a place that puts real care into every single dish. The staff were friendly too. If you're looking for a good bossam or naengmyeon spot near Gwangjin Station, come here!