Insadong gomtang lunch set: only three slices of cold jeyuk, Wolhadong

I wanted to introduce a gomtang (beef bone soup) restaurant that's great for a filling meal in Insadong. This time I visited Wolhadong, located near Anguk Station. It's a place where you can enjoy clear gomtang and cold jeyuk in a hanok atmosphere. From the stone toad at the entrance to the size of the cold jeyuk tasting plate, I'll share exactly what I experienced and felt. If you're trying to figure out what to eat for lunch in Insadong, keep reading!

Wolhadong at a glance: address, hours and parking

• Address: 16-1 Insadong 8-gil, 1st floor, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Hours: 11:00–21:00 (break time 15:00–17:00)
• Signature menu: Wolha gomtang, hong gomtang, cold jeyuk, spicy squid salad, sambok jeongol
• Parking: Suunhoegwan parking lot available (₩3,000 per 30 minutes)

※ Please check hours and menu prices with the restaurant before visiting.

Finding Wolhadong: the hanok entrance in an Insadong alley

The moment I arrived at Wolhadong, the first thing I noticed was a stone toad at the entrance. It said touching the toad brings wealth luck. I'm not the type to just walk past something like that.

Couldn't miss out on that wealth luck, so I gave it a good rub before going in, haha. The heart of an office worker who comes for lunch but also wants to grab some wealth luck... It was a fun little touch that matched the distinctive Insadong vibe well.

Walking inside, I felt the quiet, serene atmosphere unique to a hanok. Rather than a flashy, bustling restaurant, it felt like a place where you could calmly focus on your meal. I personally love this kind of vibe, so I liked it the moment I walked in. It's not just a space to eat and leave — it felt like somewhere you could sit and meditate for a bit. Thanks to the hanok interior, I thought it would also work well as an Insadong date spot.

Bar seating at Wolhadong for solo diners

One thing I liked about Wolhadong was that it has a bar table. When you're having lunch around Insadong or Anguk Station, there are days you end up eating alone. In those cases, eating solo among other diners can feel a bit awkward. Wolhadong has a bar table, so it seemed like a good option for solo dining too.

I visited with company this time, but I thought it'd be nice to come back alone later for just a bowl of gomtang. Given that the area has a lot of office workers and tourists, I'd recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a place where they can eat comfortably by themselves.

What comes with the 30,000-won Wolhadong set?

We ordered the Wolhadong set that day. It came with two bowls of wolha gomtang, a cold jeyuk (boiled pork) tasting plate, and drinks, all for ₩30,000.

I chose it because I liked being able to try both the gomtang and the cold jeyuk. There was one small misunderstanding on my part, though. I assumed the 'cold jeyuk tasting' would mean roughly half a plate. But when it actually arrived, it was truly a tasting-sized portion.

Three slices of cold jeyuk came out. There were two of us, and three slices!

I think we need to order more of this.

...was what I thought. If you're trying cold jeyuk for the first time, the tasting portion could be a fine way to sample it, but if you love meat dishes like I do, I'd suggest ordering a half or full plate from the start.

The tasting portion didn't satisfy my cravings at all, so I ordered more.

Wolhadong's tender cold jeyuk and its house-made sauce

I dipped the cold jeyuk generously into the house-made sauce it came with. I initially thought it would be similar to regular boiled sliced pork (pyeonyuk), but once I actually ate it, it was a bit different from what I expected.

The meat was tender and paired well with the sauce. What I liked most was that it didn't feel greasy at all while eating. It worked well to whet the appetite before the gomtang, and I thought it would also pair nicely with drinks.

Personally, if I visit Wolhadong again, I think I'd order the cold jeyuk again. When dining alone, this portion size would actually be a nice, light side dish. If you're visiting with someone and want cold jeyuk as the main event, consider getting half a plate or more.

How clear is the wolha gomtang broth?

While we were eating the cold jeyuk, the wolha gomtang arrived right away. The first thing that caught my eye when I saw the soup was how clear the broth was.

When you think of gomtang, you usually picture a milky, rich broth, but wolha gomtang's clear, clean look stood out.

There was plenty of meat in the broth, so it seemed hearty enough for a full meal. I took a sip of the broth first.

Rather than being intense or heavy, it went down clean and light. I tried the meat too, and it paired well with the broth. When I eat gomtang, I'm not a fan of broth that feels too heavy or leaves an oily residue in your mouth afterward, but wolha gomtang was light and clean, which I appreciated.

I also added a bit of the cheonggeunjang (fermented radish paste) that came with it. It tasted quite different from eating the soup plain, and was nice to mix in here and there. As I was eating the gomtang, the first thought that came to mind was this:

My brain and my stomach feel at peace.

After a hectic workday, having a warm spoonful of broth somehow made me feel calm too. Sometimes I relieve stress with spicy, intense food, but having a hearty meal with clear broth like this was really nice too.

Gomtang recreated from Joseon-era recipes

Wolhadong isn't just a restaurant that sells gomtang — apparently they make their food based on recipes recorded in old Joseon-era cookbooks.

They said the cheonggeunjang, made by fermenting radish, was recreated based on recipes recorded in the old cookbooks Sangayorok and Suunjapbang.

They explained that they only serve kimchi made with domestic napa cabbage, radish, and domestic red pepper powder, and when you taste it, you can really tell it's true domestic kimchi! It has a heavy, distinct punch, completely different from the lighter taste of Chinese-made kimchi. The rice was also really good, blended from Sindongjin and Koshihikari rice varieties.

Is Wolhadong worth it for lunch in Insadong?

To sum up what I liked about visiting Wolhadong:

• First, you can eat in the calm, quiet atmosphere unique to a hanok.
• Second, you can enjoy clear-broth gomtang and tender cold jeyuk together.
• Third, there's a bar table, so it's also worth considering for solo dining.

If you're trying to decide what to eat for lunch around Insadong or Anguk Station, a bowl of gomtang will fill you up well. Next time, I'd like to come alone and enjoy a bowl of wolha gomtang with the cold jeyuk tasting on the side.