Noodle houseKorean
Tanbaek
탄백 Tanbaek (坦白) means speaking frankly, holding nothing back — posts say the house took the name as a promise of honest food from clean ingredients, and kept the charred wooden beams found when the old building was stripped.
Compiled from 28 blog posts read in fullSources →
Tanbaek is a kalguksu house in a two-storey building at 37 Jeongdong-gil, Jung-gu, across from Jeongdong Church. The signature is gom-kalguksu (14,000 won), noodles in a clear Korean-beef broth, alongside a spicy yukgaejang version (15,000 won), onjeyuk — cubed boiled pork jowl (19,000 won) — kimchi dumplings (5,000 won for two) and shiitake rice (4,000 won). The ground floor is a bar facing the kitchen, upstairs has tables for two and four, and you order by scanning a QR code at the table. We read 30 posts dated 5 to 16 October 2026; 28 describe an actual visit (one was really about Deoksugung, and one showed no sign the writer went). All 30 landed within twelve days.
Data as of · Published ·
Location & hours
- Address서울특별시 중구 정동길 37, 1,2층 (정동)37 Jeongdong-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul
- Typical spend₩4,000 – ₩52,000
- From the station6 posts say it is walkable from the station.
- Floor areaFloor area 75 m² · Status In business
When it opens
Of 19 posts: 16 wrote Mon–Sat 11:00–21:00, 16 wrote Sunday 11:00–17:00, 2 wrote 11:00–21:00.
| Mon–Sat | 11:00–21:00 | |
|---|---|---|
| No day given | 11:00–21:00 | 2 of 19 posts |
| Sunday | 11:00–17:00 | |
| Break | Mon–Sat 15:00–17:00 | 12 of 18 posts |
| Break | 15:00–17:00 | 6 of 18 posts |
| Last order | Mon–Sat 20:00 | 11 of 13 posts |
| Last order | Sunday 16:00 | 10 of 13 posts |
| Last order | 20:00 | 2 of 13 posts |
Rows without a count: 16 of 19 posts.
Counted from what bloggers wrote in their posts; we did not confirm it with the restaurant. Where the values differ, it may be a change over time rather than a disagreement, so we show when each one was written.
What sets it apart
- Expect to queue. Sixteen posts say there was a line. Where people gave times, the waits were 10, 15, just under 20, 20, 20, a little over 30, 40 minutes and about an hour twice — the hour-long waits were a 12:30 sign-up on Hangul Day (29th in line) and a 1 p.m. Saturday sign-up (25th). Most registered on CatchTable and wandered Deoksugung or Jeongdong-gil until the alert came; one notes there is nowhere to wait at the door. One writer arrived at the 11 a.m. opening and still drew number 8. Three posts walked straight in: a weekday just before the afternoon break, an early evening, and a holiday lunch.
- Ordering is by QR code at the table; 13 posts say so. One adds that the menu is also posted on the wall.
- Tea comes instead of water: seven posts mention a kettle of barley tea (one could not identify the warm tea but liked it) set down as you sit. Fresh kimchi is the standing side; one diner refilled it twice and another watched neighbouring tables do the same.
- Watch the kimchi dumplings. Fifteen posts mention heat, mostly about the yukgaejang noodles, but the dumplings draw the strongest words — one diner found them very hot, and another thought them too spicy for small children. The yukgaejang itself is described as milder than Shin Ramyun and manageable even for people who avoid spicy food.
4 more
- Four posts note coat hangers and bag hooks by the entrance.
- Five posts confirm high chairs. Five went with children, including one with a 13-month-old and one with a five-year-old.
- Six posts arrived by public transport, mostly walking 7 to 10 minutes from City Hall Station exit 12 along the Deoksugung stone wall; one came by bus.
- Reservations work: one writer booked ahead, one was asked by staff whether they had a booking, and one watched reserved parties keep arriving just after opening. Many posts copy the Naver and CatchTable booking info and the phone number, 02-318-3189.
What 28 bloggers said
gom-kalguksu
Spicy
We read all 28 in full. The most common claims are “Spicy” (15) and “No gamey smell” (4).
