Late-night Mullae izakaya: karai nabe with perilla leaves, Akai Teppan

I was staying at my sister's place in Gyeonggi-do for a week, and I kept heading over to Mullae to see my partner. This time we went to Akai Teppan (아카이테판), a Mullae Station favorite that was packed with customers even late at night 😃

Where is Akai Teppan and what are its hours?

Akai Teppan is at 34 Dorim-ro 125-gil, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, on the 1st floor, about a 10-minute walk from Exit 1 of Mullae Station. It is open 17:00–24:00 Monday to Thursday, 17:00–01:00 on Friday, 15:00–01:00 on Saturday and 15:00–24:00 on Sunday.

• Address: 34 Dorim-ro 125-gil, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, 1st floor, Akai Teppan
• Mon/Tue/Wed/Thu: 17:00 – 24:00
• Fri: 17:00 – 01:00
• Sat: 15:00 – 01:00
• Sun: 15:00 – 24:00

Akai Teppan menu and atmosphere

There's a big menu board right at the entrance. True to a Mullae izakaya, there's teppanyaki (iron-griddle cooking), plus nabe, fried dishes and a good range of sides :)

Even though we came late, Akai Teppan was full of people! The wood-toned interior and soft lighting make the mood even better ✨

After much deliberation we ordered, and they brought out a chicken-leg shaped snack. Bars that hand out those are my favorite kind (❁´◡`❁)

What we ordered at Akai Teppan and the prices

We ordered three things at Akai Teppan that day: karai nabe, fried chicken neck and soju.

• Karai nabe - ₩29,000
• Fried chicken neck - ₩9,000
• Soju - ₩6,000

What does the karai nabe at Akai Teppan taste like?

The karai nabe at Akai Teppan is a hearty hot pot with perilla leaves, bok choy and bean sprouts piled thickly underneath. I wanted teppanyaki, but I'd just had it recently, so I went with nabe T.T But the sheer size and the look of it wiped out my gloomy mood!

With all those perilla leaves, bok choy and bean sprouts stacked underneath, it felt a lot like eating shabu-shabu 🤩

The karai nabe broth and soy dipping sauce

The broth was spicy and deep yet totally clean-tasting. Tasting the broth first is the golden rule, right?? One sip and I knew it was perfect drinking food, haha.

I also dipped a bite in the soy sauce they gave us. It brings out the savoriness and is tasty, but the nabe is already seasoned well enough that it's great without it 😎

Eat the karai nabe with perilla leaves

I didn't notice at first, but the karai nabe has loads of perilla leaves in it too. I wrapped up a neat bite and the perilla aroma spread through my mouth. So good! If you order karai nabe, definitely eat it with the perilla leaves@

Long, uncut beef brisket

Akai Teppan puts the meat in the karai nabe uncut, in long slices! That makes it easy to wrap the vegetables in the meat. Even better (●'◡'●) The beef brisket was tender and tasty, and the vegetables were cooked just right, so we kept eating 😍

What does the fried chicken neck at Akai Teppan look like?

The fried chicken neck (₩9,000), a side dish at Akai Teppan, comes on a bed of cabbage topped with Cheongyang mayo sauce (made with spicy Cheongyang chili). Almost too pretty to eat 😢😢

Seeing the heaped cabbage, I ate a bite together with it. The tender fried chicken neck and crunchy cabbage go together surprisingly well! No bitterness from the cabbage, it's sweet, and I kept reaching for it with every bite... haha.

The Cheongyang mayo sauce is a stroke of genius

I don't normally eat mayonnaise, but my partner said it was good, so I dipped the fried chicken neck in the Cheongyang mayo sauce too. (Good thing I listened,, haha.) Maybe because of the Cheongyang chili, it felt fresh rather than heavy. The chili is the masterstroke!

Is Akai Teppan worth a visit as a Mullae Station izakaya?

Another successful Mullae Station food hunt today :) Akai Teppan is only a 10-minute walk from Exit 1 of Mullae Station, so it's easy to get to too (*/ω＼*)

Akai Teppan is known as a Mullae izakaya, and plenty of people order the teppanyaki. We had nabe and fried food instead, but since we cleaned our plates, I'm pretty sure the teppanyaki would be 100% delicious too, haha. If you're looking for a Mullae Station restaurant, bar or izakaya, Akai Teppan is worth a visit :)