Tangsuyuk and jjajangmyeon lunch, Haeundae Chinese: Bueokgan

The weather was so nice it put me in the mood to run off somewhere, so I took a trip to Busan. While hanging out in Haeundae, I was looking for something to eat for lunch and ended up at Bueokgan Chinese Haeundae Branch on Dalmaji-gil. It's a much cleaner, more upscale-feeling Chinese restaurant than the ones you usually picture, so it was a nice place to feel a bit special and relax during the trip.

Where is Bueokgan Chinese Haeundae Branch, and what about parking and hours?

Bueokgan Chinese Haeundae Branch is open 11:00–21:00, with a break time of 15:00–16:30 and last order at 20:30.

• Hours _ 11:00 – 21:00
• Break time _ 15:00 – 16:30
• Last order _ 20:30

Bueokgan is a mixed F&B space that runs a Chinese restaurant, a restaurant, and a bakery café all together. The building itself is big and stylish, and since there's a café on site too, you can go from a meal straight to coffee or dessert in the same place, which is a nice bonus. There's an underground parking lot, and you can also park on the roadside beside the building, in front of the store, or across the street.

It's a little way up from Dalmaji-gil, and honestly the walk up there was really pretty.

What does this Dalmaji-gil Chinese restaurant look like inside?

Walking into Bueokgan Chinese Haeundae Branch, the atmosphere was pretty different from a typical Chinese restaurant.

Overall it's clean and calm, but with stylish little design touches scattered around, so it had a real sense of atmosphere even for a Chinese restaurant. Tables range from two-tops to group seating for many people, so it looked like a good spot to visit any time — a date, a family meal, a gathering, a work dinner. You'd usually think of Chinese food as smelly and rowdy, but this place is generally calm overall, so it was easy to chat over the meal without any rush.

There's also a big window on one side that lets in plenty of sunlight, and the view outside is pretty nice too, which made the atmosphere even better while eating.

Menu and prices at Bueokgan Chinese Haeundae Branch

• Bueokgan jjajangmyeon ₩8,000
• Gochu ganjjajang ₩10,000
• Su-ran samgyeop ganjjajang ₩10,000
• Wu-samgyeop beef jjamppong ₩12,000
• Seafood jjamppong ₩14,000
• Mala coriander jjamppong ₩14,000
• Shrimp fried rice ₩10,000
• Su-ran nakji junghwa deopbap ₩16,000
• Pyogo-sya ₩18,000
• Yuxiang eggplant ₩22,000
• Jalapeño cream shrimp ₩26,000
• Kkanpung shrimp ₩28,000
• Whole garlic yurinki ₩28,000
• Black vinegar pork loin tangsuyuk ₩28,000
• Five-layer pork jjajang chapchae ₩30,000

The menu ranges from basic Chinese meal staples like jjajangmyeon and jjamppong to ganjjajang, gochu jjajang, fried rice, and dish-style items like tangsuyuk (sweet and sour pork) and yurinki (crispy fried pork with sauce). If you're visiting with a group, it's easy to add dish menu items to share, and there's fried rice for kids too, so it's a good option for family gatherings. Though honestly my niece likes jjajangmyeon more than fried rice haha.

Eating the poached-egg jjajang, beef belly jjamppong and black vinegar tangsuyuk

I ordered su-ran samgyeop ganjjajang, wu-samgyeop beef jjamppong, and black vinegar pork loin tangsuyuk.

Basic side dishes and cold tea came out first. But even the tableware was so pretty. Every single dish was clean and neat, giving more of an upscale restaurant feel than a typical Chinese restaurant.

First out: the jjajangmyeon and jjamppong.

The jjamppong broth was spicy with meat and vegetables cooked in together, and thanks to the fat rendering from the meat, the broth was slightly thick and had a deep flavor. The noodles were chewy and springy, and with so much meat and other ingredients in there, I could taste the juiciness of the meat and the crisp texture and juice from the vegetables — every bite had a mix of different textures, which I loved.

Bueokgan Chinese Haeundae Branch has su-ran samgyeop ganjjajang, a ganjjajang topped with a poached egg. You pop the egg and mix it well into the noodles — since it's ganjjajang, the noodles are already chewy, and once the yolk coats them, a rich savory flavor kicks in right away. The onions still had a nice bite, and best of all, the pork pieces were big and the batter wasn't too thick, so you could really feel the texture of the meat.

You can't leave out tangsuyuk at a Chinese restaurant. The meat was fried crisp, and the sauce wasn't too sweet. The pork pieces were big and the batter was thin, so the texture was amazing and the taste was amazing.

I especially love eating tangsuyuk together with jjajangmyeon. I've been let down plenty of times before when the jjajangmyeon is too salty or the tangsuyuk sauce is too overpowering to eat together, but Bueokgan's food is generally not heavy-handed, so eating them together was even more delicious.

Is Bueokgan Chinese worth a lunch stop in Haeundae?

Bueokgan Chinese Haeundae Branch, which I visited during my Busan trip, felt more like an upscale restaurant where you can eat with a bit of atmosphere than a typical Chinese restaurant. The vibe makes it a good pick for dates, family meals, or group gatherings. It's near Haeundae's Dalmaji-gil, so if you're visiting on a trip like I was, there's plenty to see nearby, making it a great stop for travelers too.