Solo-dining Indian restaurant in Hapjeong: Mandala Indian Lounge

When I really enjoy a place, I tend to gush nonstop while writing about it, and Mandala Indian Lounge, an Indian restaurant near Hongdae, is a perfect example.

Like, really...

It was really delicious!

Next time I do a solo lunch in Hapjeong, I'll probably come back here.

When I love a place, I revisit on my own dime often 👍

And the owner was super friendly, which made the place even more memorable.

What is Mandala Indian Lounge like for solo dining at 1pm on a weekday?

Mandala Indian Lounge is an Indian restaurant on the 3rd floor of the building at 26 Dokmak-ro 3-gil near Hapjeong Station. I visited on a weekday at 1pm, and there was just one other table besides me.

They were a group, and I was there solo, haha — turns out you can absolutely eat great Indian food alone.

The vibe is really nice.

It's clean and foreign music was playing, so I basically went full namaste.

Hallelujah~~

The seating is laid out like this, and there are quite a lot of tables.

It's a shame such a delicious place doesn't have more customers.

No lie, this place is seriously, genuinely delicious.

I packed the leftovers to go lol, planning to mix them with rice at home.

I'm 100% pure pig at heart, so when I say something's delicious, you can trust it for real.

This weight didn't come from nowhere.

Mandala Indian Lounge menu, lunch sets and the free naan for a receipt review

At Mandala Indian Lounge, if you leave a receipt review you get a free plain, butter, or garlic naan!! Here's the menu!

There are good-value set menus and lunch sets too!

How about Indian food as your Hapjeong lunch special!

They also have lassi, masala chai, beer, and more to give you that full Indian atmosphere.

Here's the menu.

Samosa is an Indian-style dumpling — I remember it used to show up in school lunches back in the day.

I ordered the vegetable salad!

For curry I got the chicken makhani, and for naan the cheese naan.

First time trying cheese naan, and this place is absolutely a cheese naan hotspot.

Ah... I should've packed the cheese naan too, ugh.

Guess I'll just have to come back — this is genuinely, seriously delicious, a house of pure deliciousness.

Shisha (hookah) is available at Mandala Indian Lounge in Hapjeong

Mandala Indian Lounge also offers shisha (hookah).

Seems like it'd be great to do shisha at night.

I believe shisha here is nicotine-free!

The vegetable salad: a palate cleanser instead of lassi

I need to lose weight so I skipped the lassi, but the vegetable salad's freshness filled that gap perfectly.

Both the sauce and vegetables were so fresh and tangy — kind of like lassi — and it rinsed my mouth clean after eating cheese naan.

Damn, so good.

That tangy-sweet sauce is the kicker!!

Lassi who?

Cheese naan and chicken makhani, a cheese naan spot for Hongdae and Hapjeong

Looking for the best cheese naan near Hongdae? It's here.

Why didn't I think to pack the cheese naan sooner, ugh.

The curry is genuinely sweet and mild in flavor?

It was so good I wrote detailed notes about the taste in my phone, then accidentally deleted them, ugh.

The portion is huge too, and this place is genuinely worth revisiting on my own dime.

I should bring my girlfriend here sometime soon.

Big portion, smooth, addictive, and a flavor even a kid would enjoy?

I like spicy food, and this had zero spice yet was still this good... I have no idea what sorcery is happening here, but it's just seriously delicious.

It smells amazing even before you taste it.

Loaded with chicken too, tasty, tender, and sweet.

I packed the leftovers.

I thought I'd eaten a decent amount, but there was way more left than expected!! The owner saw and suggested I pack it to go first.

Seriously so kind, ugh.

I was really grateful.

Even solo, they welcomed me so kindly — amazing.

Look at that color...

This looks seriously so damn good

h

And it actually tasted insanely good.

Each piece of cheese naan is also a good size.

Not packing cheese naan to go is my eternal regret. Ugh.

Truly delicious, savory, sweet — the whole package. Ugh.

If you dip it like this—

just—

paradise.

I ate a lot but there was still so much left, so the owner even offered to give me some rice.

How can someone be this generous..!! Damn it..!!

Packing the leftover chicken makhani to mix with rice the next day

After eating, I said, "It was so good... too good, but I'm full so I have leftovers," and the owner had the thoughtfulness to already offer to pack the leftovers if it suited my taste.

So lovable, honestly...

Ah, it was so good, haha. I microwaved the leftovers the next day.

Mixing it with rice, and whoa, this really is the work of an Indian food specialist.

Damn, seriously so good~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you want Indian food around Hongdae or Hapjeong, this is unconditionally the place... a truly paradise-level sweet flavor, ugh.

A Hapjeong solo lunch I really enjoyed at Mandala.

The owner is kind and every single dish is seriously so good, so I'll definitely be back.