Daegu sotbap restaurant with baby trays and seaweed soup: Haenyeo

What is Haenyeo Sotbap Suseong Direct Store in Suseong, Daegu?

Today I visited a really nice-looking sotbap (clay-pot rice) restaurant in my neighborhood. Since moving to Suseong-gu, I'd been struggling to find a good sotbap place. As a sotbap fanatic, I have to say — this place is legit! It's called Haenyeo Sotbap, and there's a branch in Gyeongsan too, plus this direct-run store in Suseong-gu!

If you've been, you probably know parking is super convenient, so it's great for gatherings, work dinners, or family meals. My husband and I came with our baby, and since they had a room, a baby chair, a comfortable interior, and easy parking, this is now our go-to sotbap spot in Suseong, Daegu to bring the baby to again and again. (There were even two parking staff directing traffic!)

Opening hours and how to book a room

Haenyeo Sotbap serves meals from 11:30 AM, with a break time in between. Dinner orders close at 8 PM, and the restaurant closes at 9 PM, so keep that in mind. This was my first visit, and the guidance and reservation process were so nice that I'd give the customer service 300 out of 100, honestly.

The interior was as clean as a hotel — plush seating, spacious tables, nothing lacking. Even the entryway was clearly designed with care, everything looked pretty. The lighting was bright, the staff were kind, and the whole visit put me in a good mood.

Inside the Yunseul No. 9 room: baby tray, high chair and Rilakkuma cutlery

Wi-Fi was available inside, and there were various desserts and drinks to enjoy. There are many types of rooms — window-side ones and ones without a view outside — so you can pick whichever you want when booking. The facilities are so pleasant it seems great for hosting guests too. It's also good for an evening drink with coworkers. After this visit I was so satisfied I'm already thinking of bringing my parents next time. It's a great atmosphere for going with elders too!

I booked the Yunseul No. 9 room. It was just two adults and one baby, but they gave us a six-person room — I felt so honored. They'd already prepared a baby chair, and thoughtfully brought out baby tableware ahead of time too. The service was really touching!

From the silicone baby tray to the Rilakkuma cutlery, everything was so, so cute. The adult cutlery came in hygienic disposable packaging, and the water was served as bottled mineral water!

Abalone sotbap and seafood ttukbaegi: what do they cost?

You order via the kiosk on the table, but they also print a nicely laid-out paper menu, so if the kiosk screen isn't your thing, you can order by reading the paper instead. Maybe because I'm an analog kind of person, but the paper menu was easier on my eyes.

I ordered one abalone sotbap and one seafood ttukbaegi (stone-pot stew). Both were ₩26,000 each. Getting a meal plus drinks for under ₩30,000 per person makes this Suseong, Daegu sotbap restaurant a very, very appealing spot.

The banchan spread and a bowl of seaweed soup for the baby

Even though we only ordered sotbap, so many side dishes came out that it was fun picking through them. They refilled anything that ran low, and everything tasted great — well seasoned too! You could tell a lot of care went into making it. The mushroom tangsuyuk (sweet and sour) and grilled mackerel were both good. The dressed greens and namul (seasoned vegetables) were also well seasoned.

They even brought out an extra bowl of miyeokguk (seaweed soup) suitable for the baby, which was touching. It was a bit too salty for my 1-year-old to eat, but since they said they use good-quality seaweed, I — being pregnant — ended up eating the whole thing myself, haha. Regardless of the seasoning, I was so grateful for the thoughtfulness. For babies past their first birthday on a low-sodium diet, this would be perfect — just order a bowl of rice and you've got instant baby food!

This is the grilled abalone, served with liver sauce — very plump, moist, and delicious. It wasn't overcooked and chewy, but softly cooked, so I could cut it up with scissors and feed it to my baby too. The liver sauce wasn't salty, so it was nutty and clean to enjoy.

The sotbap and seafood ttukbaegi didn't take long to come out, so we got to eat while still nice and hungry. With so many side dishes to go with the rice, we ended up completely full.

Spicy seafood ttukbaegi, and a drink with the meal

The seafood ttukbaegi had a generous amount of seafood — clams, mussels, shrimp, and more piled on top — and the broth was so spicy it would make a great side for soju. Haenyeo Sotbap is a restaurant, but they also sell seafood stew varieties and have a wide range of alcohol from wine on up. It's a Suseong, Daegu sotbap restaurant good for both a meal and a drink.

Abalone sotbap topped with two whole abalones

The abalone sotbap I ordered came topped with a whopping two abalones. They were scrubbed so thoroughly clean the abalone looked almost white, haha. You could tell they were handled with care. The sotbap also had abalone innards mixed in, and once stirred together it had an amazing nutty flavor.

Once well mixed, wrapping the sotbap in roasted gim (seaweed) gave it just the right seasoning. The seafood stew broth was nice and spicy to sip on in between bites, and the sungnyung (scorched-rice tea) they gave us was great poured into the pot at the end to make nurungjitang (scorched-rice soup) once the rice was finished. Eating so much rice made me feel really full — not the fake fullness of bread or Western food, but genuinely, properly full.

Dessert smoothies and the verdict on Haenyeo Sotbap

To finish the meal, we could also try the smoothies available in the hall. There were two flavors, mango and pomegranate, and both were refreshing, great for cleaning your palate. Coffee is also provided, so it's worth grabbing a cup to go too. With private rooms, it's great to bring your kids or your parents — clean and delicious all around!

The staff service really stood out — everyone was clearly well trained. The kind of small, thoughtful details they took care of without being asked will stick with me. Next time I'm craving sotbap, I'll definitely be driving back here again. Easy parking, a pretty store — Haenyeo Sotbap in Suseong-gu has become my favorite sotbap spot in the area, haha.