Daejeon Chinese bar for rosé mala xiang guo sets: Yongju

Now that the weather is getting cooler, it’s the kind of weekend that makes you crave a seriously tasty snack with an ice-cold beer, right? So I know everyone is wondering where to go—I visited this Chinese food bar in Galma-dong, Daejeon, where the atmosphere and food were completely my taste! 🤤 I’d read reviews saying it was already a hot spot with crazy waits, so I went in a little nervous, but luckily I got moving early and walked right in without waiting, haha. Let me share my real review of this even more enjoyable, no-wait visit!

A unique atmosphere that feels like a trip to China 🏮

It has such an exotic vibe that I was like, “There was a place like this in Daejeon?”!! When you step inside, a huge dragon sculpture hangs from the ceiling—I honestly felt like I’d walked onto a movie set.

I heard that waiting is practically a given on weekend evenings and at peak times. There aren’t a huge number of seats, so if you’re planning to visit, I absolutely recommend making a Naver reservation in advance!

Even if there is a wait, you can leave your number at the front and look around nearby—the time will pass quickly, so you won’t be bored before heading in~

Yongju at a glance

• Location: 1F, Unit 101, 31 Daedeok-daero 161beon-gil, Seo-gu, Daejeon (Galma-dong; in the alley across from Haedeun Mart)
• Hours: Friday–Tuesday, 17:00–02:00 the following day; last order 01:10
• Regular closing days: Every Wednesday and Thursday
• Parking: No dedicated parking. The nearby Galma 2-dong Public Parking Lot is about a 3-minute walk away.
• Naver reservations available; receive an event coupon when you agree to Naver notifications; alcohol corkage available

What comes with the rosé mala xiang guo set?

The menu I ordered that day was the rosé mala xiang guo set! It costs ₩42,000, and the selection is seriously insane. Of course, I also ordered Tsingtao draft beer (₩6,000), which is an absolute must 🍻

First of all, doesn’t the rosé mala xiang guo look unbelievably mouthwatering? ㅠㅠ I love mala xiang guo (dry pot with numbing mala spices) and eat it often, but the rosé sauce gently wrapped up mala’s signature tongue-tingling, fragrant heat.

It wasn’t overly intense, yet the thick sauce coated every single ingredient so well that I almost scooped up and ate the sauce itself ㅠㅠ Beef brisket, all kinds of vegetables, bunmoja chewy starch noodles, glass noodles—no matter how much I picked out, more just kept appearing. Magic...

For the half-and-half option that came with the set, I chose nuroongji guobaorou and garlic cream shrimp, and it was seriously amaaaazing! 🥹 The guobaorou, sweet-and-sour fried pork, was topped with crispy nuroongji scorched rice, so every bite had the most artistic crispy-chewy texture...

Have one bite of spicy rosé mala xiang guo, then one bite of sweet, crispy guobaorou, and you can honestly keep eating forever, hehe.

And the foam on the Tsingtao draft beer served in a chilled glass was absolutely next level too!! It went down so cleanly that pairing it with Chinese bar food felt almost unfair 😭

How was it for a date or group dinner?

Every dish felt carefully made rather than thrown together, and the chef’s cooking skills are seriously no joke.

It’s great for a date, and it’s also just perfect for a friends’ get-together or a casual dinner-and-drinks stop in Galma-dong 👍 I also saw they have a Naver review roulette event!! If you win, that’s such a score.

If you want to enjoy inventive Chinese food with an ice-cold beer, definitely stop by Yongju, a great Galma-dong spot.