Soy sauce shrimp banchan at Daecheongmaru, a Sokcho tofu restaurant

I finally visited Daecheongmaru, already famous as a Sokcho breakfast spot!

Daecheongmaru basics: address, hours and parking in Sokcho

Daecheongmaru is located at 430 Gwangwang-ro, Sokcho-si, Gangwon-do, and is open daily from 7:20am to 9:30pm. Break time is 3:30–5:00pm, and last order is at 9:00pm (8:55pm for dinner / 3:25pm for lunch). There's a private parking lot on site, too.

What Daecheongmaru looks like from the street

Daecheongmaru specializes in tofu and pollack! It's a menu anyone, any age, can enjoy without any strain on the stomach, so it's perfect for a hearty yet easy breakfast.

The restaurant has its own private parking lot and it's huge, so you don't need to worry about parking at all! There's even a staff member directing cars.

Inside Daecheongmaru: shoes off, with private rooms

At Daecheongmaru, you take off your shoes at the entrance, put them in a shoe cabinet, and go inside. The place is spacious with lots of table seating and even a private room, so it's fine for families or groups.

It's been a while since I visited a place where you take off your shoes to enter — places like this are often genuinely great restaurants, haha!

If there's a wait, you can use the Table-ling app, and there's even vending machine coffee for dessert!

The restaurant is spacious with plenty of table seating, so it works fine for family and group meals!

There's also a private room, so you can have a more private meal! The vibe here is rustic and homey, like visiting your grandmother's house — I really liked it.

Near the entrance, there's a spot where you can take home some biji (soybean pulp), but there wasn't any the day I went! You could probably just ask the owner.

Daecheongmaru menu and prices

Daecheongmaru's signature dishes are Chodang sundubu, spicy sundubu, pollack hangover soup, and wild greens bibimbap. We ordered the Chodang sundubu (₩14,000) and the spicy sundubu (₩15,000).

There are also specialty dishes made with pollack and tofu, like grilled/steamed pollack and squid sundae or tofu hot pot! Soy sauce shrimp and seasoned pollack are also sold separately as takeout items.

There's also a detailed explanation of what 'Chodang' means.

What does Chodang mean in Chodang sundubu?

Since sea salt isn't produced in Gangneung, where Chodang tofu originates, clean seawater from the East Sea is used as the coagulant instead of salt. Using seawater instead of salt was the idea of Heo Yeop, a Gangneung magistrate who went by the pen name Chodang and lived there — he made tofu with well water from the courtyard of the government office and used seawater to set it. The tofu became famous for its great taste, so Heo Yeop named it Chodang tofu after his own pen name.

Using clean seawater as the coagulant for soft tofu, made with 100% domestic soybeans — how could it not taste good!? 👍

The banchan spread: soy sauce shrimp, seasoned tofu and biji

At Daecheongmaru, a single bowl of sundubu comes with a table full of banchan (side dishes). My favorite was the soy sauce shrimp, and seasoned tofu, seasoned pollack, and biji all came alongside it.

The meal was really neat and generously plentiful! The banchan were especially varied and paired really well with the sundubu.

Every banchan was delicious, but my favorite was the soy sauce shrimp! The salty-sweet shrimp meat went really well with the sundubu and rice.

The seasoned tofu came with soy sauce, and probably because it's made with domestic soybeans, it was clean-tasting and really delicious! The seasoned pollack didn't disappoint either — makes sense given this place specializes in pollack!

The biji also came as a side dish, and it's a real delicacy too. The nuttiness, softness, and light saltiness of the soybeans alone could finish off a whole bowl of rice!

What does Daecheongmaru's Chodang sundubu taste like?

Daecheongmaru's Chodang sundubu (₩14,000) comes in a fairly generous portion just judging by the bowl size. The seasoning isn't heavy, so you can really taste the clean, nutty flavor of the soft tofu itself.

The first spoonful had a soft, silky texture that I loved, and it wasn't spicy or intense at all — just nutty and clean, which made me understand exactly why Chodang sundubu is so famous! It's filling too, so it doesn't feel heavy for breakfast!

Since the seasoning isn't strong, you can really taste the clean, natural flavor of the soft tofu. Add a little of the soy sauce that comes with the seasoned tofu to taste, and it adds a savory saltiness for a whole different flavor experience!

Is the spicy sundubu good for a hangover?

Daecheongmaru's spicy sundubu (₩15,000) has seafood in it, so the broth is refreshing and spicy-hot — perfect for curing a hangover. Shrimp, clams, crab, and various other seafood create a rich, clean-tasting broth.

Shrimp, clams, crab, and other ingredients blend well together, giving the broth a rich, clean seafood flavor!

The spicy broth is tempered by the soft tofu, so it wasn't overly intense, and adding a bowl of rice to the spicy-hot broth made for a filling, hangover-curing meal!

Is Daecheongmaru worth it? Final verdict

Overall, it's mild enough to make a great breakfast, and I really liked being able to taste the clean, nutty flavor of the soft tofu itself! The banchan were high-quality and clearly made with care! If you're looking for a satisfying, easy-on-the-stomach meal during your Sokcho trip, I recommend Daecheongmaru as a Sokcho must-visit 👍