Jongak group dinner bar with a private room and amber ale: Sudowonui

While looking for a good-atmosphere bar near Jongak, I found Sudowonui Bimil Jeojanggo (수도원의 비밀 저장고, "the monastery's secret cellar")! The space is inspired by a medieval European monastery, so it has a totally different vibe from your usual bar — loved it. It's a Jongak spot where you can enjoy craft beer and wine together, so it works for a date, a blind date, or a group dinner!

Where Sudowonui Bimil Jeojanggo is and when it opens

• Location: 175 Gwancheol-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul
• Hours: Daily 17:00–23:00 (may close early, call ahead)
• Transit: About 5 minutes on foot from Jongak Station

Is there parking near Jongak Station?

No parking available! Please use a nearby public or paid parking lot.

Finding the entrance on Jongak's Youth Street

Sudowonui Bimil Jeojanggo, a Jongak bar located right on Jongak Station's Jeong-eum Street (Youth Street)! The entrance recalls an old European tavern — the different vibe starts before you even step in, haha.

Inside the monastery-themed bar and how many fit in the private room

As the name suggests, Sudowonui Bimil Jeojanggo's defining feature is its moody, old-European-monastery-inspired space! It's laid out spaciously and neatly, so it was comfortable even with a group, and the tables have plenty of room between them for talking over drinks, haha. With a bar table, hall tables, and a private room, it's also ideal for anyone looking for a spot for a gathering or a company dinner! The private room can reportedly seat 10 up to 14 people, haha. Other guests were using it, so I couldn't get a photo!

True to a Jongak craft beer spot, the bar has a draft beer quality-management certification plate and the date of the last line cleaning posted separately! A trustworthy Jongak bar.

Menu, prices and ordering by tablet

You pick and order from a tablet! From barbecue plates to pizza, pasta, gnocchi and other snacks, there's a wide range of craft beer, bottled beer, wine, and soju ready to pair with them.

What the couple ordered

• Monk's Flame Roast Chicken ₩23,900
• Monastery's White Cup Wheat Ale ₩7,900
• Sacred Flame Amber Ale ₩7,900
• Ube Beer ₩7,900

How the Monk's Flame Roast Chicken tastes

We ordered the roast chicken with a wheat ale and an amber ale. The roast chicken came with fries, coleslaw, pickles, and two sauces.

It's described as chicken thigh meat that's brined and low-temperature aged for 24 hours, then oven-roasted! Tasting it, the outside was crispy while the inside stayed moist — I could also pick up a faint smoky char, haha.

The fries that came with it were also perfect as a drinking snack. A great Jongak spot to casually enjoy a meal and a snack at the same time.

Wheat ale, amber ale and ube beer compared

For the wheat beer I picked the Hand & Malt one. On the menu it's listed as the wheat ale called Monastery's White Cup! I've been seeing it more often at places lately, and it's tasty enough that it keeps catching my eye, haha. It'd been a while since I'd seen an amber ale on a menu, so I ordered it — it's called Sacred Flame Amber, haha. Tasting it, it was exactly the flavor I was after!

We also ordered an ube beer! Ube is really trending these days, haha. My husband and I had never had anything ube-flavored, so we gave it a try — it was sweet and carbonated, more like a soda drink!

Is Sudowonui Bimil Jeojanggo worth it for a group dinner?

If you're looking for a good-atmosphere bar near Jongak, this is the place — a unique setting inspired by a medieval European monastery where you can enjoy craft beer and wine together. Food from a chef who trained at a Hilton hotel in New Zealand as your bar snack — do you even need to look for another Jongak restaurant separately, haha. Craft beer, wine, and snacks all in one place — that was Sudowonui Bimil Jeojanggo, a great-atmosphere Jongak bar.