2026년 최고의 대학가 맛집: 유자유 김치떡볶이에서의 추억의 떡볶이 경험

I regularly get treatment for a medical condition.

Because of that, I end up at Korea University Hospital pretty often.

The neighborhood in front of Korea University—known as Anamgol—

is filled with beloved eateries

that have been student favorites for years,

serving comforting, home-style food at wallet-friendly prices

that help students deal with rising living costs.

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One of those spots—whose main branch is in Anam-dong

and with a Sinchon outpost catering to college crowds,

is Yujayu Kimchi Tteokbokki.

I dropped by the original location to see what it’s like.

Yujayu sits in the alley that runs from Korea University toward the Anam-dong five-way intersection,

and true to its long-standing reputation near campus,

it’s popped up on several TV shows,

and a fair number of celebrities have dropped in.

Inside, you’ll see orientation meetups and end-of-term parties,

department get-togethers and groups of friends

sharing tteokbokki and fried chicken,

making it an easy spot to grab food and drinks.

The popular Chicken-Pizza Kimchi Tteokbokki

is just one of several tteokbokki variations on the menu,

with the shop specializing in kimchi-based fusion tteokbokki.

Given the portion sizes, the prices

feel like solid value in today’s economy.

The dish gives off major '90s snack-shop nostalgia.

Notably, the rice cakes aren’t the usual cylindrical tteokbokki pieces;

they use tteokguk-style slices,

which gives the dish a retro, elementary-school feel,

like the homemade versions moms would top with pizza cheese,

and it landed as comforting, nostalgic food.

Back then, if tteokbokki rice cakes weren’t available,

people would buy long garaetteok and slice it up,

or even use the tteokguk cakes from Lunar New Year,

to make variations like gungjung (royal-style) tteokbokki with meat and soy sauce.

It was a common home-cooked favorite.

The flavor lands exactly where you'd expect.

The kimchi base blends with tomato sauce,

and the combo of pizza cheese, ham, and rice cakes

is a pairing that's hard to go wrong with.

That said, the chicken was the weak link.

The boneless chicken arrived a bit soggy,

apparently meant to be dipped into the tteokbokki sauce as a side,

which makes sense, but I think

a crisper batter and a cleaner fry would really elevate it.

That small upgrade would make a big difference.

This isn’t a trendy hotspot.

Honestly, someone with decent kitchen skills

could probably recreate these flavors at home.

That said, the unique nostalgia you get only in a college neighborhood

is exactly why people will keep coming back.