Sundaeguk restaurant in Namdong, Incheon for solo hot pot: Gukdam

Gukdam Sundaeguk Main Branch (국담순대국 본점) is near Sangincheon Elementary School in Ganseok-dong, Incheon. Hours are 10:00–22:00, and it is regularly closed every Sunday.

There is no dedicated parking lot, but you can park on a nearby side street or in a paid lot nearby before visiting!

Inside Gukdam Sundaeguk Main Branch and the menu

The interior is clean and nicely kept!! It has an easygoing atmosphere that is great for a comfortable meal, haha. It is a nice place to stop by alone for a simple bowl of gukbap (rice soup), or when you are craving a filling meal, haha.

There is sundae-guk (Korean sausage soup), sundae, suyuk (boiled pork), Korean beef gopchang hot pot, grilled Korean beef gopchang, and extra menu items, haha. I ordered the ₩10,000 sundae-guk, ₩15,000 one-person Korean beef gopchang hot pot, plus ₩1,000 ramen noodles!!

Gukdam Sundaeguk says its dishes put genuine care into every bowl: broth simmered carefully from dawn each day, boiled meat, house-made kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi), barley ssamjang, and dadegi (spicy seasoning paste), all with a clean yet deeply mild flavor. I was already sooo excited for the sundae-guk!! 💗

Getting ready to eat with the self-service bar and sungnyung

These are the basic side dishes that were prepared right after I ordered, haha.

This is the self-service area at the back of the restaurant. You can bring back any extra side dishes you need, including seasoned chives, dried shredded radish, dadegi, and garlic! There are also children’s utensils for visitors dining with kids, haha.

They also have sungnyung (scorched-rice tea) ready for a satisfying finish after the meal!! I will wrap things up with a warm, nutty bowl of sungnyung, haha.

I brought over chives, dried shredded radish, and dadegi, then got all the plentiful side dishes ready!! A chili pepper dipped right into barley ssamjang—yum, haha.

My second little son said he wanted sungnyung first... hehe. He said it was so tasty and ate it with a thumbs-up, haha. The owner also gave him a drink!! Thank you 💕

Meat-filled sundae-guk and the dadegi transformation

A little later, the sundae-guk arrived!!!!

It came out bubbling away in a hot ttukbaegi (earthenware pot), haha. There was loads and loads of meat in the sundae-guk, so the portion was generous too, haha.

Not only sundae, but also plenty of head meat and other cuts went into it, so just one bowl of gukbap felt seriously filling!!! Best of all, I could not detect any of that characteristic pork smell or off odor while eating it!! Hehe. The sundae was soft and generously filled, while the head meat was chewy and savory, haha. Sundae and meat with the broth—just perfect for a hearty meal!!!

The broth was not murky; it tasted clean and clear, so it was easy to enjoy from the very first spoonful, haha. It was gently seasoned, so I found it delicious without adding any salted shrimp. Rather than aggressively salty, it was clean and mild—the kind of broth that keeps you scooping up more and more!!!

At first I enjoyed the broth as it was, then added dadegi halfway through, haha.

Once the dadegi went in, even the color of the broth changed, adding a spicy, peppery kick and transforming it into a completely different sundae-guk! It was sooo good that I absolutely devoured it, haha.

One-person Korean beef gopchang hot pot, even when dining alone

At many places, gopchang hot pot must be ordered for at least two people, but at Gukdam Sundaeguk you can order one serving, so you can eat gopchang hot pot even by yourself! That is such welcome news for anyone who loves it but has found it hard to order when visiting alone, haha. They also provide an individual burner so that even a one-person portion stays warm until the very end!

The gopchang hot pot was filled with vegetables and gopchang (beef small intestines)!! As it bubbled away, the flavors of the vegetables and gopchang blended into the broth, bringing out an increasingly deep, rich flavor, haha.

The gopchang had a properly chewy texture, and the more I chewed, the more savory it became, haha. There was especially quite a lot of gop inside, so every bite had such a rich, deep flavor—so good!!

Hot pot with ramen noodles added

I added ramen noodles while eating the gopchang hot pot, and this combination was absolutely amazing, haha.

The spicy, rich hot-pot broth soaked into the ramen, making the noodles delicious too, haha. If adding noodles leaves you feeling like the broth is running low, just let a staff member know and they will add more, so you can keep it bubbling with plenty of broth until the end, haha. So tasty, so tasty—hehe.

A hearty meal in Ganseok-dong

I cleaned my bowls out so deliciously—yaaay! Gukdam Sundaeguk left an impression with its sundae-guk packed with sundae, head meat, and other meat, plus its clean broth with no off odor, haha. Add dadegi and you can enjoy a spicy, peppery version too—so delicious!! Above all, you can order the gopchang hot pot as one serving!! You can enjoy your favorite gopchang hot pot without pressure even when visiting alone, and add noodles for a meal that is just right, haha.

If you are looking for great sundae-guk or gopchang hot pot in Ganseok-dong, Gukdam Sundaeguk is a lovely place to enjoy everything from a solo meal to a hearty feast, haha.