Yeouido tteokbokki restaurant: how spicy is medium? Hyeonseonine

Hyeonseonine Premium on basement level 2 of IFC Mall, Yeouido: what it is

Today I want to introduce a tteokbokki (spicy rice cake) spot in Yeouido IFC. It's Hyeonseonine Tteokbokki, already famous in Yongsan. I'd passed by it a few times going through the basement of Yeouido IFC Mall, and this time, on my way to get my hair done, I finally got curious enough to stop in.

Hours are 11:00 (12:00 on weekends) to 21:00, last order at 20:40. Parking is available through the IFC Mall parking lot.

The inside of the restaurant is on the small side, but there are tables next door too, so seating didn't feel short.

The story of Hyeonseonine started in Yongsan — from a street cart in 2004, it built a success story on spicy tteokbokki alone and grew into a chain. Sticking to the philosophy of making it "delicious, friendly, and clean" for 20 years straight seems to be why it worked out so well!

Menu board and self-serve corner at Hyeonseonine Premium

The menu board at Hyeonseonine Premium IFC Mall Branch separates regular tteokbokki from instant tteokbokki (jeukbokki, cooked at the table). We were craving jeukbokki for the first time in a while, so that's what we ordered.

At the self-serve corner you can grab pickled radish, seasoned salt, and tableware. Aprons are also provided.

How spicy is the medium instant tteokbokki?

Our instant tteokbokki, sundae (blood sausage), and eomuk (fish cake) arrived. The tteokbokki came loaded with fried dumplings, plenty of vegetables, and jjolmyeon noodles too. We ordered medium spice, and it turned out medium was pretty spicy?! I didn't realize going in that this was a spicy tteokbokki place, and the medium spice ended up being a bit spicier than Shin Ramyun. Still, even as someone who can't really handle spice, it wasn't unbearable, haha.

We gently stirred the jjolmyeon and rice cakes so they wouldn't stick to the pot while cooking. With all those vegetables in there, the broth seemed like it would be nice and refreshing. Already looking forward to it.

Hyeonseonine's tteokbokki is all about that spicy kick, so having eomuk alongside to soothe the tongue makes it even better to enjoy, right?

Sundae with glass noodles, liver and lung

The sundae came with glass-noodle sundae along with liver and lungs. The liver had just the right texture, not overly dry, and had a nutty, good taste. The glass-noodle sundae was packed full inside too, a real bargain. Overall the sundae had a clean taste with no fishy flavor at all, so I enjoyed it a lot!

The lungs were soft and chewy with no gamey taste, and they were delicious too.

Fried dumplings, eggs and a clear, tangy broth

This is the fried dumpling (yakimandu) that I especially love in jeukbokki. Before it gets too soft, I fish it out first for a bite! It's packed full of glass noodles inside, making it wonderfully tender.

They also added one egg per person, which was genuinely such a bargain, haha. This was a Hyeonseonine tteokbokki with a broth that was cool and tangy thanks to all the vegetables — loved it. Tasting that broth, I thought it would also make a great drinking snack or hangover cure, and sure enough, there were customers at the restaurant enjoying it with draft beer.

Solo meals and draft beer after work

Coming here for a draft beer with jeukbokki after work would be really nice! If you're looking for a good tteokbokki spot at Yeouido IFC Mall, I recommend "Hyeonseonine"! There were plenty of people eating alone too, so it seems like a good spot for solo dining. Thanks for the meal — I'll come back again next time I'm craving tteokbokki~! Haha.

That was my honest review of "Hyeonseonine IFC Mall Branch," a Yeouido tteokbokki spot.