Gwanghwamun Korean restaurant with private rooms for kids: Wongiok

Where is Wongiok Gwanghwamun, and what are its hours?

Wongiok Gwanghwamun is on the basement floor of D-Palace, 10 Saemunan-ro 2-gil, Jongno-gu. It's open Monday through Saturday 11:30–22:00, closed every Sunday, with a break time of 15:00–17:00 and last order at 20:45.

If you're looking for a good gomtang (bone broth soup) spot in Gwanghwamun, Wongiok Gwanghwamun is packed with restorative dishes.

Private rooms at Wongiok Gwanghwamun: good for families and work dinners

Wongiok Gwanghwamun is a Korean dining restaurant with several private rooms for a more intimate meal. I visited this location in the basement of D-Palace in Gwanghwamun. Walking further inside, the lighting and overall mood felt sophisticated, true to a Korean dining restaurant, and there were multiple private rooms available — great for a family visit, and also well-suited to small gatherings or work dinners with several people.

Ordering by kiosk: what we chose that day

You can order conveniently right at the table with the kiosk. Between hanwoo (Korean beef) options, restorative soups great for energy, gomtang, and generous set menus for sampling several dishes at once, I spent a long time deciding what to get. Thinking about what the kids would eat too made me look through everything even more carefully. In the end, I ordered the premium hanwoo sirloin grill, spicy tripe hot plate, hongtang broth, and fried pepper.

Side dishes that arrived like full dishes

After ordering, the side dishes started arriving one by one — a wide variety, each plated neatly, and even the basic banchan (side dishes) already looked like proper cooked dishes. From japchae (stir-fried glass noodles) to cold jerky-style pork, pollock roe salad, and a fresh salad, the accompanying dishes were almost too good to just pass over.

Spicy samhap hot plate

The spicy tripe hot plate combined beef brisket, tripe, and vegetables with a spicy sauce, and it wasn't just harshly spicy — it was a combination that really got your appetite going, perfect with rice. The sauce soaked well into every ingredient, so I got to enjoy the rich, layered flavor that this kind of samhap (three-way combo) dish is known for.

Premium hanwoo sirloin grill

I ordered the premium hanwoo sirloin grill for the kids to eat — the well-grilled meat came out on a hot plate, with the meat's grain clearly intact and tender, so it got more savory the more you chewed. It wasn't overly greasy but stayed moist, so the kids ate it without any hesitation. They enjoyed it so much I ended up ordering a second round.

Hongtang, the spicy beef soup

I wanted something hot and soupy mid-meal, so I added the hongtang broth, and the deeply simmered broth flavor was impressive. It had a spicy kick along with deep flavor, so it felt like it warmed up my stomach, and it went well alongside the other dishes too.

Even the scallion pickle side comes out looking this appetizing. They really said you'd be satisfied no matter what you order, and honestly, everything was delicious.

The fried pepper, plump with juicy ground meat filling, exceeded expectations too. Crispy outside, tender inside.

Every dish we ordered that day was so delicious that the whole family had a satisfying meal.

There are various review events running too — don't forget to check them out for an even more generous meal.

Corkage-free rules and parking at Wongiok Gwanghwamun

During the evening, Wongiok Gwanghwamun allows you to bring in wine, whiskey, and traditional liquor (excluding soju and beer), and it's corkage-free with glasses provided at no charge. Just note that glass swaps aren't available — worth keeping in mind.

Visiting with the kids and trying a variety of dishes, everything we ordered that day was satisfying overall. You can use the basement parking at the D-Palace building, with up to 2 hours free — parking is convenient too. If you're looking for a Korean restaurant with a nice atmosphere for a filling family meal in Gwanghwamun, Wongiok Gwanghwamun is worth a visit.