10 Great Restaurants in Pohang

Saepohang Mulhoejip is a restaurant specializing in cold raw fish soup (mulhoe), a delicacy of Pohang that is served with a red pepper paste-based sauce. It has a uniquely mild and savory taste, though is eaten by mixing sliced raw fish with red pepper paste sauce without broth.

In addition to mulhoe, the restaurant also serves raw squid, raw flounder, raw abalone, and assorted sliced raw fish (makhoe). In winter, try half-dried saury (gwamegi) as well, which is a seasonal local food. If you order a bowl of mulhoe, you are treated to a hearty meal as it is provided with steamed rice, noodles, and spicy fish stew. Topped with sliced raw fish, pear, cucumber, dried seaweed flakes, garlic, and sesame mixed with salt, mulhoe has a look that makes your mouth water. You can enjoy the dish in various ways, such as by mixing all the ingredients with the seasoning hidden inside the sliced raw fish and wrapping a piece of raw fish with vegetable leaves, or by mixing it with steamed rice, or by adding noodles and broth. The restaurant is recommended to those who want to taste mulhoe, a dish that represents the features of Pohang.

Pohang Teukmi Mulhoe Sikdang is a restaurant famous for cold raw fish soup (mulhoe) served in the local style that pairs fresh seafood with a red pepper paste-based sauce made on a traditional recipe, instead of broth. You can choose from different toppings for your mulhoe, including wild flounder, abalone, and sea cucumber. The crunchy texture of abalone and sea cucumber adds to the savouriness of the dish.

Mulhoe is served with spicy fish stew (maeuntang), several side dishes, and boiled potatos. Savor the clean taste of mulhoe, by mixing fresh sliced seafood with chogochujang (red pepper paste with vinegar) and thin ice pieces and finish your satisfying meal with the pleasantly spicy fish stew to chase the unwanted aftertaste. Visit the restaurant and try this special cold raw fish soup made with red pepper paste that has a unique taste of Pohang.

Partys Buffet is a premium seafood buffet where you can taste a variety of foods to your heart's content. Just past the tall entrance is a large space where you can dine. With tables of different sizes, seating 2 to 20 people, the buffet can accommodate various gatherings.

The buffet section is divided into 8 categories: Korean cuisine, sushi and rolls, Chinese cuisine, salads and appetizers, BBQ and steak, pasta and pizza, fruit, juice, and bakery, and broiled meat. The biggest merit of this buffet is its wide selection of food from different countries, which are mainly seafood. The selection changes slightly from season to season, but broiled marinated rib steak (LA galbi steak) is a must try. It is recommended to visit with your family or friends if you want to try a variety of food or celebrate your special occasion.

Pohang Badawonhae, located on a seaside street near Yeongildae Beach, is a restaurant where you can taste various sliced raw fish. As you enter the building, the autographs of celebrities capture your eyes, revealing how famous this restaurant is. It would be fun to find which celebrities visited the restaurant by looking at the autographs.

The menu consists of many single items of raw seafood, but the restaurant offers an assortment of different kinds of raw seafood that allows you to taste sliced raw fish, cold raw fish soup (mulhoe), and even snow crabs, in one go. To eat as much fresh raw seafood as you want, you may need to start with an empty stomach; but the hearty side dishes that are served first make you busy tasting them one by one. After the pleasantly firm and chewy raw fish, broiled fish, and snow crabs, spicy fish stew (maeuntang) is served, to bring a satisfying end to your meal. The beautiful seascape seen from the restaurant will make your dining here a more pleasant experience.

Gaon Milmyeon Pohang is a simple and neat restaurant serving cold wheat noodles (milmyeon). It has a simple menu that consists only of cold wheat noodles (mul milmyeon), spicy wheat noodles (bibim milmyeon), and dumplings that are priced affordably.

Cold wheat noodles are served as rounded hand-rolled noodles in a cold broth containing thin ice pieces, garnished with toppings such as sliced cucumber, meat, fried egg, and sauce. The refreshing and light broth made with herbal ingredients goes well with the chewy noodles. In particular, the noodles are pulled upon order, so they are pleasantly firm to bite. Spicy wheat noodles taste piquant and savory, served with a special sauce. You can order a double serving of noodles if you want a heartier meal. Try milmyeon, if you want to taste cool and chewy noodles in summer. The dish has a different attraction from naengmyeong, cold buckwheat noodles.

