# Jjamppong and gochu japchae croquettes as late-night snack: Samsam

- By Doha (https://superchart.com/en/@gangwon-first-table/)
- Written Sep 9, 2026
- Local places › Cafés › Sokcho, Gangwon
- Sponsored: This visit was sponsored by the business.
- English edition: https://superchart.com/en/@gangwon-first-table/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/
- Also in: [한국어](https://superchart.com/ko/@gangwon-first-table/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/index.md)

## In short

Samsam Goroke is a croquette bakery inside Sokcho's Jungang Market. The 6-piece set with flavors like abai, gochu japchae (stir-fried pepper and glass noodles), mentaiko cream, and jjamppong (spicy seafood noodle soup) stayed crispy even after being packed and eaten later as a late-night snack at the accommodation, with generous fillings in every piece. A good add-on when buying just fried chicken from the market feels like not quite enough.

## Good to know

- **6-piece croquette set**: ₩17,000
- **3-piece croquette set**: ₩9,000
- **Flavors**: Sokcho red crab, Sokcho abai, meat-packed jjamppong, Sokcho potato, Chinese-style gochu japchae, mentaiko cream
- **Also sold**: Sokcho Saengtak makgeolli, abai makgeolli, corn dongdongju, Donghae soju, Seorak soju
- **Location**: 28 Jungangsijang-ro 6-gil, Sokcho, Gangwon-do, South Korea (inside Sokcho Jungang Market)

*as written by the visitor on Sep 9, 2026*

A trip to Sokcho isn't complete without a stop at Sokcho Jungang Market. Whenever I go to Sokcho, I usually stop by the market to pick up a few things to bring back to where I'm staying. Most people think of fried chicken first when they hear Sokcho Jungang Market, but this time I was looking for something to eat alongside the chicken back at the room, and that's how I ended up at Samsam Goroke.

Bottom line first: the outside was crispy and each croquette had a generous filling that matched its flavor, which was more than I expected. It's fun picking a variety of flavors, and it's easy to pack up, so this is worth a stop if you're looking for a good croquette spot in Sokcho.

![Croquettes from Samsam Goroke in Sokcho Jungang Market](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-01-56o76-1200.webp)

## Where is Samsam Goroke? Inside Sokcho Jungang Market

Samsam Goroke sits inside Sokcho Jungang Market, so it wasn't hard to find while wandering around the market.

Since it's a market, the area around it can get pretty crowded when tourists pile in, so I'd recommend visiting with some extra time if you also want to browse the other food stalls.

![The Samsam Goroke storefront inside Sokcho Jungang Market](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-02-1cdp4-966.webp)

When you arrive, the "Samsam Goroke" sign catches your eye right away. What was interesting is that this isn't just a plain vegetable croquette shop — they sell a variety of croquettes built around Sokcho's local flavors.

## From red crab to fiery jjamppong, the variety is huge

![Menu board of croquette flavors at Samsam Goroke](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-03-1la8l-966.webp)

Looking at the menu, there's so much variety it's genuinely hard to choose.

From Sokcho red crab croquette to Sokcho abai croquette, meat-packed jjamppong croquette, Sokcho potato croquette, Chinese-style gochu japchae croquette, and mentaiko cream croquette — just the names made me curious about how each would taste.

What especially fit as a travel snack was how they worked local elements like red crab and abai sundae (blood sausage), both common in Sokcho, into the croquettes.

![Sign showing the 6-piece and 3-piece set prices at Samsam Goroke](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-04-qj3ec-m-966.webp)

### 6-piece and 3-piece set prices

If you want to try several flavors, going for a set is a good idea. When I visited, the listed prices were ₩17,000 for the 6-piece set and ₩9,000 for the 3-piece set.

Rather than just one flavor, I wanted to try a bit of everything, so I packed a set. If you're traveling with family or friends, buying one set and sharing small bites of each flavor sounds like a good plan too.

## Local Sokcho liquor is sold here too

![Local Sokcho liquor displayed inside the shop](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-05-fsf5d-966.webp)

I thought it was just croquettes, but looking to the side, there was also locally made liquor from Sokcho on display.

Sokcho Saengtak makgeolli, abai makgeolli, corn dongdongju, Donghae soju, Seorak soju — these are the kinds of regional drinks worth trying once on a trip, so it was fun just browsing them.

![Shelf of Sokcho Saengtak makgeolli and local soju](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-06-1khb4-966.webp)

If you're planning to pack up some market food and have a drink back at your accommodation, picking up croquettes together with local liquor isn't a bad idea. Sokcho Jungang Market has so much food that packing up a bunch of things for a little spread back at the room is part of the fun of traveling.

Rather than eating right away, we packed several kinds and took our time eating them back at the accommodation.

## Samsam Goroke also travels well

![Box of croquettes individually packaged by