Cheongju Korean restaurant for galbi pot rice: Sorori

Sorori Cheongju Main Branch (소로리 청주본점), with its hanok-inspired exterior, is perfect for a Seongan-gil date.

It isn't right in the busiest heart of Seongan-gil, which I actually liked because it felt quieter.

The warm, welcoming interior at Sorori Cheongju Main Branch

The warm brown wood interior has a cozy, old-fashioned feel. It is spacious and clean overall.

There is even a little touch of retro style in the middle of the interior :)

There is a neat self-service bar, too. Use it for extra side dishes.

Pot rice and buckwheat gimbap menu

There are so many kinds of sotbap (pot rice): short rib, abalone, crab meat, Korean beef large intestine, mackerel, cockle, pollock roe, and more. They are even tastier with a variety of seasonal ingredients on top. There is also special buckwheat gimbap (seaweed rice rolls)~! The shrimp buckwheat gimbap is limited to just 10 orders a day.

If you are having trouble choosing, consider a set menu! I only photographed the pot rice and set menus, but they have gimbap too, so keep that in mind.

Oh, and “Sorori” is the name of a place in Sorori, Oksan-myeon, and this pot-rice restaurant was branded in connection with the Oksan Sorori rice grains first discovered there, said to be the world's earliest. As a pot-rice restaurant representing Chungbuk, it says it uses only Oksan Sorori rice, rice from Chungbuk including Jincheon rice, and Chungbuk ingredients. The sesame oil and perilla oil used in Sorori's pot rice are made by traditional pressing, through contracts with local oil mills.

How to enjoy pot rice and buckwheat gimbap

• Mix the pot rice evenly all the way to the bottom. For large-intestine pot rice and eel pot rice, do not mix; scoop it up with the vegetables.
• Add butter or soy-sauce furikake, then wrap it in roasted seaweed.
• Have the buckwheat gimbap with pickled ginger; dip salmon buckwheat gimbap in soy sauce and wasabi, and shrimp buckwheat gimbap in tartar sauce.

We ordered the samgyetang pot rice and beef short-rib pot rice.

The table was set with salted seafood, wasabi, kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi), and seaweed with butter. Personally, the kkakdugi was so good that I refilled it a few times. The samgyetang pot rice even comes with salt!

Hearty samgyetang pot rice

First, the samgyetang pot rice! I haven't been feeling great lately, and this was just!!! the nourishing meal I needed, so I ordered it straight away. Abalone, clams, shrimp, a samgyetang chicken leg, jujubes, octopus, and scallops. It is seriously loaded—just perfect when you need something restorative.

The filling was truly plentiful, and each piece was generously sized with no fishy smell, which made it even better. The chicken leg was so tender it practically melted in my mouth, with lots of meat on it too.

The signature beef short-rib pot rice

Next was the beef short-rib pot rice! It is Sorori's signature pot-rice menu, so I had to order it.

I thought it would taste better mixed up, so I gave it a stir~ It was a little mild for our taste, so we added some of the salt from the samgyetang pot rice and it was seasoned just right. Maybe because it is beef, the braised short ribs were incredibly tender, and the sauce was delicious too. There was no unpleasant fishiness, so I think children would enjoy this without any divided opinions.

Naver photo-review event

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