Cheongju Korean restaurant for mentaiko butter pot rice: Sorori

I was wondering what to eat for lunch, then suddenly wanted some warm pot rice, so off I went to this Gagyeong-dong spot! This time I visited Sorori Sotbap Gagyeong Direct Branch (소로리솥밥 가경직영점). I wanted pot rice and gimbap (seaweed rice roll), and they sell buckwheat-noodle gimbap alongside the pot rice, so choosing was fun haha.

The name Sorori was interesting too—it comes from Sorori, a place in Oksan-myeon, Cheongju. It is a pot-rice restaurant that has made rice the star of its branding, connecting the name to the Oksan Sorori rice grains, said to be the world’s first discovered rice grains! Maybe that is why the explanation of the rice was quite memorable too.

Sorori says it does not cook rice ahead of time before guests arrive; it starts cooking the moment an order comes in. Even if there is a bit of a wait, I could feel the restaurant’s own commitment to serving freshly cooked pot rice.

Location and parking at Sorori Sotbap Gagyeong Direct Branch

It is next to Cusco Mart at 16 Seohyeonnam-ro, Heungdeok-gu, Cheongju, Chungcheongbuk-do, South Korea. It is open daily from 11:00 to 20:30, with a break from 15:00 to 17:00 and last orders at 20:00.

There is a parking lot behind the Seohyeon Plaza building, with room for about 200 cars!

A comfortable dining room and family-friendly touches

When I walked in, the interior was much more comfortable than I expected. Everything was neatly arranged, and the tables were laid out comfortably, so it seemed great for a meal with friends.

Groups are welcome, and reservations, takeaway, and delivery are available. They also have high chairs, children’s tableware, plain rice for babies, and seaweed, so it seems like a decent place to visit with kids too.

More than anything, delivery notifications kept sounding while we ate, which was kind of funny lol. It made me think delivery orders must come in steadily too.

The self-service bar had plenty of side dishes too~ The table drawer holds cutlery, tissues, wet wipes, cups, water, sesame seeds, and soy sauce, just for reference~ When I asked for an ice cup and water, they brought them over!

Mentaiko butter pot rice and three buckwheat gimbap options

• Mentaiko butter pot rice ₩11,000
• Raw salmon buckwheat gimbap ₩13,000
• Buckwheat gimbap ₩9,000

One pot rice plus two kinds of gimbap! I wondered whether it would be enough for two, but to give away the ending... it was more filling than expected lol. The buckwheat gimbap was surprisingly substantial, and we walked out truly stuffed! Delicious full spread~

A photo that makes me want it again!!!

Light buckwheat gimbap that kept me reaching for more

The buckwheat gimbap had the lightness of buckwheat noodles, with egg, avocado, fried tofu, shiitake mushrooms, and arugula, for an overall clean flavor that was not heavy.

The wasabi mayo gave a little kick at the finish, and the combination worked surprisingly well. Once I started eating piece after piece, I kept reaching for it more than I expected lol.

Plump raw salmon buckwheat gimbap

The raw salmon buckwheat gimbap is said to be one of Sorori’s signature dishes, with plump pieces of raw salmon inside. The salmon was cut quite thick, making the cross-section look even more appetizing.

Sorori says it boils buckwheat noodles every morning, then marinates them in its special tsuyu sauce to make the gimbap. It also uses its own aging method for the salmon to reduce fishiness and bring out umami! The ingredient combination really was completely different from ordinary gimbap.

With buckwheat noodles, egg, avocado, shiitake mushrooms, fried tofu, arugula, and wasabi mayo, it was the kind of bite where many flavors come through at once. Perhaps because of the raw salmon, I loved that it was both light and soft. And I thought gimbap would be a small portion, but it was surprisingly substantial—I thought I might burst!!

Three ways to enjoy mentaiko butter pot rice

The mentaiko butter pot rice arrived in a piping-hot pot, topped with mentaiko (seasoned pollock roe). The little kettle was sooo cute..

One scoop of mentaiko was so cute lolllll. Give it a good mix~

I expected mentaiko to be salty, but it was less salty than expected, which I liked! I served some out and enjoyed it as is, then poured in hot water and enjoyed it once more, like ochazuke (rice with hot tea or broth).

And of course, I enjoyed the nurungji (crispy scorched rice) left in the pot as a third round. There is such fun in scraping up the nurungji after the rice is gone~ It was warm and toasty, making for a hearty finish.

The butter melting softly over the warm rice looked so delicious! It added a nutty, salty, savory depth, so even the rice on its own was tasty. Being able to eat it piping hot right away seems like pot rice’s greatest charm! As the butter melted into the warm rice, the nutty aroma really rose up, and I kept going back for more!

It was delicious wrapped in the seaweed that came with it too! Eating the butter mentaiko rice plain and wrapping it in seaweed felt different again. The crisp, nutty seaweed made it a quietly special treat~ Personally, I recommend wrapping it in seaweed!

Even when you are full, it still keeps going down, right,,,,?

A slurp of miyeokguk (seaweed soup) too! Sorori Sotbap says it uses rice from the Chungbuk region and insists on ingredients produced in Chungbuk. It stores Jincheon rice at ultra-low temperatures to keep the rice quality consistent, and after trying the pot rice myself, the grains were warm and nutty and matched the dishes well.

They also say that rather than using ordinary sesame and perilla oils, they contract with an oil mill for traditionally pressed oils, and I think details like that affect the food’s nutty flavor too. Scrape scrape... yum yum yum... mid-meal check... lolllll. I almost left some because I was so full haha;;; but I scraped it all clean~

I tried the event too! There was a lucky-draw event, so I picked one while secretly hoping... and won a cider lol. There was even Staub cookware as a prize, and I wanted that one—what a shame~ Still, I got a cold cider and drank it happily before leaving haha.

They validated the parking too~ And toothpicks, floss, and other thoughtful little touches~

My thoughts after the meal

There was a waiting list, as you would expect from a popular restaurant. The food was good overall, the staff were kind, and I was able to enjoy the meal in a pleasant mood. Above all, I loved how comfortable the restaurant was—it made for an easy, relaxed meal.

If I had to name just one small disappointment, it would be nice if the side dishes at the self-service corner had labels! When it was a side dish I did not know, it was a little hard to tell what it was, so I hesitated haha. The side dishes were tasty overall, and I was satisfied with everything from the menu to the restaurant atmosphere.

The mentaiko butter pot rice was memorable for its nutty flavor of butter and mentaiko mixed into hot rice, and wrapping it in seaweed was a special treat too. I tried both buckwheat gimbap varieties, and personally, the lighter basic buckwheat gimbap was more my style! The raw salmon version has plump salmon inside, so I think it would suit salmon lovers well.

If you are craving warm pot rice and want a clean, satisfying meal, I would recommend Sorori Sotbap Gagyeong Direct Branch. It has many kinds of pot rice as well as the unusual buckwheat gimbap, so there are plenty of options for one meal! With delivery orders continuing to come in while I ate, it seemed like a place many people in Cheongju return to regularly.