Korean restaurant with kids' chair near Ojukheon, Gangneung: Saimdang

Rainy Gangneung, a Korean meal instead of raw fish

This trip to Gangneung was planned because we hadn't seen the sea all summer. But then came the weekend rain forecast? ^^ So we switched to a food-trip concept!

When you travel to Gangneung you tend to eat a lot of raw fish, seafood, or sundubu (soft tofu stew), but sometimes you just want one proper Korean meal with rice and a full spread of side dishes, right?

That's how we picked Saimdang Bueok in Gangneung. It's not a place with just one main dish — it's a set-table style where the whole table fills up with side dishes, which made it great for a family meal, and best of all, there was plenty for our kid to eat too.

The vibe inside, and the kids' chair

Spacious and clean inside

Once inside, the space is bigger than the exterior suggests. Wood-tone tables, dark ceilings, brick, and lighting all come together for a cleaner, more polished feel than a typical hanjeongsik (Korean set-meal) restaurant.

The tables weren't cramped together, and there's a separate space further in where several people can sit together, so it's good for group visits too!

And best of all, there's a kids' chair ready to go! When traveling with a kid, what matters isn't just the food — whether there's a kids' chair, whether there's parking, these things quietly matter a lot. On that front, this looked like a great family meal spot.

Menu and prices — how much extra for kids?

Menus start at 14,000 won!

There are three main menus.

• Ojukheon table ₩14,000 — 8 basic side dishes + wrap vegetables + doenjang paste + grilled fish + doenjang soup
• Saimdang table ₩19,000 — 12 basic side dishes + japchae + buttered grilled scallops + stir-fried pork + grilled fish + choice of house-made sundubu or seaweed soup
• Yulgok table ₩35,000 — 12 basic side dishes + japchae + stir-fried pork + grilled fish + soy-marinated shrimp + raw flounder salad + choice of steamed or grilled scallops + choice of house-made sundubu or seaweed soup

For reference, ages 5–9 are an extra 9,000 won per person, and age 10 and up need to order one full menu per person. Something to keep in mind if you're visiting with kids :)

The Saimdang table, loaded to the edge

Our pick today was the Saimdang table!!

And then the food started arriving... the table wasn't big enough. I shot it from above trying to fit it all in one photo, and there were so many side dishes I had to count them one by one.

Japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), grilled fish, stir-fried pork, tofu with kimchi, namul (seasoned vegetables), kimchi, pickles, wrap vegetables, even soup! It reminded me of my mother-in-law, who loves this kind of spread ^^ What I liked most was that instead of one main with a couple sides, you get to eat a little of many different things.

A spread that was great for sharing with a kid

Stir-fried pork, grilled fish, japchae — a bit of everything

The advantage of a set-table meal is exactly this — you get to eat several different things in one sitting. There was spicy stir-fried pork and nicely grilled fish, so mom and dad ate the pork while our son ate the fish.

On top of that, with japchae, various namul, kimchi, and wrap vegetables, there were honestly almost too many side dishes for one bowl of rice haha. The adults could pick the stir-fried pork or namul, while our kid could eat the easier things like grilled fish or japchae, so the whole setup worked well for eating Korean food with a kid.

Compared to restaurants where you have to share one single dish with your kid, having this many options makes it much easier as a mom to pick out what suits their taste.

In the photo you can also see scallops came with the table. It wasn't just a straight lineup of standard Korean side dishes — mixed in were things like buttered grilled scallops, which made eating more fun.

With so many side dishes, you end up thinking 'let me try this too, let me try that too,' and a bowl of rice disappears fast lol. And with the table this full, it would also feel like a proper treat if you brought your parents along.

Checking the origin label board too

I liked that so many ingredients were domestic

There was a separate origin label board posted on one side of the restaurant. (I care about this kind of thing.)

Looking at the photo, it listed pork as domestic, rice as domestic, cabbage as domestic, chili powder as Chinese, vegetables as domestic, soybeans as domestic, seaweed as domestic, scallops as domestic, and so on — and what stood out especially was that key ingredients like rice, pork, and vegetables were all labeled domestic.

Since this was a meal with my kid, I pay attention to this sort of thing, and I liked that the origin info was posted somewhere visible.

A family meal near Ojukheon — who should go

A solid choice if you're looking for a family meal near Ojukheon

Saimdang Bueok isn't really the kind of place with one single dish that blows you away — it fits better as a Korean restaurant that lets you eat a proper, varied meal. With so many side dishes there's the fun of picking and choosing, and dishes like stir-fried pork, grilled fish, and japchae work well for eating with a kid, making it great for a family meal.

Especially if your Gangneung trip has been raw fish and meat meal after meal, isn't it nice to break it up with one proper Korean meal of rice and side dishes in between?

• Anyone who likes a set-table style meal with lots of side dishes
• Anyone traveling in Gangneung with their parents
• Anyone looking for a Korean restaurant in Gangneung to eat with kids
• Anyone looking for a place to eat near Ojukheon
• Anyone looking for a spacious family meal spot with easy parking

I'd recommend this place to all of them without hesitation!