When I have written about Korea-based restaurants on Masjib Mania, I have tried to avoid writing about other Asian countries’ cuisines. This is not to say that there are not delicious pan-Asian restaurants in Korea–far from it! However, due to the general lack of knowledge toward non-Han Chinese and, to a somewhat lesser degree, non-Honshu Japanese Asian cultures in the West, I wanted to focus on Korea. That being stated, Korean-Chinese food is delicious in its own right, and deserved some attention. On February 25, I went to Sseubu (쓰부) in the Gangseo-gu district (강서구) of Seoul.

Many people in the United States who consider General Tso’s chicken, lo mein, and crab  rangoon to be staples of “Chinese cuisine” might be surprised to learn that people in China rarely eat these items. In fact, fortune cookies were invented in the United States. That doesn’t make the food bad, it just means that it is not native to China.

Sseubu is an inexpensive, sit-down Chinese restaurant. While they seem to cater more to groups of patrons, they had no issue with me dining alone. I decided to order my favorite dish: jjajangmyeon (짜장면), noodles served with a thick, black bean paste. It originates from the Shandong-Chinese dish zhajiangmian.

Korean-Chinese cuisine has three popular dishes: jjajangmyeon, tangsuyuk (탕수욕), and jjamppong (짬뽕). Tangsuyuk is typically fried pork with a sweet sauce, which comes from the Shandong-Chinese dish tángcùròu. Jjamppong is a spicy seafood soup, which was derived from the Shandong-Chinese dish chǎomǎmiàn, which itself came from the Japanese-Chinese Fujian-style mènmiàn.

The jjajangmyeon was served within minutes of me ordering it alongside a complementary cup of tea. It was just as I expected–the noodles were well-cooked and the sauce was thick and satisfying. My only quibble was that they did not drain the water sufficiently after boiling the noodles. This was not a major concern, but it was noticeable enough that it affected my meal.

Sseubu is an inexpensive junggukjjip (중국집) or Korean-Chinese food restaurant. It sits in a convenient location between Magok-dong (마곡동), Deungchon-dong (등촌동), and Gayang-dong (가양동) and is near to Yangcheon Hyanggyo Station (양천향교역). It’s affordable, quick, and tasty. Visit for a satisfying meal.

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Rating: 

Tasteless  |  Bad  |  Okay  |  >> Good <<  |  Tasty

Name (Korean): 쓰부
Name (Official English): Not available
Name (Romanized): Sseubu
Name (Translated): Not available
Website Not available
Phone 02-3662-1112

Credit Cards? Yes
Apple Pay ^[?]? No
Bathroom? Yes
Reservations? ??
Take out? Yes
Delivery? ??
Wifi? Yes
Outside seating? No
Wheelchair friendly? No
Alcohol? ???
Dogs allowed? ???
Bike parking? Yes
Car parking? Yes

Date night? No
English-speaking staff? No
English menus? No
LGBTQ friendly ^[?]? ???
Information updated on: April 19, 2018
Prices ^[?]: ₩₩₩₩

Hours:
Monday: 11:00 – 15:30, 16:30 – 22:00
Tuesday: 11:00 – 15:30, 16:30 – 22:00
Wednesday: 11:00 – 15:30, 16:30 – 22:00
Thursday: 11:00 – 15:30, 16:30 – 22:00
Friday: 11:00 – 15:30, 16:30 – 22:00
Saturday: 11:00 – 15:30, 16:30 – 22:00
Sunday: 11:00 – 15:30, 16:30 – 22:00

Address (Korean) 서울특별시 강서구 강서로56가길 63
Address (English) 63 Gangseo-ro 56ga-gil, Gangseo-gu, Seoul