Paju beer bar self-pour tap challenge: Long Time No See

I finally met up again with the friend I even traveled to Fukuoka with in May—after such a long time, haha. While wondering where to meet, I strongly recommended one place: Long Time No See Yadang Branch (롱타임노씨 야당점). Actually, I came here about three months ago and thought, “I absolutely have to come back!” Because… my friend and I are truly the dream drinking duo. Pfft, hahahahaha.

Last time, the pizza-and-beer combo was so delicious that of course I planned to have pizza and beer again—but my friend, as expected… moves differently.

Let’s try every single tap here.

Hahahahaha. No, really… how could I not love a friend like this? So today turned into a tap-beer-conquering day rather than a pizza day.

It is on the second floor of the Lotte Cinema building right by Yadang Station, with plenty of included parking, so it is easy to get to. But above all, this is not simply a pizza place. It is a meeting of a pizza master and a beer master! They make handmade pizza with black rice dough they age themselves for 72 hours, and one side has a sparkling lineup of no fewer than 15 beer taps. Better yet, instead of ordering individual glasses from staff, you open the tap yourself and pour as much as you want. How could a beer nerd possibly walk past a place like this, haha? I enjoyed it properly today.

Long Time No See Yadang Branch: the basics

It is at 1074 Gyeongui-ro, Samyung Cinema, on the second floor of the Lotte Cinema building in Paju, Gyeonggi-do. It is about a three-minute walk from Exit 2 of Yadang Station and open daily from 17:00 to 24:00. It is closed for Chuseok on September 25. The basic parking allowance is four free hours, with additional parking support possible depending on how long you use the venue. It is right in front of Yadang Station, so public transit is convenient too, and being in a cinema building makes it easy to find for a first visit.

A spacious room with folding windows

It is on the second floor of the Lotte Cinema building, visible right from Yadang Station! With four hours of free parking, it is also a great Paju spot for having a drink after a movie.

The first thing I thought on entering was, “Oh—it is way bigger than I expected?” There are roomy tables, stylish interiors, and an overall casual yet trendy mood. Especially when the folding windows are opened wide, you get an open view of Yadang’s sky and the scenery outside, making it great for a slightly outdoor-bar-like feeling on a nice day.

It is spacious enough for a group gathering with friends, while still having a nice atmosphere for couples enjoying pizza and beer together! That is why I would also recommend it to anyone looking for a Yadang date spot.

How to pour from 15 draft beer taps

But there is another reason this place is truly fun. The sparkling beer taps catch your eye the moment you enter!

One, two, three… there are a whopping 15 kinds of draft beer ready to go. From lambic and ale to wheat beer, IPA, and stout, the range is truly broad. Calling this a draft-beer specialist spot fits perfectly.

At a normal bar, you say, “One draft beer, please,” and a staff member pours you 300 ml or 500 ml, right? This place is different. You pour it yourself, hahaha—like filling up at a self-service gas station, you choose the tap and let it flow. Since the charge is calculated by the ml, you do not need to order a big glass of just one kind.

Tap your wristband, pour just a little to taste, and if you think, “Oh, this is my style,” pour some more! On the other hand, if it is more like, “Hmm… not my thing,” you can stop there, haha. Being able to compare beers in small amounts is genuinely so fun.

So rather than simply being a bar, this is the kind of place people looking for an unusual bar in Yadang would especially enjoy. There are rows and rows of glasses for different beer styles, too. For a beer nerd like me, it is basically a beer playground.

Handmade pizza on 72-hour-aged black rice dough

Does that mean the food is weak? Absolutely not. There is another master here: the pizza master! They use refrigerated black rice dough aged in-house for 72 hours and stretch it by hand rather than with a machine. The handmade pizzas combine natural mozzarella, traditional Italian tomato sauce, and Long Time No See’s own secret ingredients. That is why the pizza’s pleasantly chewy texture goes so well with beer.

There is an enormous variety of pizzas, plus pasta, tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), chicken, odeng-tang (fish cake soup), gratin, fries, dried pollack, and many more drinking snacks. Popcorn is unlimited and free!! So whether you want pizza and beer or are looking for a Paju restaurant or Yadang Station bar, there are plenty of choices here.

