Gwanghwamun sea bream sashimi and Grand Seoul shopping: Choe Uyeong
In short
Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch is a sushi and Japanese restaurant in a basement near Jonggak Station Exit 1 in Jongno, Seoul. On an autumn outing to Gwanghwamun, the writer ordered sea bream sashimi (14,000 won per 100g), the premium nigiri set, braised bream head (6,000 won), shrimp tempura udon and an assortment of tempura, and was happy with everything down to the house-made soy sauce and miso soup. Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch offers high sushi quality for the price and pairs well with shopping at Grand Seoul across the street.
Good to know
- Address
- B1 Unit 104, 7 Jongno 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul (235m from Jonggak Station Exit 1)
- Hours
- Daily 11:00–21:30, break time 15:00–17:00
- Parking
- 2 hours free in the building
- Seating
- Solo seats, group seating, partitioned tables at the back
- Ordering
- Order from the kiosk at your table
- Sea bream sashimi
- ₩14,000 per 100g
- Braised bream head
- ₩6,000
- Single nigiri
- Some nigiri from ₩1,000 per piece
- Price reference
- ₩14,000 ≈ $10.5 · ₩6,000 ≈ $4.4 · ₩1,000 ≈ $0.7 (2026-10-02)
as written by the visitor on Oct 3, 2026
It's fully autumn already! 🍂 Today I went on a Gwanghwamun outing and ate at Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch (최우영스시야 종로점), a sushi restaurant near Jonggak Station with good-quality sushi and Japanese dishes at reasonable prices.
Location, hours and parking at Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch
Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch is at 7 Jongno 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, B1 Unit 104, 235m from Jonggak Station Exit 1. It is open daily 11:00–21:30, with a break from 15:00 to 17:00.
It was super close to Exit 1. 👍 The building offers 2 hours of free parking, so it works if you drive too. >_< Grand Seoul is right across the street, so after eating I did some shopping there. ❤️ 🤍 💟 🧡 🤎 ♥️
What's on the menu, and is it good for solo meals or group dinners?
The restaurant has a wide range of nigiri, plus Japanese dishes like sashimi, kaisendon (seafood rice bowl), tempura and udon. ₩1,000 nigiri with today's prices?! Seriously great value.
There are solo seats, so eating alone is easy, and there's group seating too, so it's perfect for a company dinner or gathering around Gwanghwamun. ❤️ 🤍 💟 🧡 🤎 ♥️
We were seated at an inner table with partitions, which made it nice and private.
The drawing of a cute puppy eating sushi was so adorable I had to take a shot~ 💕
Menu
What we ordered at Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch
You order on the kiosk at your seat. We got sea bream sashimi, the premium nigiri set (choesang chobap), shrimp tempura udon and braised bream head, plus shrimp tempura, scallop tempura, and extra sea cucumber innard and tuna belly nigiri. The prices were so kind that we ordered a bit of everything.
Oh~ the soy sauce for dipping sushi and sashimi is made in-house, and it has a lovely depth of flavor. 👍
Yay~ they also brought a hot, savory clear soup (jangguk). >_< It was loaded with scallions and fried tofu pouches and tasted great.
Soon after, everything we ordered arrived. ❤️ 🤍 💟 🧡 🤎 ♥️
Sea bream sashimi at ₩14,000 per 100g: good for a solo meal?
The sea bream sashimi here is ₩14,000 per 100g, which makes it an easy, no-pressure order if you come alone.
The sea bream was firm and chewy, and really delicious. They say they source top-grade seafood at wholesale prices, so it's wonderful that we get good-quality sashimi at such a good price.
The premium nigiri set: what's in it and how it tastes
Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch is known as a top Gwanghwamun sushi spot, so of course I ordered the premium nigiri set~
As the name says, the premium set has many kinds of seafood on top, and some special toppings you don't get in the usual sets. 👍 The abalone, sea cucumber innard, eel and sea bream nigiri were especially good.
The egg nigiri was fluffy and soft with a subtle sweetness. The salmon nigiri was amazing too~
Extra orders: tuna belly and sea cucumber innard nigiri
The extra tuna belly and sea cucumber innard~ The tuna belly literally melted in my mouth. The richest, nuttiest ever, so good, and the sea cucumber innard nigiri had that deep, creamy taste of the sea.
How is the ₩6,000 braised bream head?
Hehehehe, I love sea bream, so I ordered the braised bream head too. Only ₩6,000, an amazing deal.
As the saying goes, the head is the best part of the fish (eodu yungmi): the meat from the bream head was really tender and delicious. The soy sauce glaze was fantastic and the radish was great too.
Shrimp tempura udon and shrimp and scallop tempura
Udon is a must with sushi~! >_< The udon here comes in a huge portion too.
The noodles were springy and the broth was clean, so even though I was full, my spoon kept going back for more.
We also ordered shrimp tempura and scallop tempura 💕 Wow, the shrimp tempura was really crispy and the shrimp were big, so delicious.
I'd never had scallop tempura before, and the scallop was so mild and tasty. Perfect with beer. 🍺 🍻
Would I go back to Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch?
It's close to Jonggak Station so it's easy to reach, and above all the sushi quality for the price is top-notch, so I'll be coming often whenever I crave sushi. If you're looking for a sushi restaurant around Jonggak Station, Jongno or Gwanghwamun, I highly recommend it ❤️ 🤍 💟 🧡 🤎 ♥️
Where it is
7 Jongno 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea (B1 Unit 104)서울특별시 종로구 종로5길 7 지하1층 104호
