Yongin Korean restaurant with crispy seafood pancake: Yun Ujae

It was one of those summer days when it just kept raining... After having lots of fun the day before, I was craving something brothy the next day, so I went to Yun Ujae Shabu Kalguksu Gogidong Branch in Gogiri, Dongcheon-dong. Since I love noodles, shabu-kalguksu (hot pot with knife-cut noodles) is the best whenever I’m craving broth!! It’s already well known, but I’m leaving my own post too!

Yun Ujae Shabu Kalguksu in Dongcheon-dong, Yongin

Parking and restaurant information

The restaurant is just a little farther in from Dongcheon Xi Apartments. There are quite a few restaurants around here, so lots of people come for family meals! It’s definitely easier to get here by car, and you can park right in front of the restaurant. If those spaces are full, you can park at Puruni Daycare on weekends and public holidays! But only when there isn’t an event, haha.

When I arrived, the sign had “Yun Ujae Shabu Kalguksu” written on it in huge letters. The restaurant is open from 11:00 a.m. to 8:50 p.m. There’s a break time from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. If there’s a wait, register through Catchtable, fill out the order form, and hand it to the counter!

Whoa ㅇ0ㅇ I visited a little outside mealtime, but I was still surprised by how many customers were there! Once inside, it was much bigger than it looked from outside. There are lots of tables, so it can accommodate a large group. There were also children’s chairs on one side, so it looked great for visiting with family. It was hot that day, but the interior was nice and cool—so good, haha. There was a noodle-making room near the entrance, visible through the glass! The restroom is inside too.

Shabu-kalguksu prices and what’s included

Here’s the menu and pricing. This place is reaaally good value: shabu-kalguksu is ₩11,500 per person whether it’s lunch or dinner! And what does that include? You get 70g of sirloin, vegetables and mushrooms, flat kalguksu, regular kalguksu, and fried rice—all included!

You can choose regular or spicy broth. Of course, if you want more of anything, you can add it for an extra charge! There’s also a crispy seafood pancake that’s delicious alongside the shabu-kalguksu. Oh, it really is crispy in every sense of the word—so good! Everyone except preschool children needs to order one item each. You can easily order from the tablet at your table—go go!

Eating spicy shabu-kalguksu

Ta-da!! Our food came out! Naturally, I ordered shabu-kalguksu at Yun Ujae Shabu Kalguksu. What’s great here is that the food comes out quickly, haha. They bring everything from the meat to the fried rice at once, so I could enjoy it at my own pace!! Kimchi, seokbakji (chunky radish kimchi), and broth are at the self-service bar.

You can get just regular noodles, but I chose half flat kalguksu and half regular kalguksu. First, add the vegetables and let it boil away!! There’s an induction burner built into the table, so you can adjust it yourself as you eat!

I was sooo hungry that day and wanted to eat quickly, and shabu-shabu is great because it cooks so fast, haha. Put the meat into the bubbling broth and eat it as soon as it’s cooked! The broth was spicy and warming too. And the minari (Korean water celery) smelled so good—it went perfectly with the meat!! I ended up ordering extra minari while eating, haha. Vegetables don’t make you gain weight, so you can eat lots of them!! There were mushrooms and potatoes in it too. I already love food that cooks while you eat it, so shabu-shabu is absolutely perfect for me. Yun Ujae Shabu Kalguksu’s kimchi is delicious too!

A crispy seafood pancake worth the 15-minute wait

This is Yun Ujae Shabu Kalguksu’s crispy seafood pancake. It costs ₩16,000! I think they named it so well, haha. Beyond just “crispy,” it really is the definition of super-crispy seafood pancake. They say it is pan-fried twice at a low temperature to minimize the oil! That’s why it takes about 15 minutes to arrive after ordering. Order it ahead of time!

It’s packed with king prawns and squid, so every bite comes with a bit of prawn or squid—delicious. If you have leftovers, you can pack them up yourself. But I ate it all here, hahaha. The outside is seriously crisp while the inside is moist, so I just kept eating. If it starts to feel a little rich, have some shabu-kalguksu and then go back for more!!

From flat kalguksu to fried rice

Next, I added the flat kalguksu! Then the regular kalguksu too. The flat kalguksu was like thin sujebi (hand-torn dough soup), and it was tasty, haha. I wrapped it up with vegetables and meat. Regular kalguksu is best with kimchi!! And finally, I made fried rice. I like turning the end of shabu-kalguksu into juk (rice porridge), so I made mine porridge-like. Ahh... all of this is included in the per-person price..! Isn’t that incredible value?!! I should rally the whole family for another meal out here soon, haha.