Apgujeong Chinese restaurant with gisu-myeon noodles: Bobo Sikdang

I went to Bobo Sikdang, famous as an Apgujeong Chinese restaurant with private rooms. The jjajangmyeon (black bean noodles) and butter sweet and sour pork are their signature dishes, and it seems even more popular after appearing on Culinary Class Wars 2.

Where is Bobo Sikdang Apgujeong? Parking and hours

Bobo Sikdang Apgujeong is at 30 Eonju-ro 174-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea, 1st floor, unit 103 of Robin Myeongpumgwan. Hours are 11:30 - 22:00, and parking is paid — ₩5,000 for the first 120 minutes, then ₩1,000 per additional 10 minutes.

Bobo Sikdang is a place where you can taste authentic Chinese cooking from a chef with 20 years of experience. If you're looking for something more upscale and refined than typical Chinese food, I strongly recommend visiting.

Do you need a booking for weekday lunch at Bobo Sikdang?

Bobo Sikdang has a Blue Ribbon rating as a baseline — the taste is guaranteed. Even though I visited on a weekday lunch, it was crowded, so I made a reservation. I recommend booking through Naver before you go.

Inside the private rooms at this Apgujeong Chinese restaurant

The inside of Bobo Sikdang is quite clean. Upscale atmosphere. Also great for a quiet conversation. The interior is pretty stylish, isn't it? And even better — there are private rooms.

It's known for being an Apgujeong room-dining Chinese restaurant, and the space is well partitioned, so it's great for enjoying a meal even more quietly and privately. I'd recommend it as a space for a clear-headed Apgujeong meetup!

What we ordered, and the gungchae side dish

Bobo Sikdang has a diverse menu, with some unusual dishes. The descriptions underneath each item are detailed, which made it easy to understand, and honestly I wanted to try everything. I ordered the butter tenderloin sweet and sour pork, gisu-myeon, and abalone jjajangmyeon.

This is the gungchae (pickled vegetable) served instead of jjasai (pickled mustard root). It comes tossed in chili oil — savory yet refreshing, with a nice tang. Much more refined than danmuji (pickled radish).

Butter tenderloin tangsuyuk, 35,000 won: why it stays crisp in sauce

This is the tenderloin sweet and sour pork, ₩35,000. Quite an impressive presentation. A generous scoop of fragrant, savory butter sits on top of the rounded pieces of pork. While it's still hot, you melt the butter over it with a spoon.

It comes as bumeok (wet, sauce-on-top style) to begin with, and here you have to eat it wet since you need to mix in the butter. But the sauce isn't overly abundant — just the right amount is coated on, so it stays crispy all the way through.

The sweet and sour pork already had a nice sheen to begin with — glossy and delicious-looking. The sauce isn't too intense, and it blends with the butter really, really well.

Being tenderloin, it's even more tender and moist. Crispy outside, juicy inside — a textbook example of that contrast. You have to order this if you go to Bobo Sikdang. Confirmed: an Apgujeong Chinese food gem!

Abalone jjajangmyeon, 25,000 won: a whole abalone and scallops

This is the abalone jjajangmyeon, ₩25,000. It's ganjjajang style, stir-fried separately and served, with cucumber and egg on top of the noodles — a classic jjajang. The sauce has a glossy sheen, the meat pieces are genuinely large, there's a whole abalone, and quality scallops are mixed in too.

First off, the jjajangmyeon itself is genuinely delicious. There's a lot of seafood in it, and especially that scallop just melts and disappears in your mouth. Truly premium ingredients.

The abalone is also huge, and the chewy texture is the best — chewy yet tender at the same time. Look closely and you can see score marks cut into it too — scoring a fresh abalone like that is basically a happy ending.

Gisu-myeon, 16,000 won: chicken noodle soup with fried chicken skin

This is gisu-myeon, ₩16,000. The chicken broth is really rich. The chicken is shredded and laid on top, tender. There's even fried chicken skin on top, and when you dunk it in the broth, it tastes really great.

Is Bobo Sikdang Apgujeong worth it? Final verdict

If you're looking for great Chinese food in Apgujeong, highly recommended! It's a room-style restaurant so it's private, the food is delicious, and paid parking is available too! Final score: 4.6 out of 5.

• Butter tenderloin sweet and sour pork ₩35,000 — served wet with melted butter mixed in, but the sauce is just the right amount so it stays crispy to the last bite
• Abalone jjajangmyeon ₩25,000 — a whole abalone and scallops, ganjjajang style
• Gisu-myeon ₩16,000 — rich chicken broth with fried chicken skin
• Gungchae — a side dish tossed in chili oil, served instead of pickled mustard root