Suwon craft street chicken restaurant, easy parking: Haenggung Jangjak

It's the weekend so I finally made it back to Haenggung after a while. Lately I haven't been sleeping well and my digestion's been off too... and when digestion's off, hanbang (herbal medicine) chicken is the answer, haha, you all know the drill. Here's my review of Haenggung Jangjak Hanbang Tongdak, an old-style whole chicken restaurant on the craft street in Haenggung-dong, Suwon!

Where is Haenggung Jangjak Hanbang Tongdak, and where do you park?

Haenggung Jangjak Hanbang Tongdak sits on the first floor of the Haenggung-dong craft street, so it was easy to find right away. For parking, you can use the nearby public parking lot. Since it's not on the main street, there were plenty of spots even on a weekend evening, so you can come without worrying about parking.

The place is a pretty spacious old-style chicken restaurant, and this Suwon spot definitely lives up to it! The exterior decor out front was impressive too. The craft street recently started night openings so there was a lot to see nearby — I'd walked past this place once before. Finally made it inside!

Window seats with an outdoor-dining feel: inside the restaurant

Haenggung Jangjak Hanbang Tongdak is on the ground floor and the big windows were fully opened, so on a nice-weather day like this it felt like eating outdoors. We took a window seat.

Inside there were plenty of tables, from tables for two up to tables for four, haha. The place is big enough that it'd be great for gatherings or work dinners too. The staff were also really kind, which put me in a good mood.

What we ordered: corn cheese gratin seasoned oak-fired chicken

There was a variety on the menu, but other blog reviews suggested the corn cheese gratin seasoned oak-fired chicken was the go-to order, so we got that too. There were side dishes as well, but the portion looked big so we decided to just order the chicken. Though I feel like it'd be an unbeatable combo with tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes) too, sigh.

Included sides and the self-serve kimchi bar

You get seasoning sauce, mustard sauce, and salt as basics, along with kimchi and pickled radish. Extra sauce, pickled radish, and kimchi are all self-serve. The self-serve bar was kept nice and clean too.

I was like, kimchi with this? But somehow the chicken paired surprisingly well with kimchi, haha. I actually ate more kimchi than pickled radish.

Oak-fired chicken on a hot stone plate: how does it taste?

The dish came out faster than expected. I guess since the chicken is roasting continuously, the turnover in the restaurant is quick. It comes on a hot stone plate so you can enjoy the chicken without it going cold the whole time you're eating.

How far does this cheese even stretch? The corn cheese on top was really the kicker. Cheese on top of the spicy-sweet seasoning sauce — I doubt anyone dislikes that combo. Absolutely delicious, no notes.

The legs were nice and big and the meat itself was so tender it came right off the bone. I clearly had no appetite but... once I piled on the corn cheese, I just kept eating endlessly. They gave us both tongs and a fork, which made it easy to pick up too!

Rolling it up with cheese and eating it — pure heaven. The seasoning and cheese balanced perfectly and it was so good. The cheese stretched beautifully too, and above all the chicken meat had no gamey smell, the flesh was soft, and the juices were incredible. There's a reason it's known as one of Suwon's best old-style chicken spots.

Look at how the meat comes off the bone... I usually don't eat the cartilage, but even that was so good I gnawed it all off, haha. Even the chicken breast was tasty. Soft and moist — if breast meat like this were sold on its own, dieting would actually be doable.

We drove so we didn't drink, but I bet this would be great with beer too. Since it was the weekend, everyone else seemed to be having chicken with a drink, haha. And just look at the amount of corn cheese — even as we were nearly done eating, there was still plenty left. Every bite we scooped up extra cheese with it, and it never seemed to run out.

The final kick: nurungji from the sticky rice under the chicken

The final kick of Haenggung Jangjak Hanbang Tongdak is this. The sticky rice laid at the bottom of the pan.. it sizzles on the hot stone plate and turns into crispy nurungji (scorched rice). This is basically fried rice at that point. It pairs so well with the seasoning sauce that even though I was full, I kept eating.

You can see the nurungji forming here, right? It's honestly the perfect balance of carbs, protein, and fat. Would be great to come here even while dieting. There was still leftover corn cheese, so we all just mixed it in together, haha.

Is this Suwon old-style chicken spot worth a second visit?

Haenggung Jangjak Hanbang Tongdak, one of Suwon's best old-style chicken restaurants, is a place I'd genuinely recommend. The portion is generous for the price and the two of us felt like we'd burst by the end, haha. I'd love to come back, so I recommend it! :)