Mild Taiwanese beef noodles and cumin beef in Daehangno: Cheonghwawon

My partner went to Taiwan once and came back obsessed with beef noodles, so I went looking for a Taiwanese beef noodle place near Hyehwa Station.

Where is Cheonghwawon Daehangno Branch, and is there parking?

Cheonghwawon Daehangno Branch is at Myeongnyun 2-ga 183, Jongno-gu. From Exit 4 of Hyehwa Station, walk straight to the end of the main road and past the CGV building, and you'll see this Taiwanese beef noodle restaurant. It's open 11:00–22:20, with last order at 21:50.

I'd recommend public transport. There's no parking of its own, so you'll need a nearby paid lot.

The standing signboards of this Daehangno Chinese restaurant stood out from far away. I browsed the many menu options and then went in.

Solo seats on the 1st floor, group tables on the 2nd

Cheonghwawon uses the whole building, and there was plenty of room when I went. It was that awkward lunch hour after a play let out, so many people had already finished eating.

The 1st floor had seats for solo diners, mostly alongside 2-person tables.

Upstairs there were 2-person seats and group seating, a space with a slightly nicer atmosphere for a meal.

On the way up to the 2nd floor there's a spot that steams dumplings. They don't steam them in advance; they steam them right when you order.

What two people ordered at Cheonghwawon, and the prices

Today's mission is beef noodles. I'm so curious whether they'll suit my partner, who is nostalgic for Taiwanese beef noodles 😄

🍜 Our order 🍜

• Knife-shaved beef noodles (우육도삭면) ₩10,500
• Xiaolongbao (소룡포오, soup dumplings) ₩9,500
• Cumin beef (쯔란소고기) ₩17,800
• Chilsung Cider ₩2,500

I wanted to try a bit of everything, so I ordered a variety.

These are the side dishes brought out first once you order: stir-fried peanuts and zha cai (pickled mustard stem), both common in Chinese-speaking food culture.

Xiaolongbao for 9,500 won: a fairly thick wrapper

These are the xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), my all-time favorite Taiwanese food.

A tray holds 6 dumplings, and just looking at how full of juice they were got me excited.

I tore the wrapper slightly to taste the broth first, then put on some ginger dipped in soy sauce and took a bite. The wrapper at Cheonghwawon is on the thick side, but it had a nice chew, so I liked it.

Knife-shaved beef noodles for 10,500 won: how mild is the spice?

This is the knife-shaved beef noodle soup (우육도삭면). It came with a broth simmered long from Korean beef bone and shank, plus house-made knife-shaved noodles.

The meat topping was tender, and the knife-shaved noodles had a great chew.

The beef noodles at this Daehangno Chinese restaurant aren't strongly spiced, so I think anyone can enjoy them. I was fine with it, but my partner said they wished the spice aroma were stronger;; But if it's strong, I can't eat it...

Cumin beef for 17,800 won tastes like lamb skewers

This is the cumin beef (쯔란소고기). We always smother our lamb skewers in cumin, so I ordered it to see what it would taste like.

It doesn't look unfamiliar; it feels like jeyuk-bokkeum (spicy stir-fried pork), but it tasted like lamb skewers. My partner and I love cumin, so we ate it with no hesitation.

I loaded up a bite with vegetables and meat, and it's a real treat. We came in for beef noodles, but the cumin beef was so good that the noodles got pushed back a little.

Is Cheonghwawon Daehangno Branch worth it? Final verdict

Eating Taiwanese food again after so long brought back the feeling of our old trip, which was lovely. The xiaolongbao were full of juice and the thick wrappers were nicely chewy, and the cumin beef was so addictive that our chopsticks kept busy.

If you're curious about beef noodles, try them at Cheonghwawon, a Daehangno Chinese restaurant; I think you can enjoy them lightly. If you want strongly spiced Taiwanese beef noodles, you may be a little disappointed. I've been into house-made noodles lately, and at Cheonghwawon I got to enjoy beef noodles with house-made knife-shaved noodles 😃