Andong Jjimdak is one of my favourite Korean dishes of all time. Unfortunately, it is not commonly offered in Korean restaurants overseas. Hence, I always make it a point to have this amazing dish when I’m in Korea.

Andong jjimdak is a braised chicken dish mixed with vegetables, marinated in a soy sauce-based sauce. It originated from Andong City, hence the name.

Many restaurants offer Andong jjimdak, but the most famous one is none other than the chain restaurant aptly named after the dish itself.

There is more than one Andong Jjimdak store in Myeongdong, although the first one I went to was actually in Ewha. In Myeongdong, I usually go to the flagship store which is 3 stories high, and ALWAYS crowded during meal time.

I’ve actually tried a few different variations of the dish from this chain restaurant, so here’s my review & take on the Andong Jjimdak offerings!

Very Spicy Boneless Jjimdak

I struggle with spicy food, so as you can tell this was entirely a mistake. When I was ordering, I forgot to mention that I wanted it only a little spicy.

The staff assumed we wanted it EXTRA SPICY, and generously gave us lots of hot chili peppers.

If you compare the colour of this sauce to the rest of the dishes below, you’d also see that this colour is much darker because of the chili spice…

I could not finish this and ended up having a bad stomachache afterwards. The eating experience was so painful that I barely registered what I was even eating here lol.

10/10 do not recommend – unless you have a strong tolerance & preference for spicy food.

Non-Spicy Boneless Jjimdak

I learned my lesson the hard way. Hence, the next time I went to eat Andong Jjimdak, I made sure to specify that I wanted it NON-SPICY.

The kitchen got the idea and delivered with this non-spicy jjimdak.

This is a portion for 3-4 people and I loved how generous they were with the ingredients. There was so much chicken that we (again) couldn’t finish, but in a good way!

This Andong Jjimdak also served a good portion of onions, sweet potato glass noodles, and potatoes – all marinated in a delicious sauce.

I really enjoyed eating this Andong Jjimdak without the spice that ruins my experience. It was flavourful without being too salty, and would pair extremely well with a bowl of rice. The taste is so addictive that you can’t help but keep eating even if you’re full.

However, my travel companions remarked that they would much prefer having the spice to well, spice up the dish. But I strongly beg to differ.

Cheese Boneless Jjimdak

I actually ate this in Ewha in 2019! I couldn’t find the branch anymore when I went back after the pandemic. Not sure if they have closed entirely or moved elsewhere.

I also couldn’t find this in the Myeongdong flagship store so I’m not sure if it’s available. But you can certainly try asking!

The main difference is really the THICK layer of cheese melted on top of the jjimdak:

After we had swiped out all the chicken, there was still a lot of marinate left. Hence, we ordered a bowl of kimchi fried rice, mixed it in the sauce, and continued eating our second dish!

I can’t possibly finish something like this now given my slowing metabolism (lol), but it was certainly very satisfying!

I don’t think I’ve tried Andong jjimdak from other restaurants in Korea because this one really ticks my boxes. However, I have tried it in overseas restaurants and did not enjoy them as much. This is the only restaurant (so far) that I really enjoy getting my fill of jjimdak from!

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DIRECTIONS

Address: 3 Myeongnyun 10-gil, Jung District, Seoul, South Korea

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