Bongdam Korean restaurant for wood-fired atka mackerel set: Hwadamga

To make sure my partner and I had a healthy, hearty meal over the weekend, we headed to Hwadamga (화담가), a new restaurant in Bongdam, Hwaseong. I'd been tired of spicy delivery food lately, so grilled fish — light and clean — sounded exactly right. Our apartment group chat had been raving about the neat table settings and fresh flavors, and honestly the meal turned out even better than I expected. I'm out here spreading the word to everyone haha.

Where is Hwadamga, and what are the parking and opening hours?

The first thing I worry about when driving somewhere is parking, and Hwadamga has a very generous private lot right in front of the restaurant, which makes it easy to visit by car. The exterior looks like a large café or an upscale Korean restaurant — clean and modern. The tidy landscaping and stylish signage stood out from a distance, so it was easy to spot.

• Address: 58 Nangnaegi-gil, Bongdam-eup, Hyohaeng-gu, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Hours: Daily 11:00–22:00
• Break time: 15:00–17:00
• Last order: 21:30
• Parking: Available right in front of the restaurant

Inside Hwadamga: not what you expect from a grilled fish restaurant

There's zero fishy smell inside, which usually lingers at grilled fish restaurants. Instead, a subtle, pleasant scent and modern interior left a strong impression.

Overall, it felt less like a typical restaurant and more like an upscale Korean set-menu place or fine dining — neat and refined.

Besides the hall tables, there's a separate private room perfect for group gatherings, family meals, or company dinners — it looked ideal for things like a formal meeting between families, an anniversary, or an elder's birthday celebration.

The self-serve bar of namul and salads

One of Hwadamga's biggest draws — the varied, spotlessly maintained self-serve bar ♥ The main grilled fish is great, but the quality of the basic side dishes at the self-serve bar was above what you'd expect from a decent Korean buffet!!

The self-serve bar is stacked with fresh wrap vegetables along with all kinds of appetizing namul (seasoned vegetable) dishes and crisp salads. The seasonal namul aren't overly seasoned — mild and clean, letting the natural flavor and aroma of the ingredients shine — perfect alongside the grilled fish!!

The salad dressing was also fresh and zesty, doing a great job of cleansing the palate before and after the main dish. The more I ate, the healthier I felt~

My partner, who genuinely loves namul, was in heaven. I honestly lost count of how many times she went back for more...^^; For office workers who rarely get to eat enough vegetables and namul, this place is basically a treasure chest.

The wood-fired grilled fish sets we ordered at Hwadamga

• Wood-fired atka mackerel set ₩20,000
• Wood-fired hairtail set ₩21,000

Barley rice and freshwater snail soybean paste as standard sides

Ordering a grilled fish set gets you barley rice, soybean paste soup, and freshwater snail soybean paste (ureong-doenjang) as standard sides.

This ureong-doenjang was insanely good — I made some very satisfying wraps with it. Not salty at all, and the subtle aroma and chewiness of the snails paired incredibly well with the wrap vegetables.

Wood-fired atka mackerel set, 20,000 won

Grilled in a high-heat wood-fired oven, the skin was golden and crisp while the inside was packed with juicy, moist flesh!

Atka mackerel easily turns dry if grilled poorly, but Hwadamga's version was glistening and tender every time I pulled off a piece with my chopsticks. Piled generously over rice, it was an absolute rice thief!

Wood-fired hairtail set, 21,000 won

A plump, thick cut of hairtail came out perfectly grilled from the wood-fired oven. Hairtail is one of the trickier fish to grill well, but the outside was golden without burning, and the inside stayed moist and never dried out — top marks!

Hairtail's characteristically clean, light flavor blended beautifully with the subtle smoky char from the wood-fired oven, giving it a refined taste. It was seasoned well enough all the way through that I could eat the flesh straight, without soy sauce, and still fully enjoy its savory flavor.

Hwadamga's receipt review event

If you write a Naver receipt review, you can get a free packet of Chapagetti — make sure to grab that!

Why I'd bring my parents back to this Bongdam Korean restaurant

Hwadamga in Bongdam, Hwaseong checks all the boxes for a great grilled fish restaurant — plenty of convenient parking, an upscale, clean interior with private rooms for formal occasions, and a self-serve bar loaded with fresh namul and salads. A place I'd love to bring my parents back to! If you're looking for a clean, satisfying Korean restaurant near Bongdam, I'd definitely recommend it.