Pohang mulhoe restaurant with three squid dishes: Ppwang Mulhoe

Where Ppwang Mulhoe is and where to park

Ppwang Mulhoe is a squid mulhoe specialty restaurant in Pohang's Yeongildae restaurant district, at 203-1 Haean-ro, Buk-gu, Pohang. It's open daily from 10:30 to 22:00, with last order at 21:00.

This Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant Ppwang Mulhoe sits right in the middle of the Yeongildae restaurant strip.

There's a wide parking lot right in front, so parking directly outside is easy, and even if that's full, Yeongildae's public parking lot is nearby — a very convenient restaurant to drive to.

Inside Ppwang Mulhoe: is it okay with a baby?

Inside, Ppwang Mulhoe has a lot of tables and can handle group visits. High chairs are also provided, which is great for family meals with young kids.

The interior of this Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant is very spacious with a huge number of tables — plenty of room even for a group visit.

Ppwang Mulhoe has high chairs on hand too, so it's a good spot for a family meal with a little one.

Ppwang Mulhoe menu and prices

This Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant specializes in squid mulhoe, and beyond that has plenty of squid-based dishes — squid hoe (raw sliced squid), squid muchim (spicy seasoned squid), fried squid, and more.

The self-bar: somyeon noodles and even tteokbokki

At Ppwang Mulhoe the basic side dishes are on a self-bar, and there are a lot of them — stir-fried miyeok julgi (seaweed stem), stir-fried anchovies, stir-fried sausage, corn salad, and more.

There's also somyeon at the self-bar, so if you order mulhoe you can help yourself to as much as you like.

On top of the basic side dishes, there's snack food like tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), chicken nuggets and kimmari (seaweed-wrapped glass noodle rolls) at the self-bar too, so if you're visiting with kids they'll have things they like to pair with the meal.

What we ordered at Ppwang Mulhoe

• Squid mulhoe ₩20,000
• Squid pajeon ₩15,000
• Whole boiled squid sukhoe ₩15,000

Squid mulhoe, 20,000 won

The moment the squid mulhoe arrived at this Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant, I was surprised at how generous the portion was — plenty of raw squid, plus loads of shredded cucumber and radish that looked really appetizing.

The best way to eat the squid mulhoe at this Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant is to taste it first like a gochujang mulhoe before adding the broth, then pour the cold broth in after. With plenty of minced garlic mixed in, it's delicious eaten as a gochujang mulhoe before the broth goes in, and just as good once the cool broth is added.

It was my first time trying squid mulhoe at this Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant, and the freshly julienned squid was soft yet chewy and springy the more you chewed — a distinctive, satisfying texture. Add in the crisp, refreshing crunch of the cucumber and radish, and every bite had a different kind of texture to enjoy. After the spicy-tangy hit came a clean, cool finish, and the more I chewed the more that fresh ocean flavor came through.

After enjoying the squid mulhoe on its own for a while, adding somyeon noodles and a bowl of rice into the broth turned it into a filling full meal. Since the somyeon is at the self-bar, you can take as much as you want. Most mulhoe restaurants only give you one small bundle of noodles, which can feel a bit short — so having noodles at the self-bar was a real plus at this Pohang mulhoe restaurant.

Squid pajeon, 15,000 won

The squid pajeon at this Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant was loaded with squid — every bite of the chopsticks pulled up a big chunk, and the springy, chewy texture of the squid was delicious. The pancake itself was crisp outside and soft inside, fried in oil until golden brown, and the deep savoriness released by the squid filled my mouth the more I chewed.

Not only was there a lot of squid in the pajeon, the pieces were large too, so you could really feel the chewy texture and the squid's flavor came through even stronger.

Whole boiled squid sukhoe, 15,000 won

The whole boiled squid sukhoe at this Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant comes out boiled with the innards removed. Maybe because of that, the squid's own clean, mild flavor and springy texture really stood out.

Ppwang Mulhoe's squid sukhoe had no fishy or off flavors at all — the squid's subtle sweetness and nuttiness came through more the longer I chewed. The flavor was very clean and mild, which paired well with the spicy-tangy vinegar gochujang, and the texture was neither too mushy nor too tough — boiled just right.

Is Ppwang Mulhoe worth a visit?

This Pohang Yeongildae mulhoe restaurant, Ppwang Mulhoe, lived up to its squid-mulhoe-specialty reputation — from the squid mulhoe to the squid pajeon to the squid sukhoe, every squid dish was good overall, and the portions of squid were never stingy. If you're in Pohang's Yeongildae area looking for a cool bowl of mulhoe or a crisp-outside-soft-inside squid pajeon for a filling meal, give Ppwang Mulhoe a try :)