Hapjeong shabu-shabu restaurant with spicy solo pots: Nahonsha

Solo-pot shabu-shabu with different broths in Hapjeong

I visited a solo-pot shabu-shabu restaurant in Hapjeong with a friend, where we could each choose the broth that suited our tastes.

Nahonsha exterior and menu

Nahonsha (나혼샤) is a place where each person gets their own pot for shabu-shabu, so it is great not only for solo dining but also for friends or couples who want to choose their own broths.

The restaurant was on the first floor of a brick building, with plenty of trees and plants around the entrance, giving it the feel of a little garden in the city. There is also a lunch special of spicy mushroom, minari, and potato sujebi (hand-torn dough soup), so keep that in mind. Happiness for ₩11,000.

From a neat clear broth to spicy soup, mala soup, tomato soup, and miso broth, there were plenty of choices to suit different tastes.

The restaurant also had a reward event where you could collect a stamp with every meal. Since there are benefits based on how often you return, it looked useful for people who often eat alone nearby~!

A comfortable interior with personal pots and tablet ordering

As soon as I entered, the large floor-to-ceiling windows and green view outside caught my eye. The window seats were arranged side by side, so they did not feel awkward for dining alone, and they were comfortable with a friend too.

The wood-toned tables and greenery came together for an overall calm atmosphere, haha.

I liked that every seat had its own induction burner and pot, so you could eat comfortably without worrying about someone else's pace or preferences.

Normally, several people share one shabu-shabu pot, but at Nahonsha, everyone can choose and fully enjoy the menu they want.

Each table was neatly set with a personal pot, ladle, chopsticks, and small plate. Chili, peanut, and soy sauces were provided.

There was also a tablet at every seat, so we could check the menu and extra add-ons and order easily without calling a staff member.

I set up the sauces before my friend arrived, and the barley tea was so good too, haha.

Once you order, they set out the sauces first. This is my friend's mala soup.

Trying spicy soup and mala soup shabu-shabu side by side

I ordered the spicy soup shabu-shabu, while my friend chose mala soup shabu-shabu. Being able to have different broths at the same table felt like the biggest advantage of solo-pot shabu-shabu ^_^

Since we both love spicy food, both the spicy soup and mala soup caught our attention. This was my spicy shabu-shabu broth.

The initial portion was already generous, but you can add meat, noodles, sujebi, and more according to your taste for an even heartier meal. We were full, so we did not add anything!

The spicy soup had such a deep red color that it looked savory and spicy at a glance.

You could adjust the induction heat yourself, so it was easy to bring it to a boil quickly or lower the temperature while eating.

Each shabu-shabu set came with broth, meat, an assorted vegetable platter, fresh noodles, and several sauces. The vegetable platter included napa cabbage, bok choy, kabocha squash, carrots, mushrooms, tofu, fried tofu, dumplings, and more.

There was plenty of meat, along with vegetables, mushrooms, and noodles, so it was filling without extra orders. The thinly sliced meat was especially generous.

The broth bubbling away.

With such a variety of ingredients, it was fun picking things out one by one, and as it boiled, the vegetables' sweetness seeped into the broth and made it even richer.

Once the broth was boiling, I added ingredients that take longer to cook first, such as kabocha squash and napa cabbage. Then I added mushrooms, bok choy, fried tofu, and more in turn, and the pot quickly became full.

After adding the vegetables and mushrooms, their savory flavor deepened the broth. I cooked the thin slices of meat briefly in the broth, one at a time.

The spicy broth soaked into the meat, so it was delicious even without sauce, while dipping it in sauce gave it another flavor to enjoy.

The meat was tender and good with the vegetables, and there was enough that I never felt short of food during the meal. The fish cake was yum yum, so delicious too.

There were several kinds of sauces, so alternating them with the same meat kept it from getting boring. The mushrooms were delicious with ponzu sauce too.

Finishing with fresh noodles in the remaining broth

After eating most of the meat and vegetables, I added the fresh noodles to the remaining broth. The broth had already absorbed plenty of flavor from the meat and vegetables, so it was rich even before the noodles went in.

The noodles cooked quickly, so I gently loosened them as they boiled.

With the noodles added, it became as filling as a noodle soup, and I kept reaching for more even after the meat and vegetables. The spicy soup I had was savory and spicy, which was delicious, but it tasted a little salty, so I kept adding broth. Once I adjusted the concentration with broth, it was easy to enjoy, and I was satisfied overall with the tender meat, varied vegetables, and fresh noodles at the end.

The portion was generous enough for a full meal, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a place to eat alone in Hapjeong or a good shabu-shabu spot where everyone can eat according to their own taste :)