Sikjang-dong dinner in Goyang: pork and mackerel hot pot rice sets

After-work Korean food in Sikjang-dong, Goyang

When a friend said she wanted Korean food, I took her to Hwadegeuro Gan Godeungeo, a great-value Sikjang-dong restaurant in Goyang with a self-bar you can use freely. We met up after work in the evening, and I had the wood-fired pork sotbap (hot pot rice) set while my friend had the mackerel sotbap set.

One of the biggest perks of this Sikjang-dong spot is the free self-bar — you can casually grab more rice, japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), and other dishes so you never leave hungry. I'd eaten a skimpy lunch that day and was starving by dinner, but I managed to eat my fill without paying a single extra won.

If you're looking for a good restaurant in Sikjang-dong, Goyang, or a grilled fish spot in Ilsan, I'd really recommend giving Hwadegeuro Gan Godeungeo a try — clean, generous portions, and easy on the wallet.

Choosing our menu

It was great to see my friend after a while, but honestly I was so hungry all I could think about was eating fast haha. We caught up on our lives at lightning speed and got our order in quickly. Check the menu below.

At Hwadegeuro Gan Godeungeo, a grilled fish spot in Sikjang-dong, Goyang, my friend picked the mackerel sotbap set and I picked the wood-fired pork sotbap set.

What's on the free self-bar

After ordering, I brought over some starters from the self-bar. Savory doenjang soup, jeon (savory pancakes), tteokbokki, japchae — quite a few tasty options. I was so hungry before the main dishes even arrived that I ate a ton of japchae and jeon, almost filling up on those alone lol.

Alright! Now that my hunger was somewhat tamed, let's get on to eating the actual main dishes.

Wood-fired pork sotbap set and mackerel sotbap set

Our order arrived! The rice came in a hot pot (sotbap), so we scooped it into our bowls, and once the pot was empty we poured in hot water to make nurungji (scorched rice tea). The rice was so good the whole meal just tasted amazing. Especially a spoonful of rice with my favorite spicy stir-fried pork — thinking back on it now, it was so delicious haha.

True to being a grilled-fish fanatic, my friend used her chopsticks to strip the mackerel flesh clean in no time. She said it was mild with no fishy smell and ate it happily with wasabi lol. She also went back to the self-bar for extra rice since her sotbap portion wasn't enough. Honestly, I don't think you can stop at just one bowl of rice at this Sikjang-dong grilled fish spot — it's just too good haha.

I also ran short on rice, so I grabbed more from the self-bar along with side dishes and ate until I was about to burst. Korean food really is filling, and I guess for Koreans, nothing beats Korean food after all. It was also my turn to treat my friend, who I hadn't seen in a while, and it felt good to be able to host her without worrying about the bill.

Under ₩40,000 for two, finished off with nurungji and plum tea

We wrapped up the meal with a palate-cleansing nurungji and a cup of plum tea. Being able to eat this lavishly for under ₩40,000 makes me think this will become a place I visit often haha. Since it's a chain, you can find it in other areas besides Ilsan too, so if you're curious or haven't been yet, I really hope you'll go give it a try. Thanks for the meal!

Store info

• Name: Hwadegeuro Gan Godeungeo Siksa Branch
• Address: 6-70 Wisiti1-ro, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, Units 201–204
• Hours: 11:00–21:00