Sokcho seafood restaurant lunch: mulhoe and hoedeopbap at Hwanggeum

While looking for something to eat at Sokcho Central Market, I tried mulhoe (cold raw fish soup) and hoedeopbap (raw fish rice bowl) at Sokcho Hwanggeum Mulhoe Hoetjip. Being inside the market made getting there easy, and I got a generous amount of raw fish in both the mulhoe and the hoedeopbap — here's how it went.

Why we picked mulhoe for lunch at Sokcho Central Market

When I travel to Sokcho, I find it hard to skip Sokcho Central Market haha. There's famous market food like dakgangjeong (sweet crispy fried chicken) or squid sundae, but once you've come all the way to the East Sea, you really have to try raw fish or mulhoe at least once!! This time I was craving mulhoe for lunch, so I headed to Sokcho Hwanggeum Mulhoe Hoetjip.

Above all, being inside the market meant I could just sit down and eat right in the middle of browsing, and when I visited the place was clean too — good for anyone looking for somewhere to sit and eat properly inside the market.

And to cut to the conclusion, even as someone eating mulhoe for the first time, I kept going back for spoonfuls of the broth, it was that good haha. The amount of raw fish was more generous than I expected, and with the buckwheat noodles that came alongside, it made for a pretty filling lunch.

Sokcho Hwanggeum Mulhoe Hoetjip: location, hours and parking

Sokcho Hwanggeum Mulhoe Hoetjip is at 24 Jungang-ro147beon-gil, Sokcho-si, Gangwon-do, South Korea, 1st floor. It's inside Sokcho Central Market, so it wasn't hard to find while browsing the market, and there was no need to drive around separately, which was convenient.

• Hours: Mon–Thu, Sun 10:00–21:00 / Fri–Sat 10:00–22:00
• Parking: Central Market public parking lot available

The blue sign outside and the room inside

Walking through Sokcho Central Market, you'll spot Sokcho Hwanggeum Mulhoe Hoetjip with its blue signboard and yellow lettering. There were several fish tanks out front, plus signs saying mulhoe and raw fish were available for takeout — it looked like a proper seafood specialty spot at a glance.

The exterior itself wasn't a huge restaurant, but overall it was clean when I visited. It felt like a recent opening, so the inside was bright and tidy, without the usual cluttered feel of market restaurants.

Inside, the table spacing was decent, and there were seats for larger groups too. Since I visited during lunch hour, it was a perfect spot for a light meal of mulhoe and hoedeopbap rather than a full raw fish spread.

Sokcho Hwanggeum Mulhoe Hoetjip menu and prices

Looking at the menu, it wasn't a place that only served mulhoe. From mulhoe to hoedeopbap, raw fish, seafood, and even snow crab, there was a good range of dishes worth trying while traveling.

The basic hwanggeum mulhoe was 20,000 won, abalone mulhoe 25,000 won, sea cucumber mulhoe 25,000 won, and haebok mulhoe 27,000 won. On the hoedeopbap side, hwanggeum hoedeopbap was 20,000 won, while abalone hoedeopbap and sekkoshi (thin-sliced skin-on raw fish) hoedeopbap were 25,000 won.

Since it was lunchtime and my companion and I planned to check out other food at Sokcho Central Market too, we ordered one hwanggeum mulhoe and one hwanggeum hoedeopbap. Both were 20,000 won each when I visited.

Basic side dishes came out too, and buckwheat noodles arrived separately to add into the mulhoe. I'd assumed thin wheat noodles (somyeon) would come with it, so the buckwheat noodles were a bit of a surprise, but after trying it, this combination actually worked well.

How does the hwanggeum mulhoe taste? Sea squirt, flying fish roe and buckwheat noodles

The mulhoe finally arrived, and my first thought was: there's really a lot of raw fish in here!! haha. Raw fish was piled high in the center of the bowl, with flying fish roe and vegetables mixed in too.

My bowl also had sea squirt in it, so every so often I got that distinct ocean scent.

Honestly, this was my first time properly eating mulhoe, so I was a little worried whether the tangy broth would suit my taste. But it was much easier to eat than I expected. The broth hits cool and tangy right away, and eating it together with the raw fish and vegetables made it a perfect fit for lunch on a hot day. No extra seasoning needed — just mix it well and eat.

At first I mostly picked out the raw fish, but later I added the buckwheat noodles in, and for me it got even better from there haha. Rather than the soft, easy-to-swallow feel of thin wheat noodles, the buckwheat noodles had a bit more chew, which really brought the texture to life alongside the raw fish.

How much raw fish is in the hwanggeum hoedeopbap?

The hoedeopbap was more impressive than I expected too. I've mostly eaten hoedeopbap in Seoul before, so eating it in Sokcho, the raw fish itself just felt different from the start.

On the day I ate it, the raw fish wasn't mushy at all — it kept a firm, chewy texture when I bit into it.

Lettuce, vegetables, and flying fish roe were mixed in, so once properly stirred, raw fish came along with every bite, and the seasoning wasn't overly sweet either. I've often seen hoedeopbap that's mostly rice with just a few pieces of raw fish, so this kind of composition was more satisfying to me.

Ordering the mulhoe and hoedeopbap together worked well as a combo — one cool and tangy, the other a bit more filling. If you're visiting as a pair, I'd recommend ordering one of each and sharing, like we did haha.

Final take: a proper sit-down meal between market stops

When people think of Sokcho Central Market food, dakgangjeong or squid sundae come to mind first, but after trying it myself this time, mulhoe turned out to be a really solid choice when you want a proper meal inside the market. Even as someone trying mulhoe for the first time, I found it easier to eat than expected, and I liked both the amount of raw fish and the buckwheat noodle combination.

If you're looking for a good restaurant at Sokcho Central Market during your Sokcho trip and you like raw fish, give Hwanggeum Mulhoe Hoetjip a try~~!! Have a bowl of mulhoe for lunch while browsing the market, then continue your Sokcho Central Market food tour — it should make for a pretty efficient route haha.