Regular vs special pork bone soup in Jungnang, Seoul: Wanttuk

When lunchtime rolls around, you always end up wondering what to eat.

Especially depending on the weather or how I'm feeling, some days I just crave something warm and spicy in soup form — and that day I wanted a really filling meal, so I went to Wanttuk Gamjatang Meokgol Main Branch near Meokgol Station.

Since it's a gamjatang (spicy pork bone stew) specialist, I was curious about the ppyeo-haejangguk (pork bone soup), and since I was visiting with my kid I also needed something kid-friendly, so this time I ordered the regular soup, the special soup, and a pork cutlet all together.

Eating them all, the broth, the meat, and the cutlet each had their own character, which made it a good spot for a family to share several dishes.

Where Wanttuk Gamjatang Meokgol Main Branch is and when it opens

Wanttuk Gamjatang Meokgol Main Branch is at 941 Dongil-ro, 101-dong Sangga 101-ho, Jungnang-gu, Seoul, between Meokgol Station and Taereung Ipgu Station. It's open daily from 10:30 to 22:30, with a break time of 15:00–17:00 Monday through Friday, and last order at 22:00. I'd recommend double-checking the hours before you visit.

It was a convenient location when I was looking for somewhere to eat nearby, and I thought it would be especially good for office workers and locals looking for a warm soup meal at lunch.

Amenities at Wanttuk Gamjatang Meokgol Main Branch

• Group seating available
• Reservations available
• High chair
• Separate restrooms for men and women
• Takeout available
• Delivery available
• Wifi
• Easy payment
• Parking available
• Wheelchair access and seating available
• Disabled parking

Parking made it convenient to drive there, and having a high chair on hand made it easy to eat with my kid.

The interior was cleaner and more comfortable than I expected. You might picture an old-school meat restaurant when you hear 'gamjatang place,' but this one has a relatively clean, trendy vibe, so it felt easy to visit for a family meal or a get-together.

What we ordered for lunch and what it cost

This time at Wanttuk Gamjatang Meokgol Main Branch I ordered three menu items.

• Ppyeo-haejangguk (pork bone soup) ₩11,000
• Ppyeo-haejangguk special ₩14,000
• Pork cutlet ₩11,000

I was torn between the regular and special ppyeo-haejangguk, so I ordered one of each to compare them directly.

For the dish my kid would eat, I picked the domestic pork loin cutlet. If we'd only ordered a soup dish, there might not have been much for the kid to eat, so having the cutlet made the menu combination much easier.

Pork bone soup, 11,000 won: how much meat is on the bones?

First the ppyeo-haejangguk arrived. There were big bones in the earthenware pot along with plenty of broth, and just looking at it felt filling.

When you eat gamjatang or ppyeo-haejangguk, how much meat is on the bone matters more than you'd think. Picking the meat off with chopsticks, there was more meat than I expected, which was satisfying.

The meat came off easily, and dipping it lightly in the broth brought out both the savory flavor of the meat and the rich taste of the soup. There was ugeoji (dried napa cabbage leaves) mixed in too, so alternating between meat and greens made it even tastier than eating meat alone.

Is the broth rich or too strong?

The most important thing about ppyeo-haejangguk is, of course, the broth. The broth at Wanttuk Gamjatang Meokgol Main Branch was rich, but it wasn't overly spicy or salty.

The first spoonful had a savory note up front, and as you kept eating, the deep flavor from the bones came through. Taking a spoonful of rice along with the broth made it feel properly filling.

I prefer eating the meat and ugeoji first rather than dumping all the rice into the broth right away, then mixing in rice bit by bit halfway through — and eating it that way this time, I got to enjoy it warm and tasty all the way to the end.

What do you get for the 14,000 won special pork bone soup?

This time I also ordered the ppyeo-haejangguk special. Compared to the regular version, the portion was clearly bigger, which would suit anyone wanting a really filling meal.

Picking apart the big bones one by one already fills you up on meat alone, and with the broth and rice on top, it was more than enough for a full meal.

If you're normally a big eater, the special might be worth choosing. Especially on days when you want to feel full from lunch through the afternoon, a bowl like this is surprisingly satisfying.

Domestic pork loin cutlet: the easy choice for a child

Then the cutlet I'd ordered for my kid arrived. As advertised, it used domestic pork loin, fried to a crisp — the kind of thing a kid would find appealing just by looking at it.

The outside was crispy and the meat inside was fairly thick, so I cut it into bite-sized pieces for my kid. Ppyeo-haejangguk is really more of an adult dish, so having the cutlet on the menu widened the options when visiting with a child.

My kid ate the cutlet with rice happily, which made me glad we'd come as a family. The adults got to eat hot ppyeo-haejangguk while the kid had the cutlet, so everyone could eat according to their own taste.

Rice spooned into the broth: the combination to try

Eating ppyeo-haejangguk, you naturally start reaching for rice.

Putting a spoonful of rice into the savory, rich broth and scooping it up with meat and ugeoji really ramps up the sense of fullness. Eating something like this at lunch, I felt full enough to last into the afternoon — it would suit office workers well as a lunch option.

Especially these days, when you want to eat a proper meal instead of rushing through one, this kind of soup dish is exactly what comes to mind.

Why Wanttuk Gamjatang works for a family meal

This time I visited with my kid, and overall it worked well as a family meal out.

There was a high chair ready, and there was a kid-friendly option like the cutlet, so choosing a menu wasn't hard. The restaurant was also fairly clean, so it wasn't stressful sitting down to eat with a kid.

If adults order ppyeo-haejangguk or the special, and the kid gets the cutlet, it seems like a good way for a family to sort out a meal together.

Of course, since it's a gamjatang place, if there's a bigger group it would also be nice to order gamjatang to share, but on a day like this when everyone wants their own dish, the ppyeo-haejangguk and cutlet combo worked well too.

Looking for lunch near Meokgol Station in Seoul?

Eating there myself, what stuck with me most was the generous bones and the rich broth. The ppyeo-haejangguk had big bones with plenty of meat on them, and eating it with ugeoji made it filling.

The special ppyeo-haejangguk had a generous portion, so it should suit anyone wanting a hearty meal. The cutlet, with its crispy coating and thick loin, was a good order when visiting with a kid.

If you're deciding on lunch near Meokgol Station, this seems like a solid choice given how filling the warm broth and rice can be.

If you're on your own, a single bowl of ppyeo-haejangguk makes for a simple meal, and if you're with family or friends, ordering gamjatang or a few dishes to share would work well too. Takeout and delivery are both available, and reservations and group visits are possible, so it's easy to adapt to your situation.

Next time I visit, I want to try the gamjatang itself instead of ppyeo-haejangguk. If you're craving a hearty dish with hot broth and lots of meat, and you're looking for a filling meal near Meokgol Station or Taereung Ipgu Station, this place is worth a stop :)