[Seoul - Hongdae] Ongdalsem - Homestyle Korean Food, Generous Portions

We stumbled upon Ongdalsem one night and were so happy we did.



The restaurant is pretty small and since it's located right by exit 5 of Hapjeong station, it's always crowded.

The menu is quite small, which is pretty typical for a Korean restaurant (menu translations below, so scroll down).

We ended up going for the B Course menu. This came with kimchi jjim, gondeule namoolbap (seasoned root rice - specialty of this restaurant), and doenjangjjigae (soybean paste stew - think miso soup with some pumpkin in it).

This is the kimchi jjim. It's stewed kimchi with pork. This is typically not my go-to anything since I don't usually eat kimchi because I really don't like pickles and because it's so salty and because I can't really eat pork well, but everyone else in my group wanted it, so we all decided to share it. I'm happy we did. The portions were pretty generous, but the meat to kimchi ratio left a little to be desired. I stuck to the tofu and the sauce for my meal.
 

Here's another couple of food photos, so you can see more angles.

The pork was very tender. It wasn't tough at all. There was also a TON of kimchi. It was basically an entire head of cabbage. Since I'm a grandma, I really love gondeule bap. The flavor is pretty mild because the greens aren't very flavorful in and of themselves. Think of them as more of a spinach than a kale, if that makes sense to you.

The doenjang jjigae was pretty good and I was thankful for it since I couldn't really eat the pork.

The banchan includes kimchijeon (kimchi pancakes), kkaenip muchim (steamed seasoned perilla/sesame leaves), green onion kimchi, and radish kimchi.

Overall, the prices are reasonable and the portions are very generous. It really is like homestyle food. That being said, I am not entirely sure if I'd go out of my way to eat here again because there are plenty of other homestyle restaurants that fit my personal tastes better.

곤드레 나물밥: gondeule namoolbap - seasoned greens rice (see picture)
오징어볶음: ojingeo bokkeum - stir-fried squid, typically somewhat spicy
제육볶음: jeyuk bokkeum - stir-fried pork, typically somewhat spicy
김치찜: kimchi jjim - stewed kimchi with pork (see picture of what we got)
육개장: yukgaejang - spicy pork soup

닭볶음탕: dakbokkeum tang - spicy braised chicken soup
떡사리: dduk sari - add rice cakes to your spicy braised chicken soup
치즈사리: cheese sari - add cheese to your spicy braised chicken soup

음료수: eumryo soo - soda
소주: soju
맥주: maekju - beer

A코스: choose jeyuk bokkeum/ojingeo bokkeum + gondeule namoolbap (2 servings) - add additional one person serving for 10,000
B코스: kimchi jjim + gondeumle namulbap (2 servings) - add additional one person serving for 12,000

Follow me! Instagram | Facebook |
Affiliates: Trazy - Korean Travel Deals | Amazon | YesStyle - Asian Fashion and Beauty

*FTC Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links which means, at no additional cost to you, I may earn a commission if you click through the links provided and make a purchase.*