What they liked
What they struggled with
Where they disagree
| Had to wait | yes 16 · no 3 |
|---|---|
| Roomy | yes 2 · no 3 |
| Large portions | yes 2 · no 2 |
Things you can check on site
- Second floor 18 of 28 posts
- Has tables 14 of 28 posts
- Self-order screen 13 of 28 posts
- Complimentary tea or drink 7 of 28 posts
- Large windows 6 of 28 posts
- Reachable by transit 6 of 28 posts
- High chairs 5 of 28 posts
- Bag storage 4 of 28 posts
- Open kitchen 4 of 28 posts
- Takes reservations 3 of 28 posts
- In a basement saying it is not 2 of 28 posts
- Free refills 2 of 28 posts
- Toilet inside 1 of 28 posts
- Foreign customers in the room 1 of 28 posts
These are raw counts, not percentages. Someone who did not mention something is not someone who disagreed.
Who came, and with whom
- Family visit 7 of 28 posts
- Came with children 5 of 28 posts
- With a friend 4 of 28 posts
- Solo visit 4 of 28 posts
- Date 3 of 28 posts
- Group visit 1 of 28 posts
Where it is
We could not find this shop’s own listing on Naver Map, so the link searches for its Korean name around this spot instead.
From the station
Six posts arrived by public transport, mostly walking 7 to 10 minutes from City Hall Station exit 12 along the Deoksugung stone wall; one came by bus.
Getting inside
| Second floor | 18 of 28 posts |
|---|---|
| In a basement | yes 0 · no 2 (of 28 posts read) |
| Toilet inside | 1 of 28 posts |
Bar downstairs, tables upstairs. Eighteen posts mention the upstairs room, and the 14 that describe both floors agree: counter seats on the ground floor, face-to-face tables on the second. One counts about eight four-tops upstairs, another five or six tables for two and four, and one thinks groups of three or more get sent up at busy times. A single post says every seat is at the bar, which the rest contradict. Four posts mention the open kitchen visible from the bar, with broth simmering in a big pot, and six mention upstairs windows looking onto the trees and palace wall of Jeongdong-gil.
There is no basement: two posts sat on the ground floor and many went upstairs, though the only access detail anyone gives is the staircase.
Nobody says whether there is a step at the door or whether they came in with a wheelchair or stroller — that means unknown, not absent. No one mentions a lift either. The second floor is up a staircase that two posts call steep, and the parent with a 13-month-old advises care going up.
One post says there is a toilet inside on the ground floor and another found it clean. Nobody mentions whether it is split by gender.
No one mentioned: Lift to the floor · Ramp at the door · Step at the entrance · Step-free access · Accessible toilet · Separate restrooms. That is not the same as there being none — it means we could not confirm it. Worth calling ahead, and do tell us: we will put it here.
How to read these posts
- Posts disclosing payment1 of 28 posts
- Posts saying they paid themselves5 of 28 posts
- Posts saying nothing either way22 of 28 posts
Posts that followed a TV spot
Of the 29 posts we gathered, 1 went up on a single day right after a TV spot and show no sign of a visit. They retell the broadcast, so we left them out of the counts.
We do not discard them. That a TV spot produced a burst of posts is itself something worth knowing about a place, and a star rating will not show it.
When the posts appeared
Month by month
| Month | Posts |
|---|---|
| 2026-10 | 28 |
What we do not know
- Portions divide opinion: two posts found the onjeyuk plenty for two and the mushroom rice generous, while two others found the onjeyuk small for four, or poor value for three.
- A meal runs 14,000–16,000 won for a noodle bowl, plus 19,000 won if you add onjeyuk; one post paid 38,000 won for yukgaejang noodles, onjeyuk and mushroom rice. On value, one post calls it expensive (over the onjeyuk portion), one calls the prices fair, and one says it is not exactly cheap.
- Every set of opening hours is copied, not observed. Of 19 posts that list them, 16 agree: Monday to Saturday 11:00–21:00 with a 15:00–17:00 break and last orders at 20:00, Sunday 11:00–17:00 with last orders at 16:00. Three add a 19:30 last order in winter (December–February); one says 11:00–21:00 every day. No post from a visitor mentions a closing day.
- The menu turns with the seasons: the soybean noodles are summer-only and the perilla noodles winter-only. People were still eating the soybean dish on 9 October, while two October posts already list perilla noodles. We can't tell from the posts when the switch happens.
- All 30 posts fall within twelve days. One discloses sponsorship, three carry the same parking blurb word for word, and three repeat that booking or subscribing on Naver earns free dumplings. Where a post contradicts the rest — such as the claim that every seat is at the bar — we did not rely on it.
Sources (28)
Every number above was counted from the posts below.
