Mapo Station gukbap: pork bone soup after a UK trip, Bosseung Hoegwan

Why I came to Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch as my first meal back from the UK

Coming back from my trip to the UK, I headed straight from the airport, suitcase in hand, to Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch (보승회관 마포역점), a gukbap (rice soup) place near Mapo Station. The thing I wanted most once I got back to Korea was gukbap, and specifically pork bone hangover soup.

I wasn't even that hungry during the UK trip... but the moment I landed in Korea I wanted to eat everything and I'm hungry at all hours, T_T Maybe I was just full on air back then, hahaha.

Anyway, what I wanted most in Korea was gukbap!! Pork bone soup, to be exact (my taste buds are weirdly specific... haha). So on the way home from the airport I didn't even stop at home.. I went straight with my suitcase to this Mapo Station gukbap spot, Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch... hahaha. It was lunchtime, so it was really packed!!!

What's on the menu at Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch?

Bosseung Hoegwan is a gukbap specialist selling sundae gukbap (blood sausage rice soup), pork bone hangover soup, offal gukbap, samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) and more. It's a great Mapo Station lunch spot, and perfect for curing a hangover.

Two free side dishes: napa cabbage kimchi and radish kimchi

A gukbap place can't go without kimchi..! Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch brings two kinds, napa cabbage kimchi and radish kimchi, and wow... it had been so long since I'd had kimchi, and it was so good T_T

How were the broth and meat in the pork bone soup?

The pork bone soup at Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch is loaded with big bones and ugeoji (dried cabbage leaves), and the broth was rich and hot. And then the pork bone soup came out!!!

It's packed with big bones and ugeoji, and the broth, wow, it was so rich, warm and delicious.

Put rice in it or just sip the broth, either way it felt like a perfect hangover cure!!! The trip was great, but what really got me was the high prices, and even paying that much I barely found anything that was... tasty? I don't think I even wanted anything, haha.

Back in Korea there's gukbap this good value, and the side dishes are still free. The broth was so clean and refreshing that all the fatigue in my body melted away!!

Soul food that thrills you from the smell: pork bone soup

Mmm~ it was my soul food, exciting me from the very first whiff, haha. When I was living in Korea I don't think I ate pork bone soup that often? Maybe it was the cold European weather, or maybe I was tired and missed hot soup like gukbap, hahaha. It looked so appetizing!

And compared to the UK, the price is so reasonable, haha. Even the side dishes are free, haha. After experiencing the UK, every restaurant in Seoul tastes great and satisfying, like it's giving top-notch customer service!!

The big bones have really generous meat on them~ and it was fun to pull off the meat and dip it in wasabi.

So much meat that it's satisfying to gnaw on, haha.

Is Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch good for an evening drink too?

Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch isn't just a hangover spot; it's also a good place to pair hot gukbap with a light drink after work. Gnawing on bones with a drink would be perfect, right? But, haha, this was my first meal in Korea (straight here without even going home), so I held back from daytime drinking ^^

What kind of sundae comes in the plate sundae?

The plate sundae at Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch isn't just regular sundae; it comes with several kinds, like blood sundae, white sundae and glass-noodle sundae. This was the sundae plate I added to the gukbap!! Look at how many kinds come on one plate *_*

It's not plain sundae but a variety: blood sundae, white sundae, glass-noodle sundae and more, so it's a good side to order with a meal.

I was a little sad I didn't order the sundae gukbap, but tasting the tasty sundae on this plate left me with fewer regrets, haha. A filling meal at a Mapo Station lunch spot, Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch!

Tips for solo dining and lunch at Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch

You can eat alone at Bosseung Hoegwan Mapo Branch, and at lunchtime it gets really crowded. This was the Korean food I'd craved the whole trip, and getting it right after landing left me so satisfied, my Mapo Station lunch at Bosseung Hoegwan gukbap, haha.

Solo dining is fine, and when I went at the lunch rush it was really full. It's that popular, and I recommend it as a Mapo Station restaurant and lunch!!!