Suwon Korean restaurant for hot pot with grandma: Ok Doenjang

Ok Doenjang on the first floor of the Lotte Cinema building in Hommaesil, Suwon. I tried Ok Doenjang near home for the first time and it was so delicious, so this time I brought my husband's grandmother to try a different branch 😊

A bustling retro dining room on a weekend evening

When we visited on a weekend evening, it was bustling and nearly full~ The restaurant was clean and nice, and somehow the retro interior made everything feel even more like Mom's home cooking, haha.

Ok Doenjang sells not only simple lunch dishes but also dinner-and-drinks dishes, so it is great for lunch or for a drink with dinner. The lunch discounts and feast-table set menus make it affordable too—so good 👍

Which hot pot should we choose?

Along with Ok Doenjang's signature doenjang hot pot (soybean-paste hot pot), there are soft tofu hot pots, boiled-pork hot pots, and lots of special dishes to choose from according to your taste. There are so many hot-pot varieties depending on the toppings that I always wonder what to order whenever I come ㅠㅠ They had also started serving kongguksu (noodles in cold soybean soup) as a summer seasonal menu, but now that it is autumn, I guess I'll have to wait until next year.. haha.

Stir-fried seaweed stems / green-onion kimchi / braised meat and kimchi

The side dishes arrived first. I am not sure whether they differ by branch, but the place I visited last time served Mom gim (seasoned seaweed) and fried eggs as sides; here, you need to order Mom gim separately, so keep that in mind※

I also made sure to learn how to enjoy Ok Doenjang deliciously in advance.

The famous Mom gim, gim bugak (crispy fried seaweed), and chili bugak are available to buy separately. They also sell sesame oil and braised kimchi, so it might be nice to pick some up on the way home 👌

Ordering beef tendon doenjang hot pot and squid soft tofu hot pot

Beef tendon doenjang hot pot, 1 serving (₩14,000) Squid soft tofu hot pot, 2 servings (₩26,000)

I had only tried the soft tofu hot pot last time, so I came determined to have doenjang hot pot this time. But Grandma said she liked the soft tofu hot pot better, so we split the order into one serving of doenjang hot pot and two servings of soft tofu hot pot 😊

Once the hot pot starts bubbling, turn over the hourglass placed at each table. When all the sand has run through, lower the induction heat and dig in. They also offer individual meals, so you can order just one serving—so good b

A generously filled beef tendon doenjang hot pot, even for one

It was loaded with rich doenjang broth, minari (water parsley), tofu, zucchini, and beef tendon. Although it was one serving, there was enough for two people to share ♥

I served a tempting mix of the ingredients into my bowl and happily dug in 😚

Grandma likes cow knee cartilage, so we chose the beef tendon hot pot. The tendon was wonderfully chewy, and it was fragrant and delicious with the minari 👍

Soft tofu hot pot with squid

Next was the soft tofu hot pot, which I had already tried and was even more excited for~ I had it with thin-sliced beef belly last time, so this time I chose squid 🦑

For the soft tofu hot pot too, turn the hourglass once it starts bubbling. It comes with eggs, so drop them in once it begins to boil~ Since ours was for two, we got two eggs and added them one after another, haha.

With a pleasantly spicy, deeply savory broth, soft tofu, chewy squid, zucchini, and minari, it came out overflowing as always—my mouth was watering before I even started eating 😍

A soft-set egg is always the best, so before it could cook through, I quickly lifted it onto my rice, popped the yolk, and mixed it deliciously into the broth ~_~

The thin-sliced beef belly soft tofu hot pot I had last time was so delicious that I had high hopes for this squid soft tofu hot pot too ♥

The chewy yet tender squid and fragrant minari were far better together than separately, so I gathered everything up for one huge bite—nom nom 😘 The soft tofu hot pot was definitely more to our taste, so we absolutely devoured it ><

Perhaps the broth changes slightly with the main ingredient: last time, with a meat base, it felt richer, while the seafood made it taste more refreshing? Since each ingredient changes the flavor, I do not think I would get tired of it even if I kept coming back.. 🤔 I have only tried two varieties so far, so I need to come back at least five more times to complete the set 🤭

A Hommaesil hot-pot restaurant I want to revisit with my parents

It is such good value and so tasty that once you come, you will definitely want to return. The food is clean and delicious, making it a great place to bring your parents too :)

• Daily 11:00–23:00
• Break time 15:00–16:30 / except weekends
• Naver Booking available
• 2 hours validated in the building's underground parking lot