Deokinkwan is a tteokgalbi restaurant in Damyang, Jeollanam-do, opened in 1963 and now run by Park Gyu-wan, Korean Food Grand Master No.
- The signature order is the Master’s Traditional Tteokgalbi — 200 g per serving, minimum two people — and the house opens year-round 11:00–20:30 with last order 20:30.
This guide covers what the place is known for, the full menu with Korean names, what makes its tteokgalbi different, the hours and reservations, and how to get there from Seoul by KTX or express bus.
All facts come from the Korea Tourism Organization’s English listing (checked 2026-10-04) and the restaurant’s own website — nothing here is based on a visit.
Key facts — As of 2026-10-03
- Deokinkwan opened in 1963 as ‘Deokin Eumsikjeom’ and was the first restaurant to present Damyang galbi (KTO listing, checked 2026-10-04).
- The head of the house is Park Gyu-wan, designated Korean Food Grand Master No. 82 for grilled galbi by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs on 2018-11-30.
- Hours are 11:00–20:30 with last order 20:30 on the KTO listing (official site shows 11:00–21:00 with the same last order), open year-round (checked 2026-10-04).
What Is Deokinkwan Known For?
| Route from Seoul | Fastest time (Oct 3 schedule, TAGO data — check again before booking) | Fares (one-way) | First · Last (Oct 3 schedule) | Good for |
|---|---|
| KTX Seoul → Gwangju | 1h 36m | from ₩37,800 | 05:08 · 22:55 | Fastest route to Damyang via Gwangju |
| KTX Seoul → Mokpo | 2h 20m | from ₩43,500 | 05:08 · 21:18 |
| Express bus Seoul → Gwangju | 3h 20m | ₩22,700–₩52,200 | 05:30 · 24:00 | Cheapest route to Gwangju |
| Express bus Seoul → Mokpo | 3h 50m | ₩36,700–₩57,200 | 06:00 · 23:55 | Combining Damyang with Mokpo |
Deokinkwan is known for tteokgalbi, grilled Korean beef rib patties, and it was the first restaurant to present Damyang galbi when it opened in 1963 under the name ‘Deokin Eumsikjeom’ (KTO listing, checked 2026-10-04).
The house is run by Park Gyu-wan, designated Korean Food Grand Master No.
82 for grilled galbi by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs on 2018-11-30, and the family is in its 4th generation, reproducing the galbi (garigui) method recorded in the Joseon-era cookbook Siuijeonseo (official history page, checked 2026-10-04).
Awards on the official site include Korea’s Best 100 Korean Restaurants (Ministry of Culture) and ten consecutive Namdo Food Master selections from 2002 to 2021.
If you’re choosing a Damyang restaurant by documented lineage rather than by reviews, this is the profile the listings support — and note the official site also claims 120 years of family tradition, while the restaurant itself opened in 1963, so the recipe predates the shop by more than half a century.
Getting there — Deokinkwan
- Seoul → Gwangju by train: fastest 1h 36m, from ₩37,800, 55 trains a day, first 05:08 · last 22:55 · timetable
- Seoul → Gwangju by express bus: fastest 3h 20m, from ₩22,700, 113 buses a day, first 05:30 · last 24:00 · timetable
- Last leg: about 32.4 km from Gwangju Songjeong Station — roughly 31 min by taxi or car without traffic; local buses also run (check the stop sign or a map app)
- Map: Naver Map · Kakao Map · Google Maps — search 덕인관
Calculated by koreankorea.com from the national train and express-bus timetables, OpenStreetMap road distance. Plan your own route
What to Order at Deokinkwan
Order the Master’s Traditional Tteokgalbi: 200 g per serving of Korean beef female-cow ribs, hand-sliced rather than ground, marinated in traditionally brewed soy-sauce extract, minimum two people (official menu page, checked 2026-10-04).
The full listed menu, with the Korean names you can show at the table: 떡갈비 — Master’s Traditional Tteokgalbi (the flagship), Korean LA Tteokgalbi, Korean Tteokgalbi; bulgogi — Galbisal Neobiani; bamboo dishes — juksoon-hoe, daetongbap, juksoon chueotang; soups — old-style gomtang, daetnip galbitang.
Solo diners: the listed tteokgalbi portions are for 2 or more, and whether one person can order is not covered by the sources, so call +82-61-381-7881 before you go.
Gift buyers: the Master’s boneless tteokgalbi is gift-set delivery only — you cannot buy it in the store.
What Makes Deokinkwan’s Tteokgalbi Different
Three listed details set this tteokgalbi apart: hand knife work instead of grinding, a marinade aged in traditionally brewed (jaerae-sik) soy-sauce extract, and hanwoo female-cow ribs as the main meat (official site, checked 2026-10-04).
The restaurant states a dish can only be called tteokgalbi (garigui) if rib meat is the highest-content ingredient, and it uses Korean beef female-cow ribs for that reason.
The official site claims 120 years of family tradition, while the restaurant itself opened in 1963 — 63 years of operation — so by the restaurant’s own account the recipe predates the shop.
If you’re comparing tteokgalbi houses in Damyang, the three listed differences here are the method, the marinade, and the meat.
Deokinkwan Hours, Reservations and Parking
Hours are 11:00–20:30 with last order 20:30 on the KTO listing; the official site lists 11:00–21:00 with the same last order (both checked 2026-10-04).
Open year-round on both listings, and parking is available per the KTO listing.
Reservations are accepted by phone at +82-61-381-7881, and the official site also lists the same number as the contact.
