Pumpkin injeolmi in Nam-gu, Ulsan: Baekho Tteokbang

It had been a while since I’d had delicious pumpkin injeolmi (chewy rice cake), so I visited Baekho Tteokbang (백호떡방) in Samsan, Nam-gu. Baekho Tteokbang is not only about rice cakes—the sweet pumpkin sikhye (sweet rice drink) here is seriously, truly delicious too.

Baekho Tteokbang location, parking, and hours

Baekho Tteokbang is very easy to get to. It is in a mixed-use building on Beonyeong-ro in Samsan, Nam-gu, so it is easy to find no matter where you are coming from. ▶ The hours are a little short, so be careful! Monday–Friday, 9:00–17:00; closed Sunday.

Of course, you can use the underground parking garage. The barrier opened right away without any separate parking registration. Even more conveniently, you can pull over briefly along the road in front of the shop like this. It seemed fine for the quick moment it takes to buy rice cakes—there were plenty of other cars there too.

The huge “rice cake” lettering on the floor-to-ceiling window beside the shop naturally catches your eye—you simply cannot walk past it. A monitor right beside it plays the process of making the rice cakes and drinks, and watching it really gets your appetite going.

Saturday afternoon: only three packs left

I visited this time at around 3–4 p.m. on a Saturday. I almost had a disaster on my hands!! Maybe there were lots of customers because it was the weekend, but there were only three packs of rice cakes left ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

Luckily, I could still buy one pack each of Baekho Tteok and Heukho Tteok, but if I had arrived any later, I might have missed the very best Baekho Tteok.

When I returned to Baekho Tteokbang for the first time in a few months, there were new menu items too: Ssukho Tteok and Gureum Tteok! I am so curious about them. Ssukho Tteok especially says it has mugwort castella and pumpkin injeolmi, and since I love both mugwort rice cake and pumpkin rice cake, just hearing the name makes me think I will absolutely, absolutely, absolutely love it. I have to buy it next time.

They also sold small sizes for thank-you gifts by reservation. Pumpkin injeolmi and sweet pumpkin sikhye are things everyone, young or old, enjoys, so I think anyone would be happy to receive them.

I was impressed once again by the polished interior, which is hard to believe belongs to a simple rice cake shop, and brought home rice cakes and drinks.

Baekho Tteok piled high with castella powder

This is Baekho Tteok. Yellow pumpkin injeolmi is topped with an incredibly generous pile of castella crumbs.

Can you see how soft, bouncy, and chewy the rice cake is?

The chewy rice cake, full of bright yellow pumpkin, is truly springy, soft, and so, so delicious. The pumpkin’s gentle sweetness and aroma are wonderfully fragrant. And with all that sweet castella powder coating it, how could it not be delicious~ Even after lifting out one piece, enough castella powder is left in its place to show just how generously it is packed.

The combination of pumpkin rice cake and castella is honestly the best. If you live in Ulsan, you really have to try it ㅠㅠㅠㅠ!!

Heukho Tteok with deep nutty flavor

This is Heukho Tteok. I could not buy it on my previous visit, so I tried it this time. Since I already love black sesame coffee and black sesame ice cream, I naturally expected the rice cake to be delicious too.

Heukho Tteok also has yellow pumpkin glutinous rice cake inside. Seen through the black sesame powder, the yellow looks even more vivid and pretty. The yellow pumpkin rice cake coated in black sesame powder is incredibly nutty!! It has a different charm from Baekho Tteok, with an intense black sesame nuttiness. That makes sense, because there is a considerable amount of black sesame powder too.

After tasting both, I think Baekho Tteok is perfect when you want a gently sweet flavor, while Heukho Tteok is perfect when you are craving something nutty. Sweet pumpkin sikhye is not easy to find, so I was so happy to be able to buy it alongside such delicious rice cakes. It is much richer than ordinary sikhye and full of pumpkin aroma, which made me happy the whole time I drank it. A rice cake and a glass of sikhye are more than enough to stand in for a meal!

My family also picked out whatever each person wanted and happily munched away.

I would love to try rice cakes from other regions that are famous for pumpkin injeolmi too, but Ulsan has Baekho Tteokbang, so there is no need to travel elsewhere, haha. Please make sure to stop by Baekho Tteokbang—it is delicious and filling every time~ ^^