Changwon Korean restaurant lunch with spicy pork: Masan Ssamjangjip

Masan Ssamjangjip opposite Daetgeori Marine Park

Today, I went for lunch at Masan Ssamjangjip, a newly opened Korean set-meal restaurant in Daetgeori. I kept passing by and seeing the sign, thinking, “Oh… a new place opened there,” but even though it has not been open long, the wait was huge. ꒪ꄱ꒪ Still, we waited about 30 minutes and had our meal ~!

This is the exterior of Masan Ssamjangjip, right across the main road from Daetgeori Marine Park. The sign is so easy to read that you can spot it from far away. There is no separate parking lot; I visited around 12:30 p.m. on Sunday and parked on the road right in front, which seemed to be allowed at that time? There is a Marine Park parking lot directly across the street, so you can use that too.

Masan Ssamjangjip, the Masan Korean set-meal restaurant, is on the second floor. We walked up the stairs.

Hangang ramen and the self-service zone while waiting

Inside, strings of warm-toned lights made for a pretty, rustic atmosphere. Near the entrance, there was a list where you could write your name for the wait, and I was number 7. When I wrote it down, I only saw the crossed-out section and thought there were just three groups ahead of us...

This is Hangang ramen, which you can help yourself to while eating, but apparently you can also eat unlimited amounts while you wait. There were about four kinds of ramen to choose from. My husband cooked himself a Snack Ramen while we were waiting too, hahaha.

Masan Ssamjangjip, a Daetgeori meal spot, also has a self-service zone like this, with various snacks, desserts, and fruit. You can have them after your meal, but people were having plenty while they waited too. Those songpyeon (half-moon rice cakes) were especially popular.

Rustic interior and seating for families or groups

The day I visited, there were so many customers and they were incredibly busy… I snapped these quickly after guests left, before the table was cleared. There were lots of pretty décor pieces using mother-of-pearl inlay and folding screens. There were also plenty of group tables, so it looked great for a family meal or gathering.

Look at these little decorative details too! Hahaha.

A spicy pork set meal with 30 side dishes

Here is the menu at Masan Ssamjangjip, the Masan Korean set-meal restaurant. One menu item per person is required from elementary-school age! Alcohol is ₩5,000, which is about average. Also note that steamed rice is ₩2,000.

• Spicy pork set × 2: ₩29,800
• Steamed rice: ₩2,000

They also have high chairs and baby tableware, so it seemed like a nice place to take a baby for a meal. There were really lots of babies there that day too… hahaha. The water was barley tea, and I really love restaurants that serve barley tea. ( ˶˙ᵕ˙˶ )

After ordering, the food came out quickly. They plated all 30 side dishes so beautifully.

There were ssam vegetables for wrapping, and truly so much to eat! Even jeon (Korean pan-fried fritters), which are missing from the photo above!

Whetting the appetite with dubu kimchi (tofu with kimchi).

The doenjang jjigae (soybean-paste stew) had blue crab in it, and it was so delicious! A total rice thief!!

This was gangdoenjang, a thick soybean-paste dip with whelk. It had a strong garlicky flavor and was so good. It was not overly salty, and adding a generous spoonful when making a wrap gave it both great texture and flavor ~

It was delicious even simply wrapped in perilla leaf ~ Overall, the seasoning on everything was just right and tasty.

Braised mackerel also comes as a basic side dish, and look how thick the flesh is!

A weekend lunch set meal I want to return for

Masan Ssamjangjip is a popular Daetgeori spot with a huge wait when I visited for weekend lunch. Once I tried it, I understood why it was so busy: for ₩14,900, you get such a generous spread, so the value is really good too. I am planning to come back again next time.