Pohang mulhoe restaurant with separate broth for squid mulhoe: Ppwang

You've got to eat mulhoe (cold raw fish soup) at least once when you're in Pohang, haha. I was originally planning to go to a different, more famous mulhoe place near Yeongildae, but while looking at menus I spotted squid mulhoe — which I love — and suddenly changed course to Ppwang Mulhoe, haha.

I'm not a huge raw fish person, so I only eat mulhoe occasionally, but to cut to the chase: this suited my taste way better than the usual raw-fish-based mulhoe. Here's my review of Ppwang Mulhoe, right by Yeongildae Beach.

Why I picked Ppwang Mulhoe among the mulhoe spots near Yeongildae Beach

Walking around Yeongildae Beach, you'll find a ton of restaurants selling mulhoe. Search for Pohang restaurant recommendations for mulhoe and several well-known places come up — we were originally going to head to one of the famous ones too, but switched to Ppwang Mulhoe once I saw the squid mulhoe on the menu. It's also close to Yeongildae, so it was nice to have a sea view before eating. If you're looking into mulhoe restaurants in Duho-dong, Pohang, it's worth comparing the location too.

Business info

• Ppwang Mulhoe / 203-1 Haean-ro, 1st floor, Buk-gu, Pohang-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea
• Hours: 10:30–22:00 (last order 21:00)
• Kids welcome
• Parking available in front of the restaurant

Heading from the Yeongildae observatory toward the skywalk, the pink signboard stood out, so it wasn't hard to find. Parking around Yeongildae Beach can be a bit of a hassle, but on our visit we were able to park right in front of the restaurant, which was convenient.

We visited a little before the usual dinner rush.

Each table had a disposable plastic sheet over it. I'm the type who wipes the table down before setting out cutlery, haha, but here since the sheet was already laid out, it was easy to just sit down and eat.

A self-serve side dish bar with even tteokbokki and fried snacks

I visited with Chacha, and one thing I loved eating with a kid was the self-serve bar.

It wasn't just the handful of basic side dishes you usually get at a raw fish restaurant — there was a surprisingly wide variety, from Korean side dishes to tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes) and fried snacks.

Maybe because we came a bit early, the tteokbokki and fried snacks were almost gone at first, but they got restocked once dinner time rolled around.

Squid soup instead of spicy fish stew — great for eating with a kid

A lot of raw fish restaurants near Yeongildae serve spicy fish stew alongside mulhoe, but what I especially liked at Ppwang Mulhoe was that you could get squid soup instead.

Spicy fish stew can be a tricky call when you're eating with a kid, but having squid soup as an option made it easy to share.

Chacha wanted noodles in the squid soup too, so I added some thin wheat noodles and she polished off a whole bowl as an appetizer, haha. Having a menu item like this is such a plus when you're visiting with a kid.

The four dishes we ordered

We ordered squid mulhoe, flounder mulhoe, squid pajeon (green onion pancake), and shrimp fried rice — one for you, one for me, one for all of us, haha.

Squid mulhoe – pour in as much broth as you like

What I was most curious about was of course the fresh squid mulhoe. I'm not really a big raw fish person, so I only eat mulhoe occasionally, but I love squid, so this time I picked squid mulhoe without a second thought.

Once I tried it, the texture was clearly different from regular raw-fish mulhoe. The more I chewed, the more I could feel that signature chewy squid texture, and honestly I enjoyed it more than regular raw fish mulhoe.

At first, the broth color wasn't as dark as at other places, so I thought, 'Huh, is this a lighter style than I expected?' But once I tasted it, the flavor was actually much more intense than the color suggested. I also liked that the broth didn't come already poured in — I could add as much as I wanted. I started with just a little and kept adding more to suit my taste.

Flounder mulhoe – firm, springy texture

Flounder mulhoe was Chacha's dad's pick! I stole a bite too, and the texture was firmer and springier than I expected — quite different from the squid. There's a half-and-half option on the menu too, so if you're curious about both, keep that in mind :)

Squid pajeon

The squid pajeon had more squid packed in than I expected. It was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, so it was great to pick at in between spoonfuls of mulhoe. We both said we were full but kept reaching for more, haha.

Shrimp fried rice

We also ordered shrimp fried rice for the kids to eat. The portion was bigger than expected, so Chacha's dad ended up eating some too. I told Chacha to eat the fried rice and she went straight for all the shrimp first, haha.

Would I go back? For the squid mulhoe, yes

There are so many mulhoe places around Yeongildae in Pohang that I thought I'd try somewhere new next time, but since I like squid more than raw fish, I think I'll come back to Ppwang Mulhoe whenever I crave squid mulhoe, haha.

Being able to add broth to my own taste, having access to the self-serve side dish bar, and above all having squid soup and fried rice that Chacha could eat — all of that made it a great visit for our family with a kid.

If you want to try something a little different from the typical Pohang mulhoe restaurant, give the squid mulhoe a try and compare. If we go back to Yeongildae, I think I'll revisit for the squid mulhoe, haha. If you like squid more than raw fish, this is worth keeping in mind when picking your order :)