Ilsan sushi belly platter 10p with engawa and monkfish liver: Hwangje

Hwangje Sushi Ilsan Main Branch is one of Ilsan's go-to sushi restaurants, serving aged sushi made from live fish caught fresh daily and slow-aged at low temperature.

Hwangje Sushi Ilsan Main Branch hours and parking

Hwangje Sushi Ilsan Main Branch is open daily from 11:00 to 21:30, with a break time from 15:00 to 17:00. Last order is at 14:20 and 20:50, and parking is available at the SK MCT mall.

How to find Hwangje Sushi inside the SK MCT mall

If you park, just use the SK MCT mall parking lot — pass through the wedding hall inside Gate 12, take the elevator down to the 1st floor, and it's on your left. There are signs pointing to Hwangje Sushi along the way, so just follow them and you'll get there quickly.

Hwangje Sushi is located on the 1st floor of the Green Zone.

Hwangje Sushi sits between Madu Station and Jangbalsan Station on Line 3, and with parking space available, it's easy to get to. Ilsan Lake Park, Western Dome, Lotte Department Store Ilsan Branch and NC Outlet Ilsan Branch are all nearby too, making it a great spot to grab good sushi on a date.

Inside Hwangje Sushi: seating for solo diners and groups

The interior of Hwangje Sushi Ilsan Main Branch has a clean white tone with wood tables, and they've set up seating that works for everyone from solo diners to group meals. It looked great for a family meal, a date, or a group gathering, and there's also counter seating, so it worked really well whether you're alone or with a crowd.

What is on the Hwangje Sushi menu?

You can tell from the menu how serious they are about sushi — the lineup ranges from basic assorted sushi to special sets, and it's really varied. Besides the assorted sushi sets, sashimi, and hoedeopbap (raw fish rice bowl), there's also sake-don, unagi-don, kaisendon and futomaki, the kind of dishes you'd find at a proper Japanese restaurant, so there's plenty to choose from.

If you take part in the Naver receipt review event, you get one extra piece of a special cut.

Orders go through table-order with payment upfront. Chopsticks, napkins and wet wipes are in the drawer under the table, and soy sauce, pickled radish and pickled ginger are already set on the table.

Broth, side plates and pickled radish are available at the self-serve bar.

There's also Ebisu and Sapporo, two premium draft beers that go well with sushi.

When you order sushi, you get pickled vegetables, seasonal porridge, mini udon, grilled fish and croquette as standard.

What we ordered: two sushi platters, 10 pieces each

Hwangje Sushi says they age live fish caught fresh every day at low temperature, and the Japanese chefs prepare it to order.

They use seasonal live fish along with herring, sea bass, Spanish mackerel, horse mackerel and other ingredients you rarely see at a regular sushi restaurant. Between the familiar cuts and the more unusual fish, it felt as varied as an omakase, which really stood out.

Assorted sushi 10p, 19,000 won

A fully-loaded set — Hwangje Sushi's signature assorted sushi. (Flounder, seasonal live fish, salmon, tuna, sweet shrimp, soy-marinated shrimp, grilled salmon, beef)

This assorted sushi lets you try salmon, flounder, beef and more all at once. Maybe because they use aged fish, the texture was chewy yet firm, and the flavor of the fish deepened the more I chewed.

Belly assorted sushi 10p, 29,000 won

A set of premium belly cuts from a variety of fish, with a richness that's the real draw. (Bluefin tuna belly, medakadoro, engawa, salmon belly, seasonal belly, anago liver)

On top of the sushi, they added anago liver, scallion sauce and other sauces to make the flavor even richer. With just the right fattiness and a flavor that deepened with every bite, each piece was so satisfying (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

The bluefin tuna belly and medakadoro were especially delicious. Getting to properly taste premium fish and cuts you don't normally come across made it feel even more special.

Is Hwangje Sushi in Ilsan worth it?

Being able to try such a wide range of special sushi made this an even more satisfying visit. If you want to properly enjoy aged sushi along with premium fish that's hard to come by elsewhere, I'd recommend Hwangje Sushi.

• Recommended restaurant near Ilsan Lake Park
• Aged sushi restaurant with a wide variety of fish
• Great for family meals, group gatherings, and dates