If you’re planning dinner, treat 20:30 as the end of service — the stricter closing hour is the one both sources agree on, so aim to arrive well before 20:30.
| Hours source | Opens | Closes | Last order | Closed days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KTO listing | 11:00 | 20:30 | 20:30 | None — year-round |
| Official site | 11:00 | 21:00 | 20:30 | None — year-round |
KTO listing 11:00–20:30 vs official site 11:00–21:00, last order 20:30 on both — don’t merge the two closing hours.
How to Get to Deokinkwan from Seoul
Fastest route: KTX Seoul → Gwangju, fastest 1h 36m, from ₩37,800 (TAGO data, October 3 schedule — re-check before booking).
Cheapest route: express bus Seoul → Gwagngju, fastest 3h 20m, from ₩22,700 (same schedule date).
KTX to Gwangju saves 1h 44m (3h 20m − 1l 36m) but costs ₩15,100 more at the lowest fare (₩37,800 − ₩22,700) than the cheapest bus.
Headed to Mokpo instead?
KTX Seoul → Mokpo is 2h 20m from ₩43,500 (first 05:08 · last 21:18), and the express bus is 3h 50m from ₩36,700 (first 06:00 · last 23:55) — keep the two destinations separate when you book, because the times and fares differ.
- Choose Gwangju or Mokpo as your arrival city — both sit in Jeollanam-do, and Damyang lies between them.
- Take KTX Seoul → Gwangju Songjeong (1h 36m, from ₩37,800) or the express bus (3h 20m, from ₩22,700), re-checking the October 3 schedule values before you book.
- From Gwangju or the Damyang terminal, take a taxi or ask locally for the final stretch — the bus/walking connection was not confirmed in sources.
- Call ahead at +82-61-381-7881, and aim to arrive well before 20:30.
Address: 1121 Jukhyang-daero, Damyang-eup, Damyang-gun, Jeollanam-do.
Phone: +82-61-381-7881 · Website: deokinkwan.com · Instagram: instagram.com/deokinkwan
Where Deokinkwan Sits: Damyang, Korea’s Bamboo County
Damyang is a county in Jeollanam-do, in the Gwangju & Jeonnam travel region, and it is known as Korea’s bamboo county.
The menu matches the town: the non-rib dishes — juksoon-hoe, daetongbap, juksoon chueotang, daetnip galbitang — are built on bamboo shoots or bamboo leaves, and the address sits on Jukhyang-daero, a road name that carries the bamboo reference.
For the wider region, koreankorea.com has a Gwangju & Jeonnam map with sights (koreankorea.com/gwangju-jeonnam-travel-guide-map/) and today’s KTX departures from Seoul to Gwangju, Mokpo and Yeosu.
When I plan a meal this far from Seoul, I match the meal to the travel: an early KTX gets you to Gwangju in 1h 36m, which leaves room for an 11:00 lunch at Deokinkwan, and the bamboo dishes read as the local specialty rather than a side order.
I would book by phone (+82-61-381-7881) and arrive well before 20:30, because service runs to that last order rather than a soft closing, and I would rather have slack in the schedule than cut a slow lunch short.
👉 Gwangju & Jeonnam travel guide and map
👉 KTX Seoul → Gwangju timetable
👉 Express bus Seoul → Gwangju timetable
👉 Deokinkwan official site with menu and history pages
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📎 Seoul — everything we know
📎 📅 Upcoming Dates — Release & Event Calendar
Sources
- Official site, KTO listing, menu and method pages (english.visitkorea.or.kr)
- Tradition (deokinkwan.com)
- Menu items and 200g serving size, but no prices published (deokinkwan.com)
Tips for Visiting Deokinkwan
- Call ahead for solo dining: the listed tteokgalbi portions are for 2 or more, so confirm what a single order looks like on +82-61-381-7881.
- Treat 20:30 as the end of service — both hour sources agree on that last order.
- Reserve by phone (+82-61-381-7881) and arrive well before 20:30.
- If you don’t eat galbi, the bamboo dishes or the soups are the listed non-rib choices.
- Catch a KTX arriving Gwangju by about 10:00 to make the 11:00 opening with margin for the ride to Damyang.
FAQ
Q. What is Deokin tteokgalbi? (What is Deokinkwan known for?)
It’s a 1963 tteokgalbi house in Damyang run by Korean Food Grand Master No. 82, Park Gyu-wan — the first place to present Damyang galbi.
Q. What is tteokgalbi and what makes Deokinkwan’s different?
Tteokgalbi is a grilled patty of Korean beef rib meat; Deokinkwan hand-slices the meat instead of grinding it, ages it in traditionally brewed soy-sauce extract, and uses hanwoo female-cow ribs as the main meat.
Q. What are the hours and how do I reserve?
11:00–20:30 with last order 20:30 (official site lists 11:00–21:00 with the same last order), open year-round; reserve by phone at +82-61-381-7881.
Q. How do I get to Deokinkwan from Seoul?
KTX Seoul → Gwangju is the fastest at 1h 36m from ₩37,800; the express bus is cheapest at 3h 20m from ₩22,700, both October 3 schedule values — re-check before booking.
Q. How much does tteokgalbi cost at Deokinkwan?
The sources found — the official site, the KTO listing, and the pages checked through 2026-10-04 — do not publish a price list, so no confirmed prices are available; show the Korean menu name at the table or ask by phone.
Call +82-61-381-7881 to reserve before you ride the KTX.
Cover photo: AI-generated illustration (grilled beef patties) — AI-generated image, illustrative only
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