Garak Market seafood restaurant VIP live platter for two: Narae Susan

Today I'm bringing you my sashimi takeout report from Garak Market. I've picked up sashimi to go many times before, from Soraepogu, Yeonan Pier, Noryangjin Fish Market, and Garak Market, but the place I visited this time was hands-down the best ever!!

Where is Narae Susan in Garak Market?

The sashimi restaurant we visited is Narae Susan (나래수산), inside Garak Market. It's the most convenient sashimi shop to reach in the whole seafood center — it sits right in front of the seafood market entrance, which you hit as soon as you come out of exits 1, 2, or 2-1!

What fish are swimming in Narae Susan's tanks?

When we visited Narae Susan, all the usual staples — olive flounder, rockfish, mullet, and red seabream — were splashing around lively in the tanks.

On top of that, September's autumn seasonal picks — gizzard shad and shrimp — filled the tanks too. I'd eaten gizzard shad recently and it was already so nutty and delicious, haha. Since I'd just had it, we skipped it this time, but you should definitely go try the gizzard shad sashimi soon.

Interestingly, they also sell futomaki and assorted sushi directly here. Sushi sold at a fish market — I'm definitely trying that next time!

Zero Pay, Onnuri gift certificates and origin labels at Narae Susan

Narae Susan accepts Zero Pay and Onnuri Pay! If you've got Samsung Onnuri cashback and not many places to spend it, spend it here!!! Narae Susan puts the staff's own faces up on display, selling sashimi with honesty and warmth 😄 They always keep the origin labeling posted accurately too.

Ordering the VIP live platter for two to go

This time we ordered the VIP live sashimi platter for two! The composition can shift a bit depending on the season as seasonal fish rotate in, but it's always packed with a huge variety of delicious sashimi. I've eaten a ton of sashimi at Incheon's fish markets, but I honestly prefer Seoul's fish markets. You really can't go wrong here.

Once the sashimi comes out, you can pay a table-setting fee and eat there (tell Narae Susan and someone from the table-setting shop will come pick you up), or you can pack it to go like we did! Since we were already there, we also added the spicy fish stew (maeuntang) kit (+₩5,000) to take home. But then...

What comes in the 5,000-won maeuntang kit?

This was the first time I'd seen a maeuntang kit this generous...!!! First time seeing one packed with clams, whelk, and shrimp too. It even had three whole fish heads, plus a chunk that looked like an actual fish fillet mixed in ㄷㄷㄷㄷㄷ Usually you just get fish bones and heads with some bean sprouts and stew seasoning, right?!?!

Inside the VIP platter: striped jack to mullet belly

The sashimi was insane. Is every fish somehow in season right now? Striped jack, red seabream (far left and to the right of the salmon), olive flounder (far right), mullet, mullet belly, sea bass. The lineup was already solid, but on top of that, it felt like everything was belly meat and prime cuts only.

The red seabream is hard to spot under the mountain of striped jack, but there were about 10 pieces, and the seabream belly was done hibiki-style (skin lightly seared with fire). Striped jack, in season from summer into early fall, looked and tasted like an early-season yellowtail. (Actually, striped jack is a much higher-grade fish than yellowtail! I enjoyed it more than yellowtail, haha.) Only two pieces of salmon — but both were belly cuts...!!

The flounder was, of course, the big variety. Can you count how many fin pieces there are? First time I've seen a place give this many fin cuts.. six? Seven...? We kept eating two at a time and it barely went down ㅠㅠㅠ Sea bass, in season over summer, was in the platter too! Firm, bouncy texture — outstanding. The mullet wasn't a joke either. I usually eat it a lot in winter, but it was great in autumn too. See that pile of mullet belly there ㅠㅠㅠ An endless blessing of belly meat..

They also gave us abalone as a complimentary sukiyaki side dish, and it was so, so fresh and wonderfully chewy, haha. On top of that, they didn't skimp on fresh wasabi, pickled radish, pickled ginger, and makjang dipping sauce either..!

After enjoying the sashimi, we finished off by cooking the maeuntang with instant noodles thrown in! With radish, green onion, all kinds of seafood, and fish bones simmering into a refreshingly savory broth, the noodles were absolutely delicious. What's charming about it is that it turns out great even without any fancy sauce — just simmer it well and that's it.

Narae Susan hours, directions and parking

• Hours: Open daily 09:00–22:00
• Directions: Garak Market Station (Lines 3, 8), exits 1, 2, and 2-1
• Parking: 1-hour parking ticket issued when parking at Garak Market