Loach soup lunch with parents near Geumosan, Gumi: Irojeong

On a day out in Gumi with my family, I wanted a hearty, restorative meal, so I headed to Irojeong Gumi Geumosan Direct Branch.

This place has a wide range of menus, from Namwon-style loach soup to full sets with boiled pork and grilled fish, which made it a great spot to visit with my parents.

With a spacious parking lot and group rooms, it was perfect for a family meal out, so let me share a detailed review for anyone looking for a good loach soup restaurant in Gumi.

Location: 9-minute walk from President Park Chung-hee's birthplace

Irojeong Gumi Geumosan Direct Branch is located at 32 Bakjeonghui-ro, Gumi, Gyeongbuk, South Korea.

It's about a 9-minute walk from President Park Chung-hee's birthplace, so it was easy to stop by for a meal after visiting the site.

It's also close to Mount Geumosan, so it seemed like a good stop after an outing there too.

Is parking convenient?

I rode with my dad that day, and since there's a dedicated lot right in front with space for over 60 cars, I never had to circle around looking for a spot — great.

Hours and waiting

The restaurant is open daily from 11am to 9pm, with a break time from 3:30pm to 5pm.

You can register for a table at the entrance, but even though we arrived right at opening on a Saturday, the place was nearly full, so if you want to minimize waiting, I'd recommend going before 11:30am.

Atmosphere, group rooms, and self-serve bar

Since Irojeong Gumi Geumosan Direct Branch hasn't been open long, the interior was clean and pleasant overall.

Tables were spaced generously apart, and there's a room that fits anywhere from 6 to 30 people, making it good not just for family meals but for group dinners too.

I also liked that every table had a tablet installed, so you could browse the menu at your own pace and order without needing to flag down staff.

There's a self-serve bar inside where you can freely help yourself to extra noodles, side dishes, various seasonings, and even watermelon — a nice touch.

Menu lineup

Irojeong's menu includes sanghwang loach soup, the boiled pork sanghwang loach set, the yellowfin sole and boiled pork sanghwang loach set, the boiled pork and mackerel sanghwang loach set, sanghwang black goat soup and boiled black goat set, ginseng loach assorted fritters, and octopus seafood pancake — plenty of options to suit different tastes.

Since my family wanted to try the loach soup along with boiled pork and mackerel, we ordered the boiled pork sanghwang loach set and the mackerel sanghwang loach set.

The basic side dishes came generously laid out — salad, japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), loach fritters, kkakdugi (radish kimchi), and wood ear mushrooms — and instead of plain water, they served a brewed sanghwang mushroom tea.

Sipping the warm, nutty tea before the meal really made it feel like we'd come for a proper restorative meal — I liked that.

How were the pork, mackerel, and Namwon-style loach soup?

The boiled pork in Irojeong's boiled pork sanghwang loach set is said to use one of the world's three great premium pork breeds.

Tasting it, there was no gamey pork smell at all, and the texture was moist — I thought, this is why people call it a great restaurant near Geumosan in Gumi.

The mackerel in the mackerel sanghwang loach set was grilled golden on the outside while staying moist inside, with almost no fishy taste — honestly the best mackerel I've had recently.

The loach soup at Irojeong, a well-known loach soup restaurant near Geumosan in Gumi, is Namwon-style, made with domestic sanghwang mushrooms and domestic loach, giving it a rich, thick broth.

It tasted nutty and savory even plain, but adding minced garlic, minced chili, and perilla powder deepened the flavor even more — very satisfying.

When you order the sanghwang loach soup at Irojeong, it comes with bright yellow turmeric rice instead of plain white rice, which I found a distinctive touch compared to other loach soup restaurants.

It had been a long time since I'd had Namwon-style loach soup, and it exceeded my expectations — I finished the bowl in no time.

After the meal, we could use the café space near the entrance for free.

They had iced cups and Americano, plus restorative sujeonggwa (cinnamon punch), sweet pumpkin sikhye (rice punch), and herbal sipjeondaebo tea — a thoughtful way to enjoy dessert afterward too, which made me think this place really has an eye for detail.

One-line verdict

The price felt reasonable for the set composition, and every dish came out neat and well-prepared — I felt glad I'd brought my family here.

If you're looking for a good loach soup restaurant in Gumi to visit with your parents, I'd definitely recommend considering Irojeong.