Free-parking Jonggak Korean meal: non-spicy jjukkumi, Bonghyejane

Today I went to Bonghyejane Jubang, a Jonggak restaurant that's great for an office-worker lunch. The Jongno Tower branch is in Jongno Tower, right by Jonggak Station. So many office workers around here, right? So here's my review of a place that can solve your lunch!

Where is Bonghyejane Jubang Jongno Tower branch?

It's on the second basement level of Jongno Tower in front of Jonggak Station. I checked the directory of shops in Jongno Tower, took the escalator down, and Bonghyejane was right there. The sign says "Bonghyeja Special Dishes Restaurant" (봉혜자 별미요릿집).

Looks like Hibab and Jung Jun-ha have visited too. You can eat Korean food here, so it seemed like a good lunch stop. A hearty lunch spot! A Jonggak favorite, a lunch favorite, haha.

Is there parking at Bonghyejane in Jonggak?

If you eat at Bonghyejane, you get 1 hour 30 minutes of free parking. The restaurant covers it, so you don't need to worry about parking if you drive to Jonggak.

Atmosphere and seating inside Bonghyejane

Inside there were lots of tables and the mood was calm. It's fine for eating alone, and if you come in a group you can just push tables together, so no worries!

What's on the menu at Bonghyejane?

There's a menu board outside, and you can enjoy all kinds of Korean food here, from set meals to stir-fried dishes.

This is the signature set menu, and the lineup is actually pretty good? It's a good one to order if you want to try a bit of everything.

There was a lot that would make a good Jonggak lunch. The set meals include octopus stir-fry, pork stir-fry, charcoal-grilled bulgogi, spicy seafood soft tofu stew, mushroom perilla soup and bossam (boiled pork wraps) sets, all hearty enough even if you're eating alone. For stir-fries there are whole octopus and spicy small octopus (jjukkumi), both for 2 people, so ordering was easy.

We skipped the set meals and decided to try a stir-fry, and ordered the spicy small octopus stir-fry. Rice is separate, so you have to order it on its own! You can get plain rice or bowl rice, and we went with bowl rice. The bowl rice comes with seaweed flakes too, so it's easy to mix with the stir-fry.

What comes with the octopus stir-fry for two?

When I ordered the octopus stir-fry for two, it came with pumpkin porridge, fried fish, muk-sabal and jjolmyeon too. It was so generous and I was really happy with it haha.

Pumpkin porridge I wanted a refill of

I didn't expect much, but it was so good that I wanted a refill (?). I kept thinking they should sell this pumpkin porridge as its own menu item. My friend and I both inhaled it, lol.

Refreshing muk-sabal

The muk-sabal (acorn jelly in cold broth) is cool and tangy. It went well with the octopus.

Fried fish with sweet and sour sauce

The fried fish was totally different from regular fried food. It came coated in a sweet and sour sauce that got my appetite going. It was nice to eat alongside the octopus.

Jjolmyeon served with the octopus stir-fry

Jjolmyeon (chewy wheat noodles) comes with the octopus stir-fry too. I didn't know jjolmyeon and octopus stir-fry would go so well together, but it was so good. Try mixing them together. It's really filling.

Can people who can't handle spice eat the octopus stir-fry?

You can choose the spice level for the octopus stir-fry, so even spice wimps can eat it. We picked not spicy, and it's honestly not spicy at all. Bonghyejane lets spice wimps enjoy octopus stir-fry too!!

When you think octopus stir-fry, spicy comes to mind first, right? But I'd never had a not-spicy one before. It was even better than I expected. Octopus stir-fry that's delicious without the heat.

The octopus itself was springy with a great texture. Mixed into rice, a bowl vanishes in a blink.

The jjolmyeon is the secret kicker. With jjolmyeon coming too, honestly it was a lot for two women to eat. That's how generous the portions are....

Why I recommend bowl rice over plain rice

For the octopus stir-fry here, I'd recommend ordering bowl rice and mixing it all together if you can. Why? Because!

There's perilla oil on every table, and drizzling it over the octopus and mixing it into the rice is the best.... I think this is what octopus stir-fry is all about....

I don't think anyone would dislike this taste! You fall for it the moment you eat it. This was my first visit to Bonghyejane, and I thought it'd be a really good Jonggak spot for office workers at lunchtime. If you're looking for Korean food near Jonggak Station, give Bonghyejane a try!