Wang Gopchang, Nakseongdae: The ₩13,000 Offal Soup That Keeps Giving
Two minutes from Nakseongdae Station, a gopchang house makes a beef offal soup where every spoonful comes up loaded. Add a spoon of perilla powder and it gets even better.
10:20 p.m. on a Thursday in Seoul. I'm hungry, tomorrow is Friday, and I need soup.
Two minutes from Exit 4 of Nakseongdae Station, I walk into a place called Wang Gopchang. Wang means king. Naming your restaurant "King of Gopchang" is either confidence or a bluff.
Spoiler: it's confidence.
A 30-second glossary
- Gopchang — beef small intestine. The prize is the gop: the rich, milky fat inside. More gop means better gopchang.
- Naejangtang — a spicy soup of beef offal (intestines, tripe and more) with greens and glass noodles. Korea's late-night comfort food.
- Deulkkae-garu — ground perilla seeds. Nutty, earthy, and the secret weapon sitting on every table here.
Why a gopchang house makes the better offal soup
A gukbap (soup-and-rice) shop and a gopchang house start from different places. A gopchang house cleans and prepares intestines every single day, so a soup made in that kitchen is never going to be stingy with the good stuff. Even Naver's one-line summary for this place reads, roughly, "fresh gopchang with zero gamey smell."
The menu doesn't hide what this place really is, either.
| Menu | Price |
|---|---|
| Someori gukbap — beef head soup (takeout OK) | ₩12,000 |
| Naejangtang — beef offal soup (takeout OK) | ₩13,000 |
| Yang muchim — seasoned tripe | ₩20,000 |
| Mixed gopchang (small & large intestine, abomasum; 2 servings min.) | ₩22,000 |
| Gopchang | ₩23,000 |
| Gopchang jeongol — hot pot (medium / large) | ₩40,000 / ₩50,000 |
The main event: ₩13,000 naejangtang
The pot arrives still bubbling: red chili oil on top, green onions, soft greens and glass noodles tangled underneath. So far, the naejangtang you'd expect.
Then the spoon goes in.
One spoonful, and up comes intestine packed with gop, plus tripe for good measure. Second spoonful, same. Third, same. With most offal soups you go digging for the good bits. Here, getting a spoonful of just broth is the hard part.
The gop is the real deal: rich and savory, melting into the broth, while the greens and noodles soak all of it up. Your bowl of rice disappears fast.
The upgrade: one spoon of perilla
Every table has a lidded jar of perilla powder. Halfway through, add a heaped spoonful and a few cracks of black pepper. The broth turns thicker and nuttier. Two soups for the price of one.
Banchan that pull their weight
Cubed radish kimchi (kkakdugi), cabbage kimchi, soy-pickled radish, onion and chili, and a soy sauce for dipping. A bite of the tangy pickles between spoonfuls resets your palate. Try dipping a piece of gopchang in the soy sauce, too.
A restaurant whose walls are the reviews
The walls of the back room are covered in customer graffiti. Under the gopchang poster, someone turned the restaurant's name into a rhyme: "왕 먹으니까! 왕 마싯따!" — roughly, "Eat like a king! Tastes like a king!" Next to it, a confession: "Two of us, five servings, gone in seconds." At this point it's not decor, it's a review archive.
The main hall is classic gopchang-house style: round steel tables and drum-shaped stools. And the service was great. It was past 10 p.m., and the staff were still warm and easygoing, so I could take my time down to the last spoonful.
How to order (even with zero Korean)
- Point at 내장탕 on the menu, or say "Naejangtang hana juseyo" — one naejangtang, please.
- It comes with rice and a set of banchan, as in the photos above.
- Want it to go? Naejangtang and someori gukbap are both available for takeout.
Visit info
📍 Wang Gopchang (왕곱창) · 20 Nakseongdae-yeok-gil, Gwanak-gu, Seoul
- 🚇 Getting there: Nakseongdae Station (Line 2), Exit 4, about a 2-minute walk
- 🕐 Hours: Mon–Fri 11:00–01:00 (last order at midnight), Sat 11:00–22:00, closed Sundays
- 💰 Price: naejangtang ₩13,000, someori gukbap ₩12,000
- ✅ Good to know: takeout, reservations, group seating, Wi-Fi
- 🗺️ Maps: Google Maps · Naver Map — Google Maps finds the spot and handles subway routes in Korea, but for walking directions Naver Map is more reliable.
Jayden's verdict
I came looking for gop. I left buried in it.
- Gop density: ★★★★★
- Service: ★★★★★
- Coming back? Yes. Next time I'm trying the mixed gopchang the poster keeps bragging about.
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