Hongdae Seoul restaurant for a hanok date with kiosk ordering: Anok

The weather's been so nice lately that I went on a Hongdae date after a long while. While looking up where to eat, I found a review saying you could have tidy, well-plated Korean food inside an actual hanok, and that's how I ended up at 'Anok'!

Anok's opening hours and parking

Anok is open every day from 11:00 to 22:00, with last order at 21:00. There's no parking on site, so I'd recommend using a nearby public parking lot.

How to walk to Anok from Hongik University Station, and the hanok exterior

It's near Hongik University Station on Line 2 and the AREX, so access was pretty decent, and more than anything, the exterior is a real hanok, so it felt completely different from a typical restaurant. Genuinely a preserved hanok atmosphere...!

Inside Anok: table spacing wide enough for a quiet conversation

The inside was bigger than I expected and had an even better atmosphere. The lighting was a bit dim, with single lamps casting light here and there, giving off an overall calm, upscale mood.

And best of all, the hanok feel was everywhere, which I loved. The tables were spaced out too, so you couldn't really hear the next table, and it was so nice to enjoy the food while talking in that quiet atmosphere!

The banchan (side dishes) at Anok

The side dishes were a lineup that really suited the Korean food, and I was already excited before the main dishes even came out. Every single side dish was genuinely delicious.

Anok's menu and how kiosk ordering works

It felt like the menu was the owner's own secret recipe, fitting for the upscale hanok mood. Especially with the gomtang and naengmyeon made with medicinal herbs, I got so excited I started thinking I need to bring my parents next time.

You order through a kiosk. From Pyeongyang naengmyeon to gomtang, pork tail jjim, and even jeon (savory pancakes), the menu was more varied than I expected, so I had a hard time deciding what to eat. Next visit I'm going to try the kimchi jeon or the cheese potato-strip jeon.

Three dishes at Anok: Pyeongyang naengmyeon, clear gomtang, braised pork tail

That day, we ended up trying three dishes total.

• Pyeongyang naengmyeon
• Clear gomtang
• Pork tail jjim

Pyeongyang naengmyeon (buckwheat cold noodles)

First, the Pyeongyang naengmyeon uses buckwheat noodles. Given the nature of naengmyeon, someone unfamiliar with it might wonder what flavor this even is, but as a naengmyeon lover, I ate it so happily. It had that distinctly mild, understated naengmyeon flavor while the broth was refreshingly cold, making it clean and easy to eat. (Plus the meat was delicious!)

Clear gomtang (beef bone soup)

Second dish, the clear gomtang. Gomtang can't really go wrong. (Haha, no need to say more.) With a broth base similar to the naengmyeon, the gomtang broth was also clean yet deep in flavor. A refined taste very different from the gomtang I usually eat elsewhere.

The meat on top of the gomtang in particular was quite good. Eating the tender meat together with the broth paired really well with the light, clean gomtang.

Dwaejikkori-jjim (braised pork tail)

The dish we'd been waiting for, pork tail jjim. Honestly 'pork tail' sounded so unfamiliar that I ordered it out of curiosity, wondering if it'd taste like jokbal (braised pig's feet). The mouth-watering visuals definitely helped too.

This bouncy, tender-looking pork tail...!! Rather than being properly spicy, it had more of a sweet seasoned flavor. The seasoning had soaked into the meat really well too, so I kept reaching for another piece with the tongs. It was the kind of flavor that would've made a few bottles of beer disappear fast. Ordering a seasoned dish like the pork tail jjim alongside plain dishes like the naengmyeon and gomtang made for a really great combination.

Who is Anok best for?

Overall the dishes were on the clean, tidy side, which I really liked. I didn't know you could experience such neat, well-plated Korean food inside a hanok in Hongdae, so I was so happy to discover this place.

If you love naengmyeon like me, go for the Pyeongyang naengmyeon; if you want something more filling, I'd recommend the gomtang, and adding a pork tail jjim on top to share a variety of dishes sounds great too!! If you're looking for a good-atmosphere Korean restaurant for a Hongdae date, or searching for the best gomtang or Pyeongyang naengmyeon in Hongdae, definitely keep this one in mind! The staff were super friendly too!