Songdo hotel-front chicken kalguksu lunch with aunts: Eonyang Dak

Lunch right in front of the Songdo hotel: Eonyang Dak Kalguksu Incheon Songdo Branch

It had been a while since I hung out with my aunts, so while looking for somewhere to eat lunch in Songdo, I ended up at Eonyang Dak Kalguksu Incheon Songdo Branch. It happened to be right in front of our Songdo hotel, so getting there was easy. We'd already eaten a pretty filling snack that day and said we'd go light for lunch and dinner, but once that warm bowl of broth arrived, it just kept going down smoothly haha.

[ Eonyang Dak Kalguksu Incheon Songdo Branch ] 21-28 Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon Daily 11:00 - 21:00 Last order 20:30

How to find Eonyang Dak Kalguksu, by the 1-gongu Songdo food mart back gate

This visit was to the Songdo branch located toward the back gate of the 1-gongu Songdo food mart.

Menu and prices at Eonyang Dak Kalguksu Songdo Branch

• Chicken kalguksu ₩11,000
• Dak-gomtang (chicken soup) ₩11,000
• Eonyang-style kalguksu ₩8,000
• Chewy dumplings ₩6,000
• Spicy pepper jjimdak ₩30,000
• Soy sauce jjimdak ₩29,000
• Boiled pork (small, 220g) ₩15,000

Looking at the menu, besides chicken kalguksu there was also dak-gomtang, jjimdak (braised chicken), boiled pork, and more. Next time I'd like to try the boiled pork too. Since it was with my aunts this time, I thought about ordering a bunch of different things, but we were already full so I held back a little.

After a long debate over the menu, we ended up ordering both dak-gomtang and chicken kalguksu. Half a chicken goes on top of the kalguksu, and the moment the food arrived I was a bit surprised at how generous the portion was. I'd assumed it would just be noodles in broth, but getting plenty of chicken meat too made it a pretty filling meal.

Inside Eonyang Dak Kalguksu: seating and how it works for a family meal

When eating lunch in Songdo, parking and space always end up on your mind, but Eonyang Dak Kalguksu Incheon Songdo Branch is fine to visit by car, and the dining hall is spacious enough to be comfortable for a family meal. Especially with kids around, you tend to look for a warm soup dish over something too spicy, and this wasn't an intense flavor at all, so it seemed like it would work well as a family meal option.

Once inside, the dining hall was bigger than I expected, which made it comfortable to sit and eat with my aunts. I saw families dining there too, and there were also seats that looked good for solo dining, so it seemed like a fine option for anyone looking for a place to eat alone in Songdo.

There's also a spicy version of the kimchi on the side, so it's a good pick for anyone who wants spicy kimchi alongside the mild broth.

What does the perilla-seed chicken kalguksu broth taste like?

For someone who thought "I've already eaten so much for lunch in Songdo, I probably don't even need dinner," I kept spooning up the broth anyway lol. It had been a while since I got to hang out with my aunts, so we ate well and talked a lot, and honestly, a bowl of piping hot broth like this is oddly nice to have while traveling. Enjoying it this much even after already being full says a lot about how well the broth suited my taste haha.

But what stuck with me most that day wasn't the chicken — it was the broth. It was genuinely delicious. The deep flavor of chicken stock combined with the nuttiness of perilla seeds gave it a rich feel from the very first spoonful. And yet it wasn't overly intense, so it was the kind of broth you keep scooping up without noticing.

You can't leave out the kimchi when eating kalguksu, either. Eating it alongside the broth adds a crunchy, spicy note between spoonfuls of that nutty broth, giving a whole different feel. A spoonful of broth, a bit of kimchi, some noodles — before I knew it, I'd properly finished the whole meal.

The house-made noodles in Eonyang Dak Kalguksu's chicken kalguksu

The noodles are apparently made in-house — kneaded and aged themselves — and they paired really well with the broth. Slurping up the noodles and pulling apart the chicken to eat together, the portion seemed larger than expected, but the bowl kept emptying out bit by bit. When you're looking for lunch in Songdo, sometimes you want something as hearty and warm as kalguksu. I stumbled onto this place while just looking for something near our accommodation, but it turned out more satisfying than I expected.

I liked the kalguksu with chicken on top, but honestly it's the rich, nutty broth that keeps coming to mind. Next time I want to go there really hungry and properly enjoy the chicken too. It was a satisfying, hearty meal on an outing to Songdo with my aunts after a long time.