Samgakji Station raw fish bar with whelk fish cake soup: Joseonmakhae

Don't you find yourself wanting a drink with some good snacks more and more now that the weather is getting cool? I was craving tasty seafood after a long while, so I went to Joseonmakhae (조선막해) near Samgakji Station.

I tried everything from makhoe (casually sliced raw fish) made with wild fish delivered from Pohang each day, to whelk fish cake soup and corn skewers. Every dish had its own personality, so it's a great place to visit with a group and share a bit of everything. The fresh wild Joseon makhoe in particular is worth trying at least once if you visit Joseonmakhae!

Joseonmakhae hours, parking and reservations

Joseonmakhae is in the basement level of 45-17 Hangang-daero 62-gil, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Hours are 17:00–24:00 Tuesday to Thursday, 16:00–01:00 Friday and Saturday, and 16:00–23:00 on Sunday. It's closed every Monday. Last order is listed as one hour before closing.

• Parking: the restaurant has no private car park, and a nearby public car park is the easier option.
• Reservations: available through Naver Reservation, but I'd recommend checking with the restaurant before you go.
• It's about a 5-minute walk from Exit 3 of Samgakji Station, so access is good.

How to get to Joseonmakhae from Samgakji Station

Joseonmakhae sits between Samgakji Station and Yongridan-gil. Get off at Samgakji Station and walk over and you'll find it without trouble; the restaurant is in the building's basement. There are plenty of Yongridan-gil restaurants and bars nearby, so it's a handy spot to wander around before or after your meal.

*It takes about 6–7 minutes on foot from Exit 2 or 3 of Samgakji Station.

Joseonmakhae exterior: the stairs down to the basement

There's a Joseonmakhae sign at the entrance leading down to the basement, so it isn't hard to find. Because the place is underground it feels a little hidden at first, but once you go down the stairs, the restaurant is right there.

Inside Joseonmakhae: atmosphere and seating

The inside has a warm, wood-toned pocha (Korean street-tent bar) feel. Rather than a bright, tidy raw fish restaurant, the soft lighting and wooden interior make it a comfortable place to chat over a drink.

Besides tables for 2–4 people, there is group seating too, so it looked fine for bigger parties.

And one thing I personally liked! 🚻 The restrooms are separated for men and women.

At bars the restroom is sometimes outside or shared, so it was convenient that this one is inside the restaurant.

Joseonmakhae menu and the 4 dishes we ordered

We ordered 4 dishes at Joseonmakhae that day!

• Fresh wild Joseon makhoe
• Whelk fish cake soup
• Corn skewers
• Flying fish roe tuna rice ball

Joseonmakhae has lots of snack dishes beyond the makhoe, so with a group you can order several and share. You order via QR code!

What is Fresh Wild Joseon Makhoe?

The fresh wild Joseon makhoe is Joseonmakhae's signature dish, sliced from wild fish that arrives from Pohang each day, and it was the one I was looking forward to most. Which fish you actually get on the day can vary depending on what came in, they say.

The fish itself tasted fresh, and the distinctive texture of makhoe made it a different kind of fun from ordinary sashimi. It's good on its own, but eaten with the various accompaniments it went even better as drinking food. Getting wild fish delivered the same day from Pohang is its biggest selling point! I'd recommend it if you like raw fish.

How to eat Joseon makhoe: a 4-step gim wrap with mayo sauce

There's a proper way to eat Joseon makhoe: wrapped in gim (dried seaweed) rather than just on its own!

• ① Put the makhoe on a sheet of gim
• ② Add makjang (seasoned soybean paste) on top
• ③ Pile on plenty of the secret cabbage salad
• ④ Finish with the special mayo sauce and you're done!

With the vegetable makjang, the tangy cabbage salad and the nutty mayo sauce added to the makhoe, the flavor was much richer than eating each part separately.

💡 TIP: If it's your first visit, try it exactly the way the staff explain, then adjust the amount of sauce to your own taste afterwards!

And the mayo cream sauce you add last is the kicker!!!! Please make sure you put it on!! It tastes kind of like lemon basil?? Ah, I can't remember the name, but it's seriously delicious!!! Highly recommend

Whelk fish cake soup: how many whelks are in it?

Joseonmakhae's whelk fish cake soup is an odeng-tang (fish cake soup) with whelks in it, and I think there were about 8 to 9 whelks. It was the second dish we ordered.

With the weather turning cool, a hot, brothy dish like this was exactly what I wanted. Ordering one cold dish like the makhoe and one warm soup together made a good combination too.

They even gave us toothpicks for picking out the whelks!

Corn bundle skewers: the most fun snack of the night

Joseonmakhae's corn skewers are corn fried in butter and coated in seasoning, and they were surprisingly the most fun dish! I assumed it would be just a side dish at first, but the portion was quite big.

One bite gives you the nutty richness of butter and the salty seasoning together, so I kept reaching for more. 🌽 With butter + corn + seasoning it's rich and salty, and it went well as drinking food. After eating nothing but seafood like the raw fish and soup, ordering something like this in between kept it from getting boring. The drinks just keep going down~~

TIP: The corn skewers get hard as they cool and become a bit awkward to eat, so I recommend eating them before they go cold~

Finishing with a flying fish roe tuna rice ball

The last thing we ordered at Joseonmakhae was the flying fish roe tuna rice ball. When you've been eating only makhoe and fish cake soup, you start wanting some kind of rice, and this was a good one to go with it.

The popping texture of the flying fish roe with the tuna made it easy to eat, and it was fine for sharing with the other dishes too.

Joseonmakhae review: pros and cons

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Overall, Joseonmakhae felt like a good place near Samgakji Station to have a drink while eating a variety of snacks.

What I liked

• Joseon makhoe made from wild fish delivered from Pohang every day
• Plenty of snack dishes besides raw fish
• Generous number of whelks in the whelk fish cake soup
• Group seating, so it's good for bigger parties
• Separate men's and women's restrooms
• Easy location on foot from Samgakji Station

What could be better

The restaurant is in a basement, so you have to use stairs to get in, which is worth knowing before you go.

Would I go back to Joseonmakhae?

Yes! Next time I'd like to go on a different day and see which wild fish is in that day. I'd especially like to try a wider range of other seafood snacks along with the Joseon makhoe.

Who Joseonmakhae is best for

• Anyone looking for a bar near Samgakji Station
• People who want fresh raw fish with their drinks
• Groups who want to share a variety of snacks
• People who want soup or side dishes as well as raw fish
• Anyone looking for a first or second stop on Yongridan-gil

If you want a drink with tasty snacks near Samgakji Station on a cool evening, Joseonmakhae seems like a decent choice. The Joseon makhoe, made from wild fish delivered daily from Pohang, is its biggest charm!

A Samgakji bar that's great for sharing many dishes, from fresh makhoe and warm fish cake soup to the surprisingly tasty corn skewers