Snow crab for two in Gijang, Busan, 1.6kg ₩90,000: Gijang Myeongpum

Gijang Myeongpum Daegae for two: the visit at a glance

• Two leg-jointed snow crabs, 1.6kg → ₩90,000
• About ₩55,000/kg excluding basket weight
• A great amount for two people to eat until stuffed
• Table fee ₩5,000 per person
• Complimentary abalone
• Unlimited self-serve bar
• Crab kept warm the whole meal
• Crab fried rice + doenjang for ₩5,000 recommended
• Recommended for a Gijang Market family gathering

If you're looking for a snow crab spot in Gijang, Busan, this is one you really should try at least once. I ate here before and honestly fell for it hard — I wanted to eat it again the second I got home. With autumn coming and crab season kicking in, I ended up coming back for more, haha.

To cut to the conclusion — my snow crab life changed here, sort of. It was meatier and tastier than the crab I once ate in Pohang for a higher price. On top of that, they keep the crab warm the whole time you're eating, you get to use the self-serve bar, and the table fee is a cheap ₩5,000 per person. They even threw in free abalone. Honestly, why wouldn't you go?

Left: leg-jointed snow crab. Right: regular snow crab. The crabs here are so meaty that ordering just two leg-jointed crabs is enough for two people to eat until stuffed!!

How does Gijang Myeongpum Daegae weigh crab without the basket?

Gijang Myeongpum Daegae subtracts the basket weight from the crab's total weight before charging you. This is an example price they showed me with the basket weight excluded — two really meaty crabs come to about ₩130,000.

If they didn't subtract the basket weight, it would come close to ₩190,000..! The basket alone accounts for ₩60,000.

This place is famous even among locals for being honest. Their scale is always set to a minus offset!!

Two snow crabs, 1.6kg for ₩90,000, and a local's ordering tip

These are the leg-jointed crabs we picked out!! Here's a local ordering tip. At Gijang Myeongpum Daegae, I'd recommend asking for leg-jointed crab — these are crabs missing one or two legs, but the meat is packed in every corner of the body, so you get more meat overall!!

Total weight was 1.6kg for ₩90,000. Work it out and that's about ₩55,000 per kg. I find it easiest to just think of it as eating your fill of crab for ₩90,000 between two people. I genuinely nearly pass out from being so full every time I come here…

What the ₩5,000 table charge and self-serve bar include

Unlimited self-serve bar plus having the crab and abalone steamed for you, all for ₩5,000 per person!! Ridiculously good value. Let me show you what's on the self-serve bar.

This season they had palbochae (mixed seafood and vegetable stir-fry) on the self-serve bar? It had plenty of seafood in it and was seasoned just right, good as a little appetizer before the crab.

The fried chicken bites weren't too cold either, crispy and delicious.

You have to grab the jjolmyeon (chewy cold noodles) and kimchi here — non-negotiable.

These are the two bowls I grabbed for myself, haha. I finished them before the crab even came out.. There was a big group in that day, so steaming the crab took about 20 minutes.

Just grab as much soy sauce as you want from the self-serve bar!!

Two free abalones and crab that stays warm to the last leg

The gorgeous crab and abalone finally arrived. They just gave us two meaty abalones as a complimentary extra!! They were giving it to every table.

And the rich crab roe on top of that...💓

Why Gijang Myeongpum Daegae suits a family gathering near Gijang Market

When you go out for snow crab, one really, really important thing is that the crab doesn't get cold while you're eating. Gijang Myeongpum Daegae kept the crab warm the whole time, so even eating slowly, it stayed warm right to the end!! This really matters!! Cold crab starts to smell fishy!!

Just crack it open and look at how packed the meat is.. this kind of meat yield is genuinely rare.

This is my favorite combo💓🤌🤌 jjolmyeon with crab meat is love.

The abalone was so plump and tender, not fishy at all, and just delicious.

There's so much meat in the body here too, that the meat from just one side of the body alone can fill a whole bowl!! Seriously. And what I really recommend this place for as a Gijang Market family gathering spot is that even the older generation would enjoy it. The elderly couple at the next table kept saying how full the crab meat was and how good it tasted. When we visited, the place was packed, and it seems to be busy every time, so it feels like a spot locals keep coming back to.

Always order the ₩5,000 crab fried rice

Gijang Myeongpum Daegae's crab fried rice is ₩5,000. This time my stomach was already quite full, but it felt like a waste to stop at just crab, so I ordered one crab fried rice plus a doenjang (soybean paste) stew. One bite in and I immediately thought, 'Ugh… I should have ordered two.' Instant regret.😭😭😭😭 The umami is on another level.

You know full well that eating fried rice after crab is going to make you feel like you'll burst, but you keep eating it anyway. I skipped the fried rice on my last visit, but now that I've had it, I'm ordering it every time from now on. It's ₩5,000 — just order it. If you don't, chances are you'll be the one saying 'I should have ordered one more…' later, just like me.

The doenjang stew comes alongside it, served generously like a whole basin. And they even put crab in it! The broth has crab flavor infused into it, so eating a spoonful of stew between bites of crab makes you crave rice all over again.

And something I just found out this time — apparently there's a crab ramyeon (instant noodle soup) menu?! I had no idea it existed until I saw the table next to us order it as they were finishing up. Next visit, I'm definitely trying the crab ramyeon too.

Is this Gijang crab restaurant worth a return trip?

I'm not just saying this to be nice. The last time I ate here, I wanted it again the moment I got home, and eating it again this time was just as good. In particular, the crab meat was packed and stayed warm the whole meal, which I loved. The self-serve bar is convenient too, and the ₩5,000 per-person table fee keeps it affordable. On top of that, there's the complimentary abalone.

What I liked most of all was that they calculate the price based on crab weight with the basket weight excluded. Whenever you go out for crab, it's always a little nagging in the back of your mind whether there's a basket fee or extra charges tacked onto the weight, but here I felt like they run things honestly. Maybe that's why it seems packed every time I visit.

If you're looking for a snow crab restaurant in Gijang, Busan — especially somewhere to eat generously as a family — I recommend this place. It works well as a Gijang Market family gathering spot, and I think your parents would love it too. Next time, I'm coming back to try the crab ramyeon as well. If you like snow crab, you really have to go. I'm confident you won't regret it here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!