Haeundae pasta restaurant with kungpao chicken pilaf: Bueokgan

Visited a Haeundae favorite, Bueokgan Haeundae Branch, for brunch.

Where is Bueokgan Haeundae Branch, and what are the hours?

Bueokgan Haeundae Branch is on the 2nd floor at 200 Dalmaji-gil117beonna-gil, Haeundae-gu, Busan. It's open daily 11:00-21:00, with a break time from 15:00-16:30, and last order at 20:30.

This Haeundae Western restaurant shares the building with a café and Bueokgan's Chinese branch on other floors, but the café seemed to be under renovation so we couldn't use it, unfortunately.

Bueokgan menu and prices

I ordered carbonara, kungpao chicken pilaf, sweet potato fries, and a Coca-Cola Zero.

• Baby cabbage Caesar salad ₩16,000
• Grilled mushroom salad ₩16,000
• Bueokgan couple dish set ₩51,000
• Bueokgan steak set ₩89,000

There's a honey pie prepared for a review event, so keep an eye out for that too.

• Sweet pumpkin soup ₩8,000
• Pastry soup ₩10,000
• Sweet potato fries ₩8,000

• Shrimp anchovy oil pasta ₩18,000
• Vongole pasta ₩20,000
• Basil pesto cream pasta ₩18,000
• Carbonara ₩19,000
• Truffle mushroom cream gnocchi ₩22,000
• Shrimp rosé pasta ₩20,000
• Seafood tomato clay-pot pasta ₩19,000
• Lasagna ₩21,000

There's a huge range of pasta so there's something for every taste — plus abalone cream risotto ₩20,000 and kungpao chicken pilaf ₩22,000.

• Pepperoni pizza ₩17,000
• Basil margherita pizza ₩19,000
• Truffle mushroom pizza ₩22,000
• Arugula prosciutto pizza ₩22,000
• Jambon pizza ₩24,000

Bueokgan tenderloin steak is ₩58,000 for 200g and ₩109,000 for 400g.

From coffee to orange grapefruit, lemonade, apple earl grey ade and more — plenty of drink options too.

They also have bottled beer, from Budweiser to Guinness stout.

There was a wine fridge stocked with bottles too. Glass or bottle both possible, so it seems like a great spot for gatherings.

Bowls and cutlery were already set at every seat.

The restaurant itself is spacious, so it looks great for group visits or a family meal out.

I ordered a Coke Zero and they brought out a cup of ice for it.

Sweet potato fries with cheese sprinkled on top

My husband had been craving sweet potato fries! Bueokgan's sweet potato fries are ₩8,000.

Ketchup came alongside. The sweet potato itself is sweet, so eating it plain without sauce was nice too — you can really taste the sweet potato.

They dust the fries with cheese on top, which doubles the savory flavor, I think.

Is the carbonara at Bueokgan too heavy?

I don't usually like greasy pasta, but Bueokgan's carbonara (₩19,000) actually appealed to me. The rich, thick sauce was so good I dug in the moment it arrived.

Cucumber pickles and radish pickles too! Eating them alongside made the pasta taste even better.

There's a poached egg on top of the carbonara, so just mix it in well.

Thick bacon, button mushrooms, onions and more — eating them together with the pasta doubled the flavor too.

Not greasy at all, just pleasantly savory, and the carbonara went down so easily that I wanted to try everything else on the menu too.

Kungpao chicken pilaf with a whole sous-vide chicken thigh

The kungpao chicken pilaf is ₩22,000. It's billed as a Chinese-style pilaf, and it had a familiar sweetness with a smoky, charred flavor.

A whole big chicken thigh sits on top, so the portion was seriously huuuuuge!!

See how the inside looks slightly pink? The staff told us it's cooked sous-vide at a low temperature, so it's fine to eat even though it looks a bit pink inside.

My husband carefully picked all the meat off the bone and scattered it over the pilaf — protein plus a pilaf flavor no Korean person could dislike, making for a balanced, healthy dish.

Picking apart a chicken thigh takes effort, so having the meat already pulled and piled on top made it both easier to eat and more appetizing to look at.

Is parking easy? Why Bueokgan works for brunch in Haeundae

Haeundae Beach's main street gets so crowded that parking is a hassle, but Bueokgan Haeundae Branch, up on Haeundae's Dalmaji-gogae, has parking right below the restaurant and lets you enjoy a quiet meal — which is exactly why I'd recommend it for a brunch outing.