Gumi Korean restaurant for family meals near Geumosan: Irojeong

Wanting a hearty Korean meal near Geumosan, I visited Irojeong Gumi Geumosan Direct Branch 😊 Once we ordered loach soup, boiled pork, grilled fish, and seafood pajeon (Korean scallion pancake), the table filled up in no time. Just looking at the photos brings back how abundantly we ate that day 🤭💛

Parking and entrance at Irojeong Gumi Geumosan Direct Branch

The restaurant 🏠

There was a large parking area in front of the building, so it was easy to visit by car 🚗

The Irojeong sign was easy to spot right from the entrance, so it wasn't hard to find! The restroom was also very clean :)

Waiting and spacious seating

There was Tableling right outside the restaurant! I visited at 2 p.m. too, and I was 14th in line!

Inside, the restaurant was bright and fairly spacious. Eek! ٩꒰⍢ ꒱۶⁼³₌₃ Along with regular tables, I saw partitioned seating, and there were quite a few diners when I visited!

Plants by one window paired beautifully with the wood-toned interior 🌿

I thought it would be comfortable for a family meal or for a larger group visiting together!

There are private rooms too. And there are partitions :)

There was also a play area for families visiting with children 👧🏻 It had floor mats and a device with a screen for kids to play with! Eek! ٩꒰⍢ ꒱۶⁼³₌₃

Post-meal drinks and self-serve side dishes

After the meal, I also spotted a space where you can have drinks and coffee ☕

People waiting for a table use this space too! While I waited, I had gangjeong (sweet crispy rice snack) and sikhye (sweet rice drink)!

You can take as much as you need from the self-serve side-dish corner. There was a wide selection of kimchi, vegetables, and accompaniments, and it was fun choosing and filling my plate with each one 🥬

Choosing loach soup and side dishes

A look at the menu 📖

The Irojeong menu included its signature loach soup, along with boiled pork and black goat dishes. So good ദ്ദി ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ ) There were also full-set meals that pair loach soup with other dishes, which looked handy when it is hard to choose every item separately 😊

For dishes to share, there were whole-octopus seafood pajeon, shredded-potato pancake, and grilled mackerel. Hehe, I also saw Korean beef seaweed soup and pork cutlet! It seemed like a good place to choose from when someone wants loach soup and someone else is craving something different :) One side of the menu also had information about takeaway loach soup 🛍️

We felt it would be a shame to have soup alone, so we added boiled pork, grilled mackerel, and a whole-octopus seafood pajeon. Eek! ٩꒰⍢ ꒱۶⁼³₌₃ As the dishes came out one by one, the table became more and more abundant, and so did our anticipation 😆

From loach soup to whole-octopus seafood pajeon

What we ate 🍚

The loach soup came in a hot earthenware bowl! Finely chopped vegetables blended into the broth, and having spoonfuls with warm rice made me feel nicely full 🥄 I loved that it stayed piping hot throughout the meal.

The boiled pork came sliced into easy-to-eat pieces, so I picked it up with the side dishes! While eating the loach soup,

having a piece of boiled pork changed up the flavor, so I kept reaching for it 🥬

The grilled mackerel also came with two generous pieces! It was neatly served with lemon, and once I picked off the flesh and placed it over rice, I was reminded that grilled fish and rice are always a winning combination 🐟💕

The dish that caught my eye most was the huge whole-octopus seafood pajeon! It was large enough to fill a wide basket, so we both stared at it as soon as it arrived 😳

It was topped generously with chives, with the octopus standing out in the middle, so I had to take photos too 📸 Pulling off a piece at a time and dipping it in sauce made it great for sharing!

We also had a little of the basic side dishes along the way, which let us enjoy the whole spread evenly. So good ദ്ദി ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ )

A day when we had a satisfying meal of loach soup, then shared boiled pork, grilled fish, and seafood pajeon too 🍽️ It is a place that comes to mind when you want a plentiful Korean meal with family or companions near Geumosan 😊