After-work Chinese dinner in Jongno: shrimp dumplings, Cheonghwa

With the weather turning and life feeling like a blur lately, I've been craving something with a rich, hot broth that warms you up from the inside, haha. So on my way home from work I decided to just go for it and check out Cheonghwa Uyuk Dosakmyeon (청화 우육도삭면), a place near Jongno that's been getting a lot of buzz!

Location, hours, and parking at Cheonghwa Uyuk Dosakmyeon

Cheonghwa Uyuk Dosakmyeon is at 19 Jongno, Jongno-gu, Seoul, open 10:30–22:00, with 2 free hours of parking. It's really close to Gwanghwamun Station and just around the corner from Insa-dong, so it fits perfectly into a day out.

I think it would be a fantastic lunch or dinner spot for anyone who works nearby, haha.

• Address: 19 Jongno, Unit 118-1, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Hours: 10:30–22:00
• Parking: free for 2 hours

As I approached the entrance, the exterior had that slightly local, authentic feel while still looking clean and put together. Once inside, it was clear this was a place where a Chinese chef makes everything true to the original recipes — even the aroma of the food was different from what I'm used to!

Watching the hand-cut dosakmyeon noodles made in the kitchen

At Cheonghwa Uyuk Dosakmyeon you can watch the noodles being made right in the kitchen. Watching quietly, I could see the chef slicing the dough with a knife in swift, rhythmic strokes, making the noodles by hand. Seeing the traditional dosakmyeon (knife-cut noodles) being made in real time really built up my anticipation before the food even arrived, haha.

The menu and what we ordered

Sitting down and slowly looking through the menu, it was full of dishes that work great both as drinking snacks and as a full meal! From delicious dim sum to kkwabaegi-style sweet and sour pork, lazi chicken, and boiled pork slices, there were so many authentic Chinese dishes that I had a hard time deciding what to order, haha.

After some thought, I settled on uyuk dosakmyeon since I was curious about the deep broth, sujeongdal mandu for its charming translucent skin, and since I love eggplant dishes, yuxiang eggplant rice bowl rounded out a solid order!

The side dishes that came with the meal ❤️

Uyuk dosakmyeon: how were the broth and noodles?

The first thing to arrive was the signature dish, uyuk dosakmyeon,

and since the broth is deeply simmered from bones, it was clean yet rich, with this addictive pull I couldn't resist, ㅠㅠ

The noodles are hand-cut from dough that's rested for a day, and they were so chewy with a really satisfying bite!!

There was also a distinctive Sichuan-style tingly, spicy kick, added just enough to leave you feeling refreshed to the core.

And the beef on top was so tender it practically melted in my mouth, haha.

Sujeongdal mandu with whole shrimp and chives

Next up, the sujeongdal mandu (crystal-skin dumplings) were gorgeous just to look at! These are dim sum filled with whole shrimp and chives, and the wrapper was so translucent yet so chewy that I couldn't help but be impressed!

Picking one up with my chopsticks and taking a bite, the filling was so generous and hearty that every bite was fun to chew, haha.

The dim sum was so good that after one bite I wanted to try all the other varieties too, like xiaolongbao, ㅠㅠ

Yuxiang eggplant rice bowl and the egg soup that came with it

The last dish, yuxiang eggplant rice bowl, was a textbook example of crispy-outside, tender-inside eggplant fried in fresh oil!

Crispy on the outside, moist on the inside — the eggplant's natural texture really came through.

The sauce had a tangy edge with just the right amount of salt, which made it perfect for mixing into the rice!!

The egg soup that came with the eggplant rice bowl was also so tasty 😁👍 The garlic scapes in it worked so well that I kept going back for more spoonfuls, haha.

Solo dining or a night out with drinks — which is it better for?

Cheonghwa Uyuk Dosakmyeon felt totally comfortable for eating alone, but it would also be great to visit with friends or coworkers. Having eaten there myself, I completely understand why it's such a popular lunch and dinner spot for office workers around Gwanghwamun and Jonggak Station!

The deep, rich broth, the chewy dosakmyeon noodles, and the juicy, flavorful dim sum — nothing was lacking, haha. Next time I'd love to come back for a round of drinks with some of the other dishes on the menu. Thanks to that hot, filling bowl, I left feeling properly recharged!