Yeonsu sashimi lunch: ₩16,900 Seon set and free ice cream, Veteran

I loved my last visit so much that I promised myself I'd come back, and here I am again at this sashimi restaurant in Yeonsu: Veteran General Fish Market Incheon Yeonsu Branch (베테랑 종합어시장 인천연수점)! The weather's getting cooler, and I keep craving fresh sashimi and seasonal seafood like Incheon salt-grilled shrimp. The quality and value won me over last time, so I headed back without a second thought.

This time I ordered the lunch special Seon course, which is famous as the ultimate value pick. The spread was far more generous than I imagined for the price, and I left very happy. Let's get into an honest, detailed revisit review!

Where is Veteran General Fish Market Incheon Yeonsu Branch?

The restaurant is on the 3rd floor of Yeonsu Gwangjang Plaza, so it's very easy to find. The building directory clearly shows the Veteran General Fish Market (Incheon Yeonsu Branch) sign on the 3rd floor. Step inside and a bold slogan catches your eye: "We're different! Compare us~~~ This is how sashimi is made."

The big electronic signboard spells out their philosophy:

• Sashimi prepared with the skilled hands of a chef with 30 years of experience
• Domestic live fish and seafood, with the rule of using up ingredients every day
• Healthy, safe ingredients that deliver more value than the price

Seeing all this written out really boosts my trust! Thanks to the freshness and hygiene you'd expect from a Yeonsu sashimi restaurant, I could eat with confidence on this revisit, just like last time.

What's at the self-serve bar, and do you cook the kimchi pancakes yourself?

At the self-serve bar you can freely take ssam (wrap) vegetables, cabbage salad, white kimchi, pickled ginger, pickled scallion bulbs (rakkyo), chili peppers, garlic and ramyeon noodles. After being shown to our seats I headed to the bar first, and the neatly kept bar is one of this place's big strengths. From the fresh lettuce and perilla leaves to the ramyeon noodles, everything was tidy and clean, which put me in a good mood right away.

And the best part, a fun event: a DIY kimchi pancake corner! There are burners, frying pans and kimchi pancake batter, so you can cook as many as you like. (A notice says that if you leave your spot while cooking, the smoke can set off the fire alarm, so be sure to stay put!)

A freshly fried, crispy, sweet-and-spicy kimchi pancake before the meal really woke up my appetite.

How much is the lunch special sashimi set (Seon) and what comes in it?

The lunch special sashimi set (Seon) is ₩16,900 per person, with a minimum of 2 people. We checked the menu on the smart order tablet at the table.

The lunch special is split into Mi, Seon, Jin and so on. We chose the "lunch special sashimi set (Seon)."

Here's what the Seon set includes:

• Assorted sashimi (live fish)
• Sushi (salmon, flounder, etc.)
• Crispy tempura (shrimp, sweet potato, etc.)
• Grilled saury (grilled fish)
• Roe rice and spicy fish stew (maeun-tang)
• Basic side dishes (seaweed soup, sashimi salad, etc.)

Dishes kept arriving one by one, and the table was so loaded it felt like the legs might buckle.

The assorted sashimi and sushi in the Seon set

The star of the Seon set, the assorted sashimi, was cut to a good thickness and nicely chewy. It had a glossy sheen that made it look fresh at a glance. Maybe because a chef with 30 years of experience prepares it himself, the chewy texture was excellent, and the nutty, sweet flavor the more I chewed really lived up to the title of Yeonsu sashimi restaurant.

The sushi that came with it was salmon sushi and live-fish sushi. The rice portion was right and the fish slices were long and generous, so the quality rivaled a dedicated sushi restaurant.

Grilled saury and tempura

The grilled saury in the Seon set came out beautifully cooked, crispy outside and moist inside. I picked out the bones, dipped the flesh in soy sauce with wasabi, and the rich flavor filled my mouth.

The freshly fried tempura had a thin, crispy batter too, so it stayed light and never greasy to the end.

Finishing with seaweed soup, spicy fish stew and roe rice

The Seon set starts with seaweed soup and finishes with roe rice and spicy fish stew. The seaweed soup served as a basic had such a deep, rich broth that I kept going back for more, and the roe rice and stew at the end were a perfect finish. Adding the self-serve ramyeon noodles to the bubbling stew, I wondered if there could be a more satisfying lunch than this!

Do they have Incheon salt-grilled shrimp in autumn?

If you visit at this time of year, do check out the king prawn salt-grilled dish too! I didn't eat it this time, but I hear plenty of people come in autumn looking for plump, fresh Incheon salt-grilled shrimp. I saw the next table eating it, and the steaming, red-cooked king prawns looked so appetizing. Next time I'll visit at dinner and have the clean-tasting, springy salt-grilled shrimp with a glass of soju.

Is the dessert ice cream free?

On your way out there's a dessert corner where you can get ice cream for free. Cups and scoops are neatly set out, so you can scoop whatever flavor you like. A small but touching service!

After a mouth full of spicy fish stew, cooling it down with sweet, cold ice cream made the meal feel neatly wrapped up. You can feel that they think about customers in every little service, so this place puts me in a good mood every time I come.

Summary

• Restaurant: Veteran General Fish Market Incheon Yeonsu Branch
• Key features: fresh sashimi from a chef with 30 years of experience, a well-stocked self-serve bar with DIY kimchi pancakes, and free dessert ice cream
• Dish ordered: lunch special sashimi set (Seon)
• Why I recommend it: sashimi, sushi, tempura, grilled fish, roe rice and spicy fish stew, all for under ₩20,000. Overwhelming value!

This revisit was once again a more-than-satisfying meal at a Yeonsu sashimi restaurant. If you want a hearty, good-value sashimi set for lunch, or want to try plump seasonal Incheon salt-grilled shrimp, don't hesitate: I strongly recommend Veteran General Fish Market Incheon Yeonsu Branch. 200% I'll be back! I'll run over again next time for tasty sashimi and seafood.