Chicken dinner for two near Sindang Station, Seoul: Gyeryugwan

My friend and I almost always eat dinner near Yaksu after our workouts and walk a bit before heading home, but this time we escaped Yaksu for once and went to Sindang for a protein refuel. Sindang Station restaurant and bar Gyeryugwan, here we go.

It's inside Jungang Market, so you might wonder what kind of vibe that is — it's a chicken specialty restaurant, but it even has its own noodle-making room, whoa.

Gyeryugwan hours and parking

Gyeryugwan is open daily from 16:00 to 23:00, with last order at 22:00. No parking available.

How long is the wait at 7:30pm on a weekday?

Even though we went around 7:30pm on a weekday right after working out, there was a wait, ugh, why is this place so popular... We were 4th in line, but a lot of people happened to be leaving right then, so we got in after about 5 minutes.

There are quite a lot of seats and some tables for two, so turnover seemed decent. Everyone else was drinking, but I think we were the only ones there with just Coke.

When the place is full, dining time is limited to 2 hours, so let's eat quickly!

A menu with wordplay befitting the name Gyeryugwan (계류관).

Gyeryugwan menu: the three dishes we ordered for two

Gyeryugwan's signature dish is the oak-fired chicken with neungi mushroom! There's also a huge lineup of dishes using various parts of the chicken, so protein lovers will love this place haha.

• Oak-fired chicken with neungi mushroom
• Chicken thigh-neck tangsuyuk (sweet and sour)
• Beef doenjang makguksu (buckwheat noodles)

Sindang Station restaurant and bar Gyeryugwan, checking the country of origin labels.

So many side dishes, love it already. Pickled radish, a must with chicken, plus napa cabbage kimchi and young radish kimchi! And several sauces to go with the oak-fired chicken also came out.

Chicken neck tangsuyuk: a familiar scent in the sauce

The first thing to arrive at Gyeryugwan was the chicken thigh-neck tangsuyuk. While waiting for the other dishes, I subtly kept sneaking pieces from the bottom haha.

Why is this photo so dark... The sauce was a bit unusual. It had a familiar drink-like smell, and after my friend and I seriously debated it, we decided it smelled like sujeonggwa (cinnamon-persimmon punch). But looking at it now, the menu says ginger tangsuyuk? Ah, that explains the ginger smell... Anyway, the tangsuyuk was crispy and delicious. It's my favorite part of the chicken, the thigh-neck, deep-fried — of course it's going to be good.

Then the beef doenjang makguksu, overflowing with sauce, came out.

Right after that, the oak-fired chicken with neungi mushroom also arrived.

Right after working out, I was excited to refuel on protein. Oh but really, this combination of dishes seemed perfectly chosen?

What does the beef doenjang makguksu taste like?

Gyeryugwan's beef doenjang makguksu is chicken stir-fried in butter and doenjang (fermented soybean paste), with blended fruits and vegetables and a generous drizzle of perilla oil. First, you mix it all together.

From the look of it, I expected it to taste like ssamjang (Korean dipping sauce), but surprisingly it didn't. Maybe because of the perilla oil, it had a nutty flavor, but I couldn't really taste the butter.

Oak-fired chicken with neungi mushroom: even the breast stays juicy

The oak-fired chicken with neungi mushroom is brined for 24 hours with various spices and stuffed with neungi mushroom rice. We split the chicken in half to share.

I tried it plain first, and there was no dryness at all — it was clean-tasting and tender. I'm usually all about the leg meat, but here even the breast was so, so juicy...

Still, it felt a bit plain on its own, so they gave us some kind of egg to go with it, and this white sauce whose identity I still don't know — my friend was eating it so I tried it too, and it was seriously delicious... it went perfectly with the oak-fired chicken, ugh. After one bite I just kept dipping everything in it haha.

And this neungi mushroom rice stuffed inside the oak-fired chicken — it's already seasoned, and whether it's sweet rice or not, it's chewy and super tasty!!

Mixing it into the makguksu too makes for a perfect carb + protein combo. The seasoning was just right.

My friend had spilled salt next to the oak-fired chicken, and without realizing it, I pulled off a chicken wing and dipped it right in — extra sodium refuel achieved.

My favorite part, the neck, is packed with meat, so good. Everyone always says what's there to eat on the neck, but here the neck is truly a goldmine.

Three dishes were too much for two people

But honestly, we got greedy and ordered way too much, and by the time we'd eaten a bit past half, we were full..... We were too busy stuffing ourselves to take any more photos, haha.

Ah, the restroom is inside and separated by gender, and it's super clean. If you're looking for a great chicken restaurant in Sindang or a bar near Jungang Market, I recommend Gyeryugwan.