Jeongja Station Korean restaurant for doenjang jjigae: Jin Doenjang

Where is Jin Doenjang Bundang Jeongja?

Jinnaedjang Bundang Jeongja (진된장 분당 정자점) is a Korean restaurant at 6-1, 1F, Naejeong-ro 129beon-gil, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, 990m from Suneo Station Exit 2. It's open from 9:30am to 9:40pm, and has a vegan menu, all-you-can-eat refills, and takeout, delivery, and reservations all available. Group seating is possible, along with Wi-Fi, high chairs, a wheelchair-accessible entrance, free parking, solo seats, table seating, and group seating from 4 up to 16 people. Regional mobile currency is also accepted.

Jinnaedjang Bundang Jeongja, roughly halfway between Jeongja Station and Suneo Station, is known for its jeon (savory pancakes) and doenjang jjigae, and I visited for lunch with my husband.

Since it opens at 9:30am and stays open through the evening, you can stop by anytime for a hearty meal or a satisfying drink.

Whether you take the subway to Suneo Station or Jeongja Station and walk over, or drive and use the building's 2 hours of free parking, getting there is easy either way.

Inside Jin Doenjang and the self-serve banchan bar

This is the interior of Jinnaedjang Bundang Jeongja after the weekday peak had ended. The look is classic but tidy, which made me think the food would be equally clean and careful.

The restaurant clearly prioritizes a clean kitchen, and while the basic banchan (side dishes) come pre-set, you can use the self-serve bar if you want more. They gave us plenty from the start so we didn't need refills, but the neat, well-made side dishes deserve credit.

What's on the menu at Jin Doenjang Bundang Jeongja?

Cooking starts as soon as you order. The menu is organized into several categories — events, honey combo sets, handmade jeon dishes, lunch specials, doenjang jjigae, rice dishes, hot pots, extra noodles/tofu (sari), mini jeon, sides, alcohol, drinks, and takeout — so you can order to fit the occasion.

From the homestyle handmade beef jeon set to crab doenjang hot pot, beef brisket doenjang jjigae, whole shrimp minari jeon, beef and green onion jeon, gangdoenjang pork bibimbap, and muksabal (acorn jelly noodle salad), everything on the menu is a signature dish.

Everything we ordered arrived at once. Jinnaedjang Bundang Jeongja is a family-run restaurant, with the owner-chef mom, who has 38 years of experience cooking Korean food, leading the kitchen. With the table full, it was time to dig in.

We added a fried egg on top, and five banchan came included as standard. Made with seasonal ingredients,

Mushroom doenjang jjigae with extra tofu: how it tasted

What I chose to eat at Jinnaedjang Bundang Jeongja was mushroom doenjang jjigae with added tofu! Unlike other places' doenjang jjigae, the striking red color stands out —

but once you actually taste it, it's not salty at all. It disappeared in no time alongside a bowl of rice, and I imagine it would be even richer with more sari (extras) added. Adding the tofu sari was definitely the right call.

Shrimp and minari pancake with Neurin Maeul makgeolli

The handmade jeon is just as good as the doenjang jjigae! Today's pick was the whole shrimp and minari (water celery) jeon. True to its name, it's loaded with plump whole shrimp and fragrant minari, pan-fried in oil —

It would feel wrong to skip the alcohol. Today we toasted with Neurin Maeul makgeolli! With such good side dishes, we finished a whole bottle in no time. Daytime drinking is this sweet — I could get addicted.

A mango ade I received for taking part in a review event! You can taste real bits of mango — really good.

Who will like Jin Doenjang Bundang Jeongja?

If you're near Jeongja Station or Suneo Station looking for a good place for a group meal, a handmade jeon spot, or a great daytime drinking spot, Jinnaedjang Bundang Jeongja — open from morning to night — is worth a visit.