Gwangyang eel grill, family lunch of 3 large eels: Deokeun Jangeo

This is the story of a legendary spot where my family and I got a proper stamina meal! The weather has been cool lately, so I was looking for somewhere to drive to and eat out with the family, and I finally went to a Gwangyang eel restaurant I'd been dying to try!! It's Deokeun Jangeo (더큰장어), already famous by word of mouth in Gwangyang! Haha. My whole family left totally satisfied, so here comes my honest review!

How do you order at Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch?

At Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch, you see and pick the eel you'll eat on the 1st floor, then go up to the 2nd floor to eat. I was surprised by how big the place was when I arrived, and this system, which you see right as you walk in, felt really unique and reassuring!

How much is the lunch discount at Deokeun Jangeo?

If you visit at lunchtime, you get 10% off the eel. Both weekends and weekdays! Haha. We came at weekend lunchtime.

Eel is a stamina food, so prices run a bit high anyway, and getting 10% off really took the pressure off even for a big family. Great taste plus a price advantage made the words "best value" come out on their own. If you're going, I totally recommend aiming for lunchtime!

Choosing the meat myself boosted my trust, and I loved being able to check the eel's condition beforehand!! After picking our eel, we took the elevator up to the 2nd floor~

Sea view from the 2nd-floor window seats

We sat at a 2nd-floor window seat, and the wide-open sea view outside was just gorgeous! An eel place with a view, so my eyes were feasting even before we ate.

It's clearly a well-known place: looking around, there were not only tourists but loads of locals too, a real local favorite! You know a place is the real deal when it's full of neighborhood residents, right? Haha. I felt we'd come to the right place and my expectations went up even more.

Is it OK for a family meal with kids?

Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch also has baby chairs, so it looks like a good family spot for households with little ones.

There's also a neat self-serve bar you can use freely.

3 charcoal-grilled eels: price and taste

Soon after we sat down, well-heated charcoal arrived. Meat or eel, everything tastes so much better grilled over charcoal, right? The eel turning golden with a faint charcoal aroma nearly made me dizzy.

This is the eel we picked. 3 large eels for ₩80,000s, best value! With the 10% lunch discount, it came to the ₩70,000s! No wonder Deokeun Jangeo, a Gwangyang eel favorite, is so popular.

Sprinkle some pink salt- The eel here is really on another level. It was so fresh and big, and the thickness alone stood out!

Grill it until golden-!

No fishy taste at all, just rich nuttiness, and the whole family enjoyed it so much! Top satisfaction!! The quality was impressive, as you'd expect from a Gwangyang eel favorite.

Finishing with cold noodles and eel soup

To cool our mouths down, we also ordered mul naengmyeon (cold noodles in broth) and bibim naengmyeon (spicy cold noodles). Wow, is this a cold noodle specialist?! Both were absolutely delicious! Wrapping a leftover piece of eel in the sweet-and-sour bibim naengmyeon was great, and finishing with the icy mul naengmyeon broth left my mouth feeling clean~

We also ordered hot eel soup to finish, and the broth was so rich and deep, really filling! Dunking a bowl of rice into it, I felt the warmth rising from inside my body. A proper stamina meal!

Overall verdict on Deokeun Jangeo Gwangyang Branch for a family gathering

My eyes enjoyed the wide-open sea view, and my mouth enjoyed the fresh, plump charcoal-grilled eel: a perfect day. The place is spacious and comfortable, and the lunch discount made it good value too, so this family gathering was a real success!! Deokeun Jangeo, a Gwangyang eel restaurant even locals vouch for, is a family dining spot I strongly recommend and you won't regret it!