Dal-dong, Ulsan milmyeon for four on Chuseok: Samsam Milmyeon

Why give Samsam Milmyeon in Dal-dong, Ulsan another try?

Busan has a lot of great milmyeon (wheat cold noodle) restaurants, and the average quality there is pretty solid. After moving to Ulsan, I was introduced to two spots that were supposedly locally famous and went to check them out — but honestly, I was a bit disappointed. Maybe just a regional taste difference? Anyway, since then I hadn't really bothered trying Ulsan milmyeon places again haha. But during the Chuseok holiday, I ended up visiting Samsam Milmyeon.

Parking at Samsam Milmyeon: two lots right out front

Samsam Milmyeon sits in a busy area, so parking matters. And sure enough, there are two parking lots literally right in front. They give you a 1-hour parking ticket when you pay for your meal. No parking stress at all!

Ulsan Dal-dong milmyeon restaurant [Samsam Milmyeon] Address: 7 Hwahap-ro 125beon-gil, Nam-gu, Ulsan Hours: Daily 10:30am–9pm Parking: Daegyeong Parking Lot, Paldo paid parking lot, 1 hour supported

Chuseok holiday hours: arriving just before the 5pm close

Since it was the Chuseok holiday, I called ahead just in case to check the hours before visiting — turns out Samsam Milmyeon was running shortened hours during the holiday. Normally open until 9pm, but they were closing at 5pm! I rushed my schedule as much as possible just to eat milmyeon haha. Somehow, the more impossible something feels, the more desperately you want it lol. We arrived right as closing time approached! Just barely made it in time, and even though it was right before closing, the staff were still kind and welcoming. Lucky to get an early dinner of milmyeon!

Ordering 3 mul-milmyeon and 1 bibim-milmyeon — same price either way

Samsam Milmyeon's menu is very simple. Bibim (mixed) versions are usually 500-1000 won more expensive elsewhere, but here mul (broth) and bibim cost the same. With four of us, we ordered 3 mul and 1 bibim!

When everyone orders mul, there's this unspoken pressure(?) balance(?) where I feel like at least someone should order bibim, even though nobody actually says anything haha. So I took it upon myself to order bibim, feeling almost duty-bound to let everyone taste at least a strand of it. With that sense of mission, I ordered the bibim.

First impression: shredded cucumber, two to three times the usual

The dishes arrived! The first thing that caught my eye was the cucumber. Samsam Milmyeon's milmyeon has extremely thin, generous cucumber shreds — like 2-3 times the amount you'd normally get. Before even taking a bite, this was already a huge plus!

Milmyeon always looks refreshing and appetizing, no matter how many times you see it.

The mul-milmyeon noodles and broth at Samsam Milmyeon

It's late September but still a bit warm during the day. The amount of icy slush in the broth seemed perfectly calibrated for that.

Chewy, springy, bouncy.

Among the milmyeon noodles I've had, these were on the thinner, finer side — about the thickness of somyeon (thin wheat noodles). Personally I prefer thin milmyeon noodles over thick ones, so this suited me well. The broth wasn't strongly medicinal in flavor, just a faint hint of it. Well-seasoned, refreshing, and simply delicious.

The bibim-milmyeon arrives already mixed

Samsam Milmyeon's bibim-milmyeon arrives already mixed, which I really appreciated.

It's hard to find a place that does bibim really well — at least by my taste. Usually the sauce is way too sweet, or sticky-sweet, or too salty, or has that heavy, chalky taste from too much gochugaru (chili flakes) or gochujang (chili paste). It seems harder to get right than the mul-milmyeon broth.

Bouncy noodles, plenty of cucumber shreds — great again. It paired well with the bibim sauce, worked well with the spiciness, and the texture and flavor matched the sauce nicely. The generous cucumber made the bibim-milmyeon even better.

By my standards, this bibim passes. First of all, it's not sweet. A lot of people who dislike bibim milmyeon cite excessive sweetness as the reason, but this sauce wasn't trying to cover everything with sweetness or a sweet-salty combo. Not sweet, not salty, just the right amount of spicy. That clean, satisfying heat from the chili flakes. Sipping the warm broth in between bites of spicy bibim gives you that spicy-yet-refreshing flavor that feels so Korean. Honestly I only ordered bibim because everyone else was shouting for mul, without much expectation — but it really suited my taste!

A bowl of milmyeon after days of holiday food

I haven't tried many milmyeon restaurants in Ulsan, but of the ones I have, Samsam Milmyeon was the tastiest and suited my palate the best. After eating all that greasy, heavy holiday food, finishing with a bowl of milmyeon left my mouth and stomach feeling clean and refreshed! A Dal-dong, Ulsan milmyeon restaurant worth remembering — Samsam Milmyeon. A really good choice!