Chungju noodle restaurant with pork set and seafood pancake: Yeonsuok

📍 [ Yeonsuok Shabu Kalguksu ]

• 🕖 Hours: Wed–Mon 11:00–21:00 (Closed Tuesdays, Break Time 15:00–16:30, Last Order 20:20)
• 🚙 Parking: Available, parking in front of the restaurant
• 💡 Other: Group-friendly, baby chairs available 🍼, reservations possible

I went to a shabu-shabu place I love — handmade kalguksu (knife-cut noodle) noodles plus sangwhwang mushroom broth made it so delicious, so let me introduce Yeonsuok Shabu Kalguksu! 🩵🩵

Yeonsuok Shabu Kalguksu in one line

Let's start with the conclusion! 🧍🏻‍♀️

Yeonsuok Shabu Kalguksu... has a deep, clean sangwhwang mushroom broth 🍄 + chewy handmade kalguksu noodles + boiled pork + seafood pancake — you can have a really hearty meal here!

I'd recommend it to anyone who loves shabu kalguksu, or anyone looking for a comfortable place to eat with family or friends! 🚶🏻‍♀️

Inside Yeonsuok in Yeonsu-dong, Chungju: space and seating

Yeonsuok, located in old Yeonsu-dong, is spacious and pretty clean overall, so it was comfortable to sit down and eat right away!

The tables are set up generously like this, so it seems good for visiting with family and would also suit group gatherings or work dinners!

The ceilings are fairly high so it's not noisy, and overall it's quiet.

Self-serve bar and baby chairs at Yeonsuok

On one side there's a self-bar like this, mostly ingredients for barley rice! I got so full while eating that I skipped the barley rice, but writing this is making me hungry again!!

Broth, bowls, and rice are all laid out here 🍚

There are also lots of baby chairs, so it seems great for coming with little ones and eating comfortably!

If you do the receipt review event, they give you this Gongju chestnut puffed rice snack, haha ~

And I visited around 2pm on a weekday but there were still quite a few people there, which made me even more excited for the shabu-shabu... 😍😍😍

Yeonsuok menu and what we ordered

Yeonsuok centers its menu around shabu kalguksu, but has various other options too! In particular, being able to enjoy sangwhwang mushroom-based broth together with handmade kalguksu noodles made it perfect for a delicious meal 🌀

🥗 What Daenggu-ssi (the writer) ate

What I ordered! 🤤 Boiled pork + sangwhwang mushroom broth Chungju rice shabu kalguksu (₩14,000) / Shrimp-and-squid-loaded seafood pancake (₩15,000)

How does the boiled pork and sanghwang mushroom broth shabu kalguksu taste?

First, the shabu kalguksu! I was curious what a broth simmered with sangwhwang mushroom as its base would taste like, and it was just clean and light!! 🥵 I'm weak with spice but it wasn't that spicy!

It's packed with oyster mushrooms, white jelly mushrooms, minari (water celery), and more. The minari scent is stronger than expected, so if you don't like it, ask them to leave it out in advance! 🥬

An egg, fried rice, and kalguksu noodles all come out right away like this!

Making the soy-wasabi sauce ahead of time is a must, haha. The kimchi that comes with it was so good I kept refilling it!

The beef quality was good too, but since it toughens up quickly if you leave it in the broth too long, make sure to only dip in as much as you'll eat right away!!!

Dunk the fish cake that comes with it into the shabu-shabu for a splash 💦

I wanted to add more mushrooms, but checking the menu, there was only a mixed vegetable option, so I couldn't order it. I didn't want the minari either... it would be even better if you could add only the vegetables you wanted!!

The spicy broth goes really well with shabu-shabu and cuts through the richness completely, so I think I'll get it spicy again next time!!

Eating the spicy shabu-shabu together with the boiled pork was really delicious! The boiled pork and kimchi were legendary!!!!!! 💡

Finishing the broth with fried rice porridge

To finish, I mixed the fried rice and egg together to make a porridge! I actually enjoyed the porridge even more than the shabu-shabu — that's how well the broth had developed... 🤍🤍 There's sesame oil at the self-bar, so if you want a nuttier flavor, go grab some!

Is the squid-and-shrimp seafood pancake worth adding?

The shrimp-and-squid-loaded seafood pancake I ordered in the middle of the meal! 🦐 Just like the name says, it's loaded with squid and shrimp, so you could really taste the seafood in every bite, haha.

If eating just kalguksu feels like it's not quite enough, I recommend ordering a seafood pancake alongside it 🩷!!! It's super crispy!!!!!

Final verdict on Yeonsuok Shabu Kalguksu in Chungju

• The sangwhwang mushroom broth is clean with deep flavor
• The handmade kalguksu noodles are chewy and delicious!
• You can eat boiled pork and kalguksu together, so you'll get really full, haha
• The store is spacious and clean, so it's good to recommend for family visits!

It would be even better if there were a customizable menu option!

It's located near Chungju City Hall so it's easy to get to, and the interior is clean, so it left a good impression! The shabu-shabu has a clean yet deep broth you can enjoy together with handmade kalguksu noodles, making it good for lunch or dinner, and ordering boiled pork or seafood pancake alongside makes it great for sharing with a group!! If you're looking for shabu kalguksu in Chungju, give Yeonsuok a try, haha 🌀