Gijang Osiria restaurant with self-bar fried rice: Dongam Tteokgalbi

A while back, a friend recommended a Gijang Osiria restaurant to me — a place where you can enjoy tteokgalbi, hotpot rice, and a huge variety of side dishes: Dongam Tteokgalbi. I had some free time, so I headed straight there after work. Here's my honest review!

How to find Dongam Tteokgalbi and where to park in Osiria

Dongam Tteokgalbi is on the 3rd floor at 160 Gijanghaean-ro, Gijang-eup, Gijang-gun, Busan, right across from Lotte Outlet East Busan. You can use the dedicated parking lot on the 1st floor. It's open daily 11:00–21:00, with a weekday break time from 15:00–16:30.

Dongam Tteokgalbi is a Gijang restaurant where you can enjoy a premium tteokgalbi set meal, and being across from Lotte Outlet East Busan, it's close to Osiria tourist attractions like Haedong Yonggungsa, IKEA, and Lotte World Busan — great to pair with a visit there.

Parking was easy thanks to the dedicated lot on the 1st floor.

Inside Dongam Tteokgalbi: seating and layout

The inside of Dongam Tteokgalbi is mostly sofa seating with spacious tables. It's a busy spot on both weekdays and weekends, so there's a large waiting area too — on weekends it fills up fast, haha.

As you can see, the inside is really spacious and clean.

Most of the seats are comfortable sofas with wide tables, making it easy to eat. It's a great spot for gatherings or family meals with a group, haha.

What's in the self-bar? 15 side dishes and soup

When you order tteokgalbi at Dongam Tteokgalbi, you can use the self-bar. It's stocked with 15 side dishes and soup, designed to pair well with the rice and tteokgalbi, and I heard the side dishes change a little each day using fresh ingredients prepped that day.

There was a wide variety of dishes centered on seasonal namul (seasoned vegetables) — baek-kimchi (white kimchi), geotjeori (fresh kimchi), seaweed stem namul, acorn jelly salad, green onion kimchi, bean sprout namul, mung bean sprouts, and more. There were also big bowls up top, great for mixing everything with rice.

Rice, seaweed soup, fried rice

Stir-fried kimchi, tteokbokki, stir-fried sausage — not pictured, but there was also warm tofu in a steamer.

Steamed egg, stir-fried squid, jjajang sauce — all side dishes that go great with tteokgalbi. It wasn't just a large quantity of dishes for show; each one was actually delicious, which was really satisfying.

Dongam Tteokgalbi menu and prices

I heard that every tteokgalbi at Dongam Tteokgalbi uses 100% beef. It's marinated for over a day in a special soy-sauce base, then grilled with care over charcoal, giving it a subtle smoky aroma and deep flavor.

• 1++ Hanwoo Tteokgalbi Set ₩22,000
• Cheese Tteokgalbi Set ₩18,000
• Cream Cheongyang Tteokgalbi Set ₩18,000
• Dongam Tteokgalbi Set ₩15,000
• Kids' Tteokgalbi ₩10,000 (under 10)
• *One menu item per person / all sets require orders for 2 or more (elementary school age and up)

I ordered the 1++ Hanwoo Tteokgalbi Set for ₩22,000 and the Dongam Tteokgalbi Set for ₩15,000.

Hotpot rice and basic banchan served before the mains

The hotpot rice and basic side dishes came out before I'd even finished ordering. Since this place is always busy, it was surprising how quickly the hotpot rice arrived.

Freshly cooked hotpot rice is the best!

Seasoned mushrooms, stir-fried fish cake, seasoned zucchini

Seasoned cucumber, bracken fern namul, macaroni salad

Seaweed stem namul, mu-saengchae (radish salad), tteokgalbi sauce

Doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew)

I'd already checked out the self-bar and assumed the basic side dishes would be the same, but they were totally different, which completely surprised me, haha. It's rare to find a place where you can enjoy such a wide variety of side dishes — a truly precious restaurant!

With the tteokgalbi added, it really became a full, generous spread!

1++ hanwoo vs. Dongam tteokgalbi: how do they taste?

The 1++ Hanwoo Tteokgalbi is a premium tteokgalbi made with 1++ (grade 9) hanwoo, the highest grade of Korean beef, while the Dongam Tteokgalbi is a traditional tteokgalbi with deep flavor from low-temperature aging.

Can you see how juicy it is..! On top of that, the texture was soft and moist, which I loved. Made with top-grade hanwoo, there was no gamey smell at all and it was so delicious. It was great on its own, and it paired well dipped in sauce too.

The Dongam Tteokgalbi — a traditional tteokgalbi where you can taste the deep flavor from low-temperature aging

The Dongam Tteokgalbi was also juicy and free of any gamey smell, delicious with well-balanced seasoning and a satisfying, basic flavor.

Soft in texture, with a savory, clean flavor that came out more the more I chewed it — even better with the freshly cooked rice. It also paired well with the namul and kimchi side dishes.

And the doenjang jjigae here is generously portioned and has a wonderfully savory flavor~

Finishing the meal with self-bar fried rice

After finishing the tteokgalbi, I finished with fried rice from the self-bar — if there's fried rice available, you have to try it! Eating it with the doenjang jjigae is the best! From the tteokgalbi and hotpot rice to the variety of side dishes, soup, and stew, everything was delicious — a properly satisfying meal.

Who will like Dongam Tteokgalbi?

Dongam Tteokgalbi, a Gijang Osiria restaurant in Busan, is a Korean restaurant where you can enjoy premium handmade tteokgalbi, freshly cooked hotpot rice, and 15 side dishes made from fresh, same-day ingredients. The interior is spacious with plenty of tables, so many people use it for family meals and various gatherings. With Osiria tourist attractions like Haedong Yonggungsa, IKEA, Lotte Outlet East Busan, and Lotte World nearby, it's great to pair with a visit there. A great restaurant to take your parents to — recommended!