Yongin shabu-shabu restaurant for family dining: Deungchon

A little while ago, we went to a great shabu-shabu spot in Yongin for a family meal. It was Deungchon Shabu Kalguksu Giheung Station Branch. We had visited once before, loved it, and came back again.

What stands out here is the beautifully neat, clean-tasting mushroom kalguksu (knife-cut noodles), and the fact that you can enjoy shabu-shabu in clear, spicy, or perilla mushroom broth depending on your preference. The prices are reasonable too, so it is somewhere my husband and I visit now and then.

It is located right beside Suwon CC golf course. Maybe that is why so many guests come before or after a round of golf. We visited at around 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.

How does parking work?

The parking is very convenient too. Lots of places do not have parking, but at Deungchon Shabu Kalguksu Giheung Station Branch, you can park in the building basement, and it was free on weekends. There was plenty of space, so it felt like a well-equipped, convenient place.

They normally provide two hours of free parking. They will also be closed for the upcoming Chuseok holiday, from Thursday, September 24 through Saturday, September 26. Shabu beef was ₩7,000 as a takeaway promotion, haha.

Finding the restaurant entrance

After parking, we took the elevator inside the building down to B2, where the restaurant is located. There is also an escalator beside the elevator, so either one will get you there.

As soon as you get off, you will see the CGV cinema, and once you head toward the entrance, the signs are easy to follow. The restaurant is open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., with a break from 3 to 5 p.m. Last orders are split into two times: 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., so keep that in mind. The restroom is shared within the building, and it was quite clean.

Spicy mushroom kalguksu and add-on menu

The main dish is, naturally, the mushroom kalguksu, and we ordered two servings of the spicy version. Beef is not included, so we added it on, bringing the total to ₩30,000 for the two of us.

Other add-ons include giant dumplings, barley shrimp minari pancake, shabu beef, square fish balls, fish roe and soft roe, and vegetables. We had tried the minari pancake once before, and it was genuinely good—crispy outside and tender inside. There were also self-serve handmade sujebi dough flakes, noodles, fried rice, wide glass noodles, and potatoes.

We also added one can of Coke Zero. They had regular Coke, Sprite, and cider too. If you are visiting as a group, ordering alcohol alongside the meal could be nice. A glass of makgeolli (Korean rice wine) was only ₩1,000. They also sold zero-alcohol beer for anyone who cannot drink.

Our family shabu-kalguksu spread

We came on the weekend for a family meal, and the food arrived quite quickly. Look at all that minari piled on top of the vegetables!

The set included shabu-kalguksu broth, beef, kimchi, dumplings and kalguksu noodles, plus egg fried rice. It was just the right amount for two. The kimchi was spicy and savory—so delicious. It went really well with both the noodles and rice.

They start the burner on level 9, then tell you to turn it down to level 4 once the minari has wilted somewhat. I had my baby with me in a carrier that day. While my husband briefly went to the restroom, it was not easy to adjust the heat, but a staff member kindly helped me out. I was so touched, haha.

True to its reputation as a Yongin shabu-shabu favorite, the spicy-looking mushroom kalguksu came to a rolling boil, so we decided to start with the broth and vegetables.

At first, you can add only vegetables and mushrooms for a clear broth. Then, as you add meat or the extra noodles, you get to experience different flavors, which is another nice feature.

There was such a generous amount of minari. Its crisp texture was lovely, and while you can dip it in a sauce mixed with soy sauce and wasabi, it was delicious just on its own too, haha.

After eating some vegetables, we added the beef. By this point, the broth had developed even more depth.

The beef was even more savory and delicious dipped in the sauce, haha.

Once the kalguksu noodles are in, let them cook well until there is no firm center left. Perhaps because the broth had thickened too, they were soft and delicious. The staff member also took the egg fried rice away to cook it personally; the slightly browned bottom gave it an extra nutty flavor. We really scraped up every last bit, haha.

Inside atmosphere and family seating

Inside, there were seats not only for two but also plenty for groups of four or more. After a little while, the restaurant was full. Since each table has heat from the burner, they had thoughtfully placed handheld fans at the tables in case it got hot, haha.

Some of the other tables could seat up to six people. Finally, they also had sanitary aprons, so we could eat without getting anything on the baby. We decided that we would come back to Deungchon Shabu Kalguksu Giheung Station Branch, a Yongin shabu-shabu favorite, again next time.