Yeonnam-dong restaurant serving white kimchi with pasta: Rangteu

How to find Rangteu Yeonnam: 3 minutes from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 3

Hyeonji and I hadn't had a Yeonnam-dong date in a while, and when she said she was craving Western food, we came to Rangteu, a Hongdae pasta spot in Yeonnam-dong. It's about a 3-minute walk from Exit 3 of Hongik Univ. Station — super, super close, so it was really easy to get to by public transit!

It's on the 2nd floor, and you just go up a small staircase on the right.

We visited on a weekday lunch, and since there were other diners around, I couldn't get a shot of the whole restaurant, but it wasn't huge — a small, cozy, clean white-toned interior. It's not a private room, but there was a slightly private space toward the back.

Rangteu Yeonnam's menu and what two people ordered: one pasta, one risotto

The menu at Rangteu, a Hongdae pasta spot. True to a Western restaurant, there was a wide range of dishes — risotto, pasta, salad — and after some thought we decided to order one pasta and one risotto.

• Cajun ragu pasta ₩18,900
• Sous vide short rib risotto ₩18,900
• Zero-sugar cola ₩3,000

The sous vide pork belly steak and gnocchi looked tasty too, but Hyeonji and I are both watching our weight right now, so ordering one more felt like too much and we held back, ugh.

The food came out quickly. The visuals were so, so good. They brought both dishes out at the same time, which was great for photos haha.

What does the cajun ragu pasta taste like? Packed with minced vegetables

First, the cajun ragu pasta. I had pictured a ragu pasta as tomato sauce with minced meat, but what came out was completely different from the ragu pasta I was used to.

Usually when something's labeled 'cajun' it means a saltier style seasoned with spices like paprika, onion, and garlic, and Rangteu's cajun ragu pasta, a Hongdae pasta spot favorite, was a style piled high with minced paprika, chives, and onion on top.

Unlike a typical ragu with meat, this one was loaded with finely minced vegetables, which gave it a fresh, light taste. The vegetables blended well with the noodles, giving a crunchy texture with every bite, and the fragrant cajun flavor made it easy and light to eat without feeling heavy.

I'm not sure what the white sauce drizzled on top was, but it went really well too and was delicious haha. The noodles had an orange tint, and with the colors of the paprika, red onion, and chives, it was such a pretty pasta — a real feast for the eyes.

White kimchi instead of pickles: the side dish at Rangteu Yeonnam

For a Yeonnam-dong restaurant, it was unusual for a Western place to serve baek-kimchi (white kimchi) as a side. Not pickles, not pickled radish, but baek-kimchi — I was puzzled at first, but it went so, so well with the pasta and risotto, and since I'm not really a fan of pickles, I actually liked this way better!! It refreshed the palate between bites and kept things clean and appetite-boosting — so delicious.

Sous vide short rib risotto and its popping barley texture

Second was the sous vide short rib risotto. Short rib, chives, and enoki mushrooms sat on top of a cream-based risotto.

Being cream-based, it had an overall savory, thick flavor, and the short rib added even more richness. Maybe because the short rib was sous vide cooked, the meat was so tender and moist that it paired perfectly with a spoonful of risotto, and the cream sauce had soaked well into the rice, so every bite had a deep flavor. The rice grains seemed to be mixed with something other than just rice — the popping texture was amazing, and I'm guessing it was barley! That texture was totally my type.

The grilled enoki mushrooms on top had a nice mushroom aroma too, pairing perfectly, like eating meat grilled together with mushrooms. I love the smell of enoki mushrooms, so I ate them thinking, wow, this really goes well together, so delicious! But Hyeonji doesn't like enoki mushrooms, so I ended up eating them all myself, hehe.

Pasta or risotto? Why the sous vide short rib risotto wins

Between the cajun ragu pasta and the sous vide short rib risotto, the risotto was more to my personal taste. If I weren't dieting, I might have scraped the bowl clean by myself... If you come to Rangteu, a Hongdae pasta spot, definitely try the sous vide short rib risotto — highly recommend.

True to a Yeonnam-dong restaurant, the atmosphere was lovely, the tableware was neat, and every dish looked and tasted great, so I'd fully recommend it as a Yeonnam-dong date spot. Great for a blind date or a date in general. Hyeonji and I visited on a weekday lunch, but they also have liquor and wine on the menu, so it seems like it would be great for a dinner date with a nice atmosphere too.