Nowon Station jokbal restaurant: half-and-half platter, Gwihan Jokbal

Where is Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch?

Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch is a jokbal restaurant at 18-6 Nohae-ro 83-gil, Nowon-gu, Seoul, 1st floor, close to Exit 1 of Nowon Station. It's open from 11:00 to 02:00. My husband and I were craving jokbal after a long while, so we checked out this Nowon jokbal spot near the station!

What the storefront looks like

This Nowon jokbal spot is close to Exit 1 of Nowon Station, and they say they only use carefully selected domestic fresh trotters, boiled fresh each day.

* Call ahead if you need parking guidance *

Is Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch good for group dinners?

The inside is bigger than it looks from outside, so it would work well for group gatherings or work dinners. The tables weren't cramped either, so it was easy to talk.

Inside the restaurant

We came right when they opened, and after that the delivery calls kept coming in, plus families showing up to eat — it really felt like a genuine neighborhood favorite.

Overall it's clean with wood interiors, and the tables aren't packed too close together, so it was comfortable and easy to use.

What's on the menu at Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch?

The menu ranges from basic jokbal/bossam to jikhwa jokbal, banban jokbal, bojok set, and jokbal set. We ordered the banban jokbal.

The menu board

Gwihan Jokbal has basic jokbal/bossam, jikhwa jokbal/banban jokbal, bojok set/jokbal set, Uiseong garlic jokbal/bossam served with garlic, and Sokcho kodari jokbal/bossam served with pollack salad! Plus oyster bossam. We went with the banban jokbal.

Before the meal, they bring out bean sprout soup — cool and clean, which seemed like it would go perfectly with the spicy jokbal!

The half-and-half jokbal platter and mak guksu

The banban jokbal at Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch comes out on a big tray. Kkeotjeori, buchu muchim, mu saengchae, ssam vegetables and sauce sit on either side, with the half-and-half jokbal in the center.

What we ordered

When you order at Gwihan Jokbal, this huge tray comes out — kkeotjeori/buchu muchim/mu saengchae, ssam vegetables and sauce on the sides, with the banban jokbal in the middle. It really comes out generous and clean-looking..!

This is the mak guksu (buckwheat noodles), topped with a tangy-spicy sauce, shredded cabbage, gim (seaweed) flakes and perilla leaves.

The sauce hit just the right balance of tangy and spicy, so it went great with the jokbal, and there was plenty of noodles — enough for two of us. The noodles were nice and chewy too... jokbal really does need mak guksu on the side!!!

Alongside the jokbal came ssam vegetables, oi gochu doenjang muchim (cucumber and pepper with soybean paste), buchu muchim and kimchi — the kimchi's seasoning was so good that we never felt like the meal got too greasy.

How did the plain and spicy jokbal taste?

The banban jokbal here is half plain jokbal, half spicy yangnyeom jokbal. Whenever I order jokbal it always feels like there's never enough meat, mostly bone — but at Gwihan Jokbal, the portion was really generous.

The spicy yangnyeom jokbal was salty and just spicy enough, so alternating a bite of it with the plain jokbal hit the perfect balance.

The skin was nice and chewy, and the meat was thick but not dry — juicy, which I loved. The sauce wasn't too spicy, and it was perfect wrapped in the ssam vegetables. Ordering a bowl of rice alongside would have been great too!

The plain jokbal had a glossy shine, no gamey pork smell at all, tender meat and chewy skin — really, really delicious!

A lot of jokbal restaurants have that gamey pork smell, but there was none of that here — chewy skin, juicy inside, and a generous portion that made for a filling, satisfying meal!

Why Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch is worth a trip to Nowon

There are plenty of good restaurants and bars near Nowon Station, but Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch stood out for tasty jokbal, generous portions, and a spacious layout that's easy to use. Since it's roomy, I'd recommend it for group gatherings or work dinners too. If you're looking for a jokbal spot in Nowon, give Gwihan Jokbal Nowon Branch a try!!!!