Gangnam Korean restaurant for seaweed octopus soup: Obongjip

Today I was out near Samseong Station and stopped by Obongjip Samseong Branch for dinner. Obongjip is already famous for being delicious, so I had high expectations before I even walked in — and honestly, it turned out even better than I expected. 🩷 So let me leave an honest review here. 🫶🏻

Location and hours at Obongjip Samseong Branch

• 📍 Location: 62 Teheran-ro 81-gil, 1F, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
• ⏰️ Hours: 11:00 – 22:00
• 🚗 Parking: Not available

The Obongjip sign said "38 years of mother's hand-cooked taste" and even had a photo of the mother's face on it — it gave off that sense of decades of experience, and I trusted the place before I'd even walked in. 👍🏻

The vibe inside — good for group gatherings?

The interior was spacious with plenty of table seating, so it was comfortable to eat at a relaxed pace. It looked like a great spot not just for a family dinner but also for group get-togethers or company dinners.

✅️ Aprons, restroom — the restroom was inside the restaurant, which was convenient.

✅️ Wi-Fi

✅️ A coupon for a free steamed egg dish with a Naver reservation — worth knowing before you visit. ✨️

✅️ The menu — I liked that there were so many options to choose from.

The self-serve side dish bar

✅️ Self-serve bar — there was a self-serve bar where you could take as much of your favorite side dishes as you wanted, which was really convenient.

A big tray of side dishes came out! Seaweed soup, bean sprouts, sausage, white kimchi, salted shrimp, ssamjang (dipping sauce), chili and garlic, and radish salad — such a variety that I could taste a bit of everything even before the main dish arrived.

What we ordered — maesaengi yeonpotang and bossam set

• 🧾 Maesaengi Yeonpotang (seaweed octopus soup): ₩32,000
• 🧾 Bossam Set: ₩12,000

Ta-da~ Just look at that yeonpotang (octopus hot pot)!! 🤩💛 Since it's a chain, I honestly went in without huge expectations, but the moment I saw it I was surprised at how generous the portion was. The mushrooms were arranged beautifully, and it was packed with minari (water celery), zucchini, other vegetables, maesaengi (fine green laver), and fresh octopus. It looked so hearty and appetizing that I couldn't wait to dig in.

Kicked up with cheongyang chili

I wanted the broth a bit spicier, so I asked the owner to add cheongyang chili while it simmered, and it definitely gave the broth a sharper, spicier edge that made it even tastier. The octopus was cut into bite-sized pieces, and I waited until it cooked to that perfectly springy texture before eating.

I dipped the octopus and minari together into the soy-wasabi sauce, and oh — it was genuinely delicious! That soy-wasabi sauce was honestly the star. The sharp kick of wasabi paired perfectly with the octopus. And the octopus itself — what can I say! Chewy texture that got tastier the more you chewed, so I kept reaching for more.

At the end, I threw in the kalguksu noodles and finished it off properly. The chewy noodles went really well with the cool yet spicy yeonpotang broth.

Bossam set with rice included, ₩12,000 value

The bossam set came with a bowl of rice too, so it made for a satisfying meal. Considering the price, the portion and composition were pretty solid — a genuinely good-value menu item.

I tried topping the tender bossam (boiled pork) with radish kimchi. The cool, spicy kick of the radish kimchi really complemented the mild, tender pork. 👍🏻👍🏻

The lucky draw event and plum juice for dessert

⭐️ Lucky draw event ⭐️ After leaving a Naver receipt review, you get to try your luck at a draw — and you could even win a don (a Korean gold weight unit) of gold! I wanted to try since gold was on the line, but I'm an introvert, so I held back. Haha.

After finishing the meal, plum juice was served as dessert. It was sweet and refreshing, a nice clean way to end the meal. 🩷🫶🏻

To sum up

From maesaengi yeonpotang to the bossam set to the noodles, Obongjip let me enjoy a nice variety in one hearty meal. Especially with the spicy, cool broth and the kalguksu noodles thrown in, it was really filling. If you're looking for a hearty lunch or dinner spot near Samseong Station, I'd recommend Obongjip Samseong Branch.