Seoul Cheap Eats: Steff Houlberg Hotdog (스테프 핫도그)

Went to grab a quick late night meal at Steff Hotdog (스테프 핫도그) in Yangjae Station (양재역). I was coming from a really long day and I just needed to find something to hold me over with a couple of friends. Luckily this place was open and we managed to get there right before it closed. You have to go inside the station near the Express line (신분당선) where there are many underground stores and restaurants.The closest entrance would be exit #7. This place is a Denmark chain that likes to show off its storied history on its walls. I never knew Denmark was famous for hot dogs, but I was too hungry to care and would let the hot dogs do the talking.

This particular location is open from an amazingly early 7 am to 11 pm Monday to Saturday and 8 am to 10 pm on Sundays.

 

Menu

The menu obviously focuses on hot dogs, but they do have some interesting sides available. The menu is relatively focused with the exception of some random items like burritos and churros. They must be getting their inner Mexican on.

 

Bulgogi “Plain” (불고기 플레인) – 2000 won (promo price)

I ordered a bulgogi plain which was a steamed hotdog in a steamed bun topped with bulgogi sauce and plenty of french fried onions. There was a promotion on this item and I’m a sucker for promotions.

The onions where delicious and had a nice sweet taste and crispy texture. It was impossible to eat the dog without the onions falling off which I obligingly picked up and ate. The sauce was served relatively cold and made the hot dog temperature quite low. I kept getting distracted by this as the it was way colder than I could tolerate. This may be because we went there right at closing. Regardless of what it was, the lukewarm temperature really stunted the potential of the dog.

 

I’m also not a proponent for steamed dogs as they don’t have the same crispy outer skins as grilled dogs, but perhaps if they served the dog at a reasonably high temperature I I would’ve been pretty satisfied. Since I was just looking to get some food in my stomach, I pretty much overlooked all of this anyway. I also had a hard time eating the dog with their weird packaging, but maybe that’s just me.

Cheese on Bulgogi (치즈 온 불고기) – 3900 won

This I’m sure would’ve been quite a hit, but unfortunately I didn’t get to try it. The fact that there is melted cheese indicates that it was served at a much higher temperature than my dog. Maybe next time.

French Fries (후렌치 후라이) – 1600 won

The fries were golden brown and tasted pretty similar to McDonald’s, but a little less salty and a tad soggy. They quantity was pretty decent, but not any more of a value than McDonald’s.

To be fair, I think I was expecting a bit too much during closing, and I did leave reasonably satisfied. It’s like one of those late night snacks you eat just because you need something in your stomach. I’ll try it again during peak hours when everything taste much better. For now, I will say that Costco is a much better deal in value and taste, but obviously less convenient and customizable. Overall, I think the place has a lot of potential for the steamed hot dog lover.