Hyehwa Chinese restaurant, rainy-day crispy yuringi: Cheonghwawon
In short
Cheonghwawon Daehangno Branch is a restaurant on Daemyeong-gil in Jongno, Seoul, near Hyehwa Station in Daehangno, serving Taiwanese beef knife-cut noodles, dim sum and Chinese dishes. After a play on a heavy rainy day, two women had a late lunch there: Sichuan-style beef knife-cut noodles (10,500 won), yuringi (fried chicken in a tangy soy sauce, 19,800 won), which one of them was trying for the first time, shumai (9,500 won) and rice (1,000 won). Cheonghwawon's yuringi stayed crispy to the end even with the sauce poured over, so they ate every last piece despite being full.
Good to know
- Getting there
- Hyehwa Station Exit 4 · 3-min walk (store listing, Oct 7, 2026)
- Opening hours
- 11:00–22:20 (last order 21:50)
- Sichuan-style beef knife-cut noodles
- 10,500 won
- Yuringi (fried chicken in tangy soy sauce)
- 19,800 won
- Shumai
- 9,500 won
- Bowl of rice
- 1,000 won
- How to order
- Kiosk
- Seating
- Bar seats, tables for 2, tables for 4, window seats
- Complimentary sides
- Zha cai (pickled mustard stem) and roasted peanuts
- Price reference
- ₩10,500 ≈ $7.9 · ₩1,000 ≈ $0.8 · ₩9,500 ≈ $7.2 (2026-10-21)
as written by the visitor on Oct 21, 2026
What is Cheonghwawon in Daehangno like?
Cheonghwawon (청화원) is a Chinese restaurant in Daehangno where you can eat Taiwanese-style beef knife-cut noodles (udosakmyeon) and yuringi. Prices are low, so it's good value, and the menu is varied and tasty too. I'd recommend it for eating alone, meeting friends or a date.
Cheonghwawon opening hours and the day we visited
Cheonghwawon Daehangno Branch is open 11:00 - 22:20, with last order at 21:50. It suddenly poured that day, haha, so we came through the rain~~ It's a great lunch spot in Daehangno after watching a play in Hyehwa, and we were hungry after our play, so we came for a late lunch~!!
Is Cheonghwawon comfortable for solo dining?
Cheonghwawon has bar seats for eating alone or as a pair, plus tables for two and tables for four. The rain made the place feel even nicer! Eating at a window seat while watching the rain and people go by would be really lovely.
What two women ordered at Cheonghwawon, and the prices
You order at Cheonghwawon by kiosk. There are noodles and meals, fried dishes, stir-fries, cold dishes and sides, so choosing was hard. A happy kind of dilemma, haha.
- Sichuan-style beef knife-cut noodles ₩10,500
- Yuringi ₩19,800
- Shumai ₩9,500
- Bowl of rice ₩1,000
The two of us ordered this and left full and happy. (Honestly the portions were generous, so we were quite stuffed, haha.) The yuringi in particular was hot, crispy and generous, and really delicious. I recommend you try it.
Cheonghwawon's complimentary sides: zha cai and roasted peanuts
The simple sides at Cheonghwawon are zha cai (pickled mustard stem) and roasted peanuts. I kept picking at the peanuts one by one before the food came, hahaha. They also go well with Taiwanese food!? There's a reason they come as the standard side. The zha cai was fresh and nice to nibble on between bites.
What does Cheonghwawon's Sichuan-style beef knife-cut noodle soup taste like?
The Sichuan-style beef knife-cut noodles (₩10,500) are my favorite thing at Cheonghwawon. They're pleasantly spicy and punchy, and go especially well with rice. Think of it as malatang broth with knife-cut noodles in it. The broth and noodles go so well together that you just keep slurping.
As I said above, the noodles go well with rice, so I ordered a bowl of rice (₩1,000) too, haha. When the spiciness builds up, dropping in white rice tones it down nicely.
Does Cheonghwawon's yuringi stay crispy under the sauce?
Even when you pour the sauce over it, Cheonghwawon's yuringi keeps its crunch. The food came out fairly fast, and this was my first time ordering yuringi here. Maybe because it's freshly fried, it's so good.. Pour on the sauce that comes with it and you just can't stop eating. T_T The crunch survived the sauce, which made it even better. I enjoyed it down to the last piece!
I visited just recently, but looking at the photos while writing this post, I want to go back to Cheonghwawon already.. We ate it as a late lunch after a play in Daehangno and it was so good T.T The interior has a nice mood, and everything we ordered was delicious~ a lovely mood recharge.
How is Cheonghwawon's shumai dim sum?
Cheonghwawon's shumai (₩9,500) is a dim sum with shrimp inside. It's springy and juicy, so it's delicious! Shumai is another thing I order every time I visit. haha All the dim sum is good, but maybe because I love shrimp, the shumai stood out to me. It's very hot when it first comes out, so let it cool a bit before eating~
Is Cheonghwawon good for solo meals, friends or dates?
Beef knife-cut noodles, yuringi and shumai make up the Cheonghwawon trio~ With everything from simple dishes to full entrées and sides, it's good for eating alone, meeting friends, or a dinner date~!! Come with two or more and you can try more delicious dishes, that's the perk. haha But it's also a great place for a quick solo meal!!
The Taiwanese beef knife-cut noodles had chewy noodles and a spicy, addictive broth, and then there was yuringi, whose charm I only just discovered~ The sauce is tasty, and the vegetables underneath add freshness. The crunch lasted to the end, so even though I was honestly full, I scraped up every last piece. T_T haha Failed as a dieter!
The atmosphere at Cheonghwawon
The atmosphere inside Cheonghwawon is really lovely too. It felt like traveling abroad, plus delicious food~ It was a truly happy Daehangno lunch. With such a variety of dishes and sides, I recommend it for solo meals, dates and gatherings with friends. It's a nice stop after seeing a play in Hyehwa. hahaha
Where it is
36 Daemyeong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea (1F; 2F also Cheonghwawon Daehangno Branch)서울특별시 종로구 대명길 36 1층, 2층 청화원 대학로점
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