Pyeongdong eel restaurant, thin eels and perilla eel soup: Yuil Jangeo

My blog's been quiet for a while since work got busy haha... but I'm back at it now!! Here's my review from last week of an eel spot in Gwangsan, Yuil Jangeo.

Where is Yuil Jangeo, and what are its hours?

Yuil Jangeo is a grilled eel restaurant on Donggok-ro in Bongnyong-dong, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju. It's open daily 11:00–21:00, last order 20:30, and closed for Chuseok on September 25.

It's just a bit past the Gwangju Songjeong Outlet, heading toward Naju. Since it's out on the edge of the city, it has a big parking lot and group rooms — on a weekday evening it was full of what looked like company dinners and get-togethers haha. During the day they also have lunch specials — seasoned grilled eel, eel tteokgalbi, eel soup — at a good price, so I should try visiting in daytime too!

How ordering works: pay for the eel first

At Yuil Jangeo you pick the eel you want from the display case by the counter, pre-pay just for the eel, and then head in. The eel you paid for gets pre-grilled once and brought to your table, and everything else — table charge, extras — gets settled at the end haha.

There's a big lot out back and the rear entrance is clearly marked. Past the restroom on the right there's a sign with Yuil Jangeo's usage instructions! We went on in!

Why we chose two thin eels

The eel counter is divided into portions for two, three, and four people, so you just pick what you want! We're not big fans of really thick eel, so we chose the pack with two slightly thinner eels!

There were also single eels displayed separately, so we figured we could add one more if we ran out haha. You pay for just the eel first, and then they show you to your seat!

Wide tables, private rooms and the room's feel

Yuil Jangeo, this eel spot in Gwangsan-gu, is run directly by the Hosan eel farm, so the eel felt fresh and good value! There's a separate table charge, but the eel price itself is... really cheap haha.

Inside there are plenty of inner rooms, and instead of small four-person tables, the tables are wide, so it never felt cramped — I really liked that!

Banchan spread and the self-serve bar

The basic table setting comes with things like pickled perilla leaves and green onion kimchi, but you can grab more side dishes from the self-serve bar! We got aged kimchi, salad, wasabi, and more. The self-serve bar was kept really clean too, which I liked even more haha.

Charcoal grilling without breaking a sweat

They pre-grill the eel you picked and set it on the grill for you! One reason we fell for this place: usually eel restaurants get so hot you just want to pull the coals away fast, but not here!!

The charcoal is burning away really strongly, but whether it's the ventilation or what, you can eat comfortably without breaking a sweat! That alone made me want to come back.

Salt, spicy sauce and pickled perilla leaves

We dipped it in the basic teriyaki sauce, and also went with the classic combo of pickled perilla leaf and shredded ginger! They also have a spicy sauce here, so it never felt greasy. All the side dishes were tasty too, perfect alongside the eel haha.

Still, since Yuil Jangeo's eel is so fresh, just dipping it plain in salt was the most savory and delicious way to eat it haha.

Dessert eel soup with perilla powder, 5,900 won

Once we got going we couldn't skip the eel soup, so we ordered it as an extra! Yuil Jangeo's dessert eel soup comes with a bowl of rice included and it's only ₩5,900 — cheap! You can even add a ssaki eel soup for just ₩3,000 more. Not only is the eel itself affordable, the dessert menu is cheap and varied too, so I'd say this place would be great with the whole family for the upcoming Chuseok holiday haha.

Every table has perilla powder set out, so you can add as much as you like to taste haha. And the perilla powder here is the fine, hull-removed kind — the owner really knows what's good! When you order an extra dessert item, they also give you three or four more side dishes that aren't on the self-serve bar haha.

We moved the nicely browned eel over to the side of the grill and set the earthenware pot over the flame to eat it piping hot haha. We also put teriyaki-glazed eel over rice and enjoyed it as an eel rice bowl.

Filling ourselves up with a bit of rice mixed in, plus kimchi! We ate a lot, and a good variety, haha.

When is Yuil Jangeo worth a visit?

As a go-to restaurant in Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, with affordable lunch specials and cheap eel for evening gatherings and get-togethers, plus dessert options, this was a place that would satisfy anyone, any age! It's not far from Songjeong Station either, so it's easy to reach on a drive out — a good spot for tasty, budget-friendly eel.