- 서울 정동길 맛집 탄백, 40분 웨이팅도 아깝지 않았던 한우 곰칼국수.... 2026-10-16 · 올리브숲의 이모저모
- 덕수궁 정동길 맛집 탄백 웨이팅 하는 칼국수 맛집 2026-10-15 · 하루 한 입, 하루 한 순간
- 4일간의 추석 연휴 일기 (덕수궁 산책, 서촌 맛집, 고양이 방문 탁묘) 2026-10-15 · untitled, · via Daum
- 시청역 맛집 탄백 덕수궁 웨이팅하는 칼국수 맛집 2026-10-14 · 탠저린 어드벤처 · via Daum
- 덕수궁 맛집 탄백, 정동길 나들이 코스로 추천하는 곰칼국수와 항정.... 2026-10-14 · 웅삐의 Blog.
- 덕수궁 맛집 정동 탄백 온제육 곰칼국수 육개장 칼국수 주말 웨이팅.... 2026-10-14 · ᵐᵉᵒʷ⑅ܻ
- '26 May - 죽은 블로그 살리는 일기 2026-10-14 · 소소한 노력의 기록
- 시청역 덕수궁 정동길 맛집 탄백 : 곰칼국수 항정살수육 입에서 녹.... 2026-10-14 · 우리 오늘은 뭐할까?
- 시청역 칼국수 웨이팅 맛집 탄백 솔직 후기 (메뉴 추천) 2026-10-14 · Lunelog
- 시청역 맛집 탄백 칼국수 온제육 정동길 덕수궁맛집 2026-10-13 · 썸머의 패션뷰티 로그 · via Daum
- 덕수궁 맛집 혼밥하기 좋은 탄백 콩비빔칼국수 양무침 솔직후기 2026-10-12 · 초록을 지향하는 주황의 라이프로그
- [시청, 정동길] 김치만두와 함께 즐기는 정통 칼국수 "탄백"(feat. 차지티) 2026-10-11 · 새우즈의 기록 · via Daum
- 덕수궁 맛집 탄백 깔끔한 칼국수에 막걸리 한잔 저녁식사로 딱이야 ❤️ 2026-10-11 · 물치니의 물따라 맛따라 · via Daum
- 덕수궁 맛집 ‘탄백’, 정동길 산책 후 먹기 좋은 따뜻한 칼국수 2026-10-11 · Allie&Noah
- 서울 시청 덕수궁 맛집 탄백 솔직 후기 / 유아 의자 있음 2026-10-11 · 결혼은 무기징역(죄수 번호 : 230204)
- 덕수궁 맛집 : 탄백 | 시청역 근처 정동길 데이트코스 추천! 곰칼국.... 2026-10-11 · 방깎토의 총총기록zip*.♥
- 하루 여행 with 정동 2026-10-11 · 난 멋지다
- 정동길 맛집 탄백 | 콩비빔칼국수·곰칼국수·온제육, 점심 웨이팅 .... 2026-10-10 · 잼들리의 맛슐랭
- 덕수궁 맛집 탄백, 곰칼국수•콩비빔칼국수•온제육 솔직후기 2026-10-10 · heelog.zip
- 오늘의기록 2026-10-10 · 일기쓰는 사람
- [덕수궁 근처 맛집] 담백+꼬소 둘다 잡은 맛집 ‘탄백’ 내돈내산 후.... 2026-10-10 · 꿀꾸블리의 놀이터
- 시청역 맛집 [탄백] : 덕수궁 근처 칼국수 맛집 | 곰칼국수부터 온제.... 2026-10-09 · 해피밍's 여행,일상 이야기 ꕤ.˖
- 시청역 맛집 탄백 | 육개장칼국수 해장부터 온제육까지, 덕수궁 정동길 점심 추천 2026-10-09 · 웃쨔-!!^___^ · via Daum
- 덕수궁 맛집 탄백 곰칼국수 솔직 후기｜주말 웨이팅 내돈내산 2026-10-08 · 다비온이 다녀온 다이어리
- [시청역] 덕수궁 근처 정동길 맛집 칼국수 추천 '탄백' 2026-10-07 · 밍구마의 기록
- 정동길 맛집 탄백 솔직후기｜고즈넉한 한옥 감성에서 즐기는 맑은 .... 2026-10-07 · 둘이 걷는 지도
- 덕수궁 맛집 탄백 솔직후기｜캐치테이블 웨이팅하고 먹어본 육개장.... 2026-10-05 · ♡
- 아이와 걸어서다니는 서울 당일치기코스 추천[정동길-덕수궁-국현미-화폐박물관-남대문시장] 2026-10-05 · 놀고먹고자고 · via Daum
Of 213 candidate posts we opened 42 and kept 28 as evidence. We stop once 30 are confirmed: beyond that the counts grow in proportion without changing the answer.