Sangmu, Gwangju pasta restaurant with enoki-topped risotto: Bueokgan

Isn't the weather just amazing lately? There's one food I've been obsessed with these days — pasta! Somehow I can eat it a different way every time, and since I love noodles it just goes down so easily. I've made it at home too, but I kept thinking about Bueokgan, a place I go to often, so I went back! Here's my review.

Where Bueokgan Sangmu Branch is, and where to park

Bueokgan Sangmu Branch Address: 25 Seogwangju-ro, Seo-gu, Gwangju, South Korea, 1st floor Parking: Private lot behind the building (past Jjamppong Jijon, turn right and you'll find the dedicated Bueokgan lot. Past the Bueokgan Sangmu main branch, Muding Church parking is also available.) Hours: Daily 11:00–22:00 Break time 16:00–16:30 Last order 21:00

Bueokgan Sangmu is located on the road near the Starbucks Seogwangju branch! Parking in Sangmu is always tough, but even so this place has its own lot!!! Made it so easy to drive there haha.

The vintage Italian hotel exterior at Bueokgan

Whew, Bueokgan Sangmu is always so pretty no matter when I come...!!! I was seriously so hungry my stomach felt like it was touching my back...

Oh! And apparently Bueokgan as a brand is a European-style restaurant concept built around different countries around the world haha. And among them, Bueokgan Sangmu is designed with the concept of a vintage Italian hotel. It's full of that luxurious, antique atmosphere ><

Full-height window seats and the mood inside Bueokgan

First, the interior! What can I even say... it's oozing with a sense of luxury haha. On a really nice day, when the sun is blazing, looking outside from inside as the sunlight pours in gives such a soft, bright feeling — and even when it's snowing or raining, the way the light hits those floor-to-ceiling windows still feels amazing! Oh! And apparently the interior is inspired by the ballroom from Titanic ㅎ.ㅎ No wonder it's so pretty ><

And here's the seat we sat at! With the sun at our backs, it was warm and relaxed... best feeling ever!

Bueokgan's menu board and signature dishes

Please check the photos for the menu! They've got pizza, pasta, pilaf, steak and more, so it was hard to decide.

If I had to recommend something — Bueokgan's signature dishes are the basil pesto cream pasta, napa cabbage caesar salad, lasagna, and kung pao chicken pilaf. I've had all of those, so today I was craving something different!

What we ordered! Abalone cream risotto ₩20,000, vongole pasta ₩20,000, pumpkin soup ₩8,000, and apple earl grey ade. That's what we got!

Apple earl grey ade at Bueokgan

One of my all-time favorite drinks at Bueokgan, the apple earl grey ade haha. The apple pieces are big and rich, and the earl grey flavor comes through clearly — genuinely my favorite drink... I wish they sold it outside the restaurant too ㅠㅠㅠ There's even some apple jam-like texture to chew on... I really savored it slowly while waiting haha.

Was the 8,000-won sweet pumpkin soup worth it?

And the pickles that come as a default side!!! They looked beet-colored ㅎ

The pumpkin soup! This dish is genuinely delicious too.

They gave us this cute little bowl since the pumpkin soup is hot, so you can portion it out haha.

The pumpkin flavor was richer than anywhere else I've had it, and the crunch of nuts on top was excellent... genuinely more delicious than anywhere else, to the point of wondering, this is a side dish? I feel like if they sold it in a big bowl like a proper porridge shop, I'd buy it ㅠㅠ

Vongole pasta, 20,000 won: clams and noodle texture

This vongole pasta — from the moment the staff carried it over, the strong pasta aroma hit me and my mouth was already watering.

The noodle portion was bigger than I expected, and the clams were well-purged with none spoiled — all chewy and firm ㅎ0ㅎ I'm not a fan of noodles that are cooked too soft, but these were cooked just right, and I never got that mushy, overcooked feeling the whole way through!

The clam meat was packed in and the noodles were packed in too, so I never felt like the portion was lacking. The vongole sauce was so tasty I ended up scraping it up with a spoon... ㅋㅎㅎㅎ so embarrassing.

Abalone cream risotto, 20,000 won, topped with fried enoki mushrooms

Abalone cream risotto. Whoa... everyone, just look at the visuals first ㅠ

What's on top turned out to be fried enoki mushroom?? It clearly played the role of the secret ingredient. There was a subtle cheese flavor on top, and the enoki had that crispy-yet-chewy in-between texture.

The cream sauce made with abalone innards was pure richness itself. One bite in, it wasn't fishy at all, just nutty and savory with umami rolling through — the kind of taste where you just keep scooping it up nonstop. So delicious haha.