Long Time No See signature menu

The day we conquered the taps instead of having pizza and beer

This time, it was tap-beer conquering over pizza and beer! I met up at Long Time No See with the friend I traveled to Fukuoka with in May, after such a long time, haha. I had visited this hot Yadang bar three months earlier and knew I had to bring this friend back!! Because… we are truly the dream drinking duo. The pizza-and-beer combo was so good last time that we planned to enjoy pizza and beer again today, but… as expected, my friend moves differently. “Let’s try every single tap here.” Hahahahaha. So we put pizza aside for the moment and ordered dried pollack as a light snack.

First beer: Hand & Malt Sangsang Pale Ale

I started with Hand & Malt Sangsang Pale Ale, the beer I enjoyed most on my previous visit! My friend started with Platinum Golden Ale. Choosing for ourselves at the taps and pouring exactly the amount we wanted was quietly so exciting, haha.

When I order a whole glass, I find it disappointing to have to finish a beer I do not like, but here I could sample little amounts and have fun discovering my preferences. Personally, I loved Sangsang Pale Ale’s subtle fruity aroma and clean finish. The hop aroma is not too intense, so it is a style that people new to craft beer can enjoy fairly comfortably too! That is why it was my first choice again that day. I cannot give up my favorite, haha.

Platinum Golden Ale and a tap tour

I stole a sip of the Golden Ale my friend chose, and it was lighter and smoother than the Sangsang Pale Ale. If you want to start your first glass without too much intensity, something in this family seemed like a good choice too. We swapped glasses and started our tasting panel: “This is your style.” “This is my style.” Hahaha.

Then the proper tap tour began! Red Rock → Blanc → Kozel Dark → Asahi → Orion. There were seriously so many choices that this was never going to be a one-or-two-glass kind of night, hahaha.

Red Rock was a familiar lager style that was clean and easy to drink; Blanc was nice and light thanks to its fragrant, soft character. Kozel Dark had that rich, slightly sweet stout flavor, so its personality was clearly different from the lagers we had before. Asahi was clean and dry, the kind of flavor that would pair well with pizza. Orion was another easygoing lager that went down smoothly, haha. The conclusion is… having so many kinds to choose from is ridiculously fun.

But it did not end there. This is such an unusual Paju bar that it even has soju on tap. Drinking the soju straight is fun, but I also tried mixing it with sparkling water to make my own ratio—and those little experiments were surprisingly fun, haha.

We even found Lindemans Pêcheresse Lambic

And one of the most fascinating things I found that day: they even had Lindemans Pêcheresse Lambic, which is not something you easily come across. It has a completely different character from a typical lager, so it is worth trying at least once out of curiosity if you like beer.

My friend and I went, “Hey, what is this?” “Just pour it first!” Hahaha. There is such fun in discovering new beers one by one like this.

They also have sweet fruit beers such as Long Time Peach Up and Sweet Apple, so people who find bitter beer intimidating can choose something suited to their taste. These fruitier beers are especially perfect for sharing little tastes with friends—“Try this one!” So if you are the kind of playful drinker who wants to have fun at a bar with a great atmosphere, I would recommend this place, hahaha.

Dried pollack and fried corn kernels

In the end, we ordered dried pollack and fried corn kernels as our snacks that day. We came for pizza, then did not eat pizza and kept attacking the beer taps instead… true drinkers, hahaha.

Dried pollack, perfect with beer

Dried pollack was, of course, perfect with beer! It had a chewy yet crisp texture and a pleasantly salty taste, making it great to pick at between sips. Above all, this kind of mild snack actually suited tasting lots of different beers really well.

The unexpected standout: fried corn kernels

They were crunchy, with corn’s nutty and sweet flavor, so I just kept reaching for them, haha. At first, we ordered them simply to add one side dish, but as we picked at them with our beer, they had almost disappeared before we knew it. Snacks really do matter at a beer place.

Next time, pizza for sure

But here is the thing. After drinking our fill of all those beer styles, I somehow wanted pizza even more. I remembered that the handmade pizza itself had been quite delicious when I tried it last time, so as my friend and I said goodbye, we made a promise: “Next time, let’s come back for pizza.” Hahahahaha. Our friendship, making plans for the next visit while drinking… very wholesome.

The fun of choosing and pouring your own beer

Long Time No See Yadang Branch was not simply a place to eat pizza and drink beer; it was a place where you can choose beers that suit your taste, sample as much as you want, and enjoy the process. Comparing all sorts of beers with a friend while looking at the 15 different taps was especially satisfying! If you want pizza, want to properly enjoy craft beer, and are looking for somewhere a little different from an ordinary bar, this seems like a genuinely fun option. Especially if, like me, you love beer… you can be happy standing in front of these taps, hahaha.