Pohang mulhoe restaurant with 5-seafood squid mulhoe: Ppwang Mulhoe

A Yeongildae go-to raw fish restaurant specializing in fresh squid mulhoe (raw seafood in cold broth): Ppwang Mulhoe.

Why we ended up at Ppwang Mulhoe near Yeongildae Beach

Ppwang Mulhoe is a squid mulhoe restaurant on Haean-ro, heading toward Yeongildae Beach in Pohang. I love squid, and raw squid in particular is one of my all-time favorite foods. So during this Pohang trip I went looking for somewhere good to eat squid hoe (raw squid).

It happened to be right along our route toward Yeongildae Beach, so we ended up at this Yeongildae-area restaurant, Ppwang Mulhoe — and it turned out way better than expected!

There's a parking lot in front of the restaurant too, but it was full, so we got lucky finding a spot nearby before heading in. Plenty of customers already there. The sign is pink pink, very 'ppwang.'

What's on the self bar at Ppwang Mulhoe, plus refillable squid soup

The first thing that caught my eye was the self-bar area set up on one side of the restaurant. It's a help-yourself setup for basic side dishes, and there was quite a variety. Everyday favorites like tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), stir-fried fish cake, and stir-fried myeok julgi (seaweed stem) were all well stocked. Kind of felt like a Korean buffet.

With tteokbokki and fried snacks both there, you have to be careful not to overdo it — the main event hadn't even started yet. We were hungry, but we only took small portions, just enough to take the edge off, haha.

There was also squid soup you could serve yourself, and the broth was so clean and deep it could've passed as a main dish on its own. You could refill two or three bowls if you wanted, but we'd ordered so much else that I only had one.

Inside Ppwang Mulhoe: seating and atmosphere

The interior was spacious overall, with no cramped feeling when moving around or finding a seat. Aprons and spoons and other essentials were hung neatly by every table, so you could grab what you needed without calling a server. Overall the place felt well kept and tidy.

What we ordered: Ppwang mulhoe with five kinds of seafood

Coming to Ppwang Mulhoe, of course we had to order the mulhoe. Besides thinly sliced squid, it came loaded with abalone, sea cucumber, flounder, and sea squirt — five kinds of seafood in total.

There's actually a recommended way to enjoy Ppwang Mulhoe's squid mulhoe.

• Mix it first before adding broth
• Add chili or wasabi
• Add noodles
• Mix in rice
• Eat with the sides

I fell for the visuals first — so much seafood piled on. We were too eager though, and poured in the broth right away. We should've mixed it first, but we only saw the 'how to eat it properly' tip afterward, ugh.

I kept thinking a bowl of this in summer would be so refreshing. And it was this good even with the worst of the heat already gone...

Squid sukhoe and pajeon at Ppwang Mulhoe: better than expected

The squid sukhoe (blanched squid) and pajeon (scallion pancake) we ordered alongside the mulhoe elevated the whole meal. The sukhoe was boiled gently, not too chewy, with a clean flavor, and the pancake came out crispy with a nutty taste that balanced nicely against the cold dish. The pancake was genuinely nutty and packed with filling.

When you're only eating raw food, you start craving something cooked, right? Like getting fried food at a raw fish restaurant — I think Ppwang Mulhoe's combo of squid hoe, pajeon, and sukhoe is exactly what makes you keep eating, haha.

Finishing the mulhoe broth with noodles and rice

Coming to Pohang, I figured squid mulhoe was a must — and we really did eat well. Sure, we originally planned to go to another restaurant but they'd run out of ingredients, so we scrambled to find this place instead — but in the end, it turned into a happy accident.

You know how well sea squirt and sea cucumber go in mulhoe, right? They didn't skimp on ingredients at all, piling everything on generously, and we ate really well.

To finish, we added noodles first, then mixed in rice for a filling end to the meal. I don't usually add rice to mulhoe, but the broth was so good I took a few bites too. Try Ppwang Mulhoe, this Yeongildae favorite that turned out tastier than expected. Really delicious.

Thanks for the meal!