Pohang Saengmakchang offers savory and chewy broiled tripe (makchang) at an affordable price. It looks just like an ordinary meat restaurant, but it is a popular eatery known by word of mouth.

The tripe is served pre-grilled, so you just need to broil the pieces a little more over charcoal. The tripe sizzling on the fire will make your mouth water. Eat a piece of broiled tripe with red peppers and makjang (a mix of soybean paste and red pepper paste; also called “ssamjang”), which will decrease the greasy taste while adding to the savouriness of the tripe. Another way to eat like locals is to wrap a piece of tripe in perilla leaves. The restaurant offers a victory onion salad and vegetables to wrap for free and unlimitlessly on a self-service basis. Even beverages and patbingsu (shaved ice with red beans) are included with the meal free of extra charge. Visit this popular local eatery on a night when the cold wind blows and you want to have a meal and a drink in a cozy atmosphere.

Ugojip is a charcoal broil restaurant where you can relish fine beef in a trendy atmosphere. It is also a small and cozy pub ideal to have a drink with tasty Korean beef in a quiet atmosphere. The beef is sold by cut, so if you have a favorite cut, you can order the cut you like. The restaurant also provides an assortment of different cuts allowing you to taste a little bit of each part. The menu board has descriptions of each cut, which will help you choose from the selection.

While you cook skewers on a charcoal brazier set on your table, the beef you ordered is served. Its vivid color and tender mouthfeel tell how fresh it is. After broiling the beef on the charcoal brazier, eat it with the victory onion salad and pickled onions that are served with the meat. It will then just melt in your mouth. If you want to taste high-quality beef in a nice diner, this restaurant will make a good choice.

Wangdoljam is a casual restaurant where you can taste Japanese-style ramen, sushi and rolls at reasonable prices. Although the size of the restaurant is small, it is decorated with stylish lighting units providing a cozy dining space.

The menu is not much different from those of typical Japanese ramen restaurants, but the spicy seafood ramen with plenty of seafood and bean sprouts is a true delicacy that represents this restaurant. The bean sprouts decrease the greasy feeling, and the broth containing mussels and clams have a clean and refreshing taste. Meanwhile, ramen with meat-based broth has a rich, savory taste. Among the selection of sushi and rolls, sushi topped with broiled salmon with a slightly smoky taste and spicy, crunchy dynamite rolls are recommended. It is a fine-casual diner where you can have a satisfactory meal on a small budget.

Pyeongyang Gomtang is a restaurant specializing in Korean beef head meat soup (someori gomtang) with a 50-year tradition. The menu consists of only two items: gomtang and boiled meat slices (suyuk). When you order a bowl of gomtang, it is served with noodles and steamed rice, along with diced radish kimchi (kkakdugi), ssamjang (a mix of soybean paste and red pepper paste), red peppers, and onion slices as side dishes.

Gomtang has a milky, non-greasy broth with little fat and the added beef has a chewy yet soft bite. The noodles that accompany the soup are served quite generously, so if you eat it by soaking it in the broth, you will feel filled up in no time. The crunchy and refreshing kkakdugi served as a side dish also tastes good. Visit the restaurant if you want to ease your stomach with a warm broth or replenish your diet with nutritious beef soup. In particular, the restaurant is open at 6 am on January 1, so if you stop by and have some warm beef soup before going to see the sunrise, you will feel warmed up on that cold morning.

Outback Steakhouse Nampohang is a restaurant of a nationwide chain where you can relish tasty steak and pasta. The Bushman Bread, which is served warm before the main dish, is tasty enough to arouse your appetite when eaten with cream cheese. It deserves to be considered one of signature delicacies of the chain.

The restaurant provides a selection of steak that changes by season. When ordering steak, you can choose the doneness of your steak as you wish. A variety of pasta are also available to choose from. In particular, Toowoomba pasta with rich cream and wide fettuccine noodles, topped with generous portions of premium Parmesan cheese, mushrooms and shrimp, is quite popular for its deep flavor. The savory and soft pasta goes well with your steak. Pohang is famous for raw fish and seafood, but if you want to taste steak at a steakhouse specializing in steak, this restaurant will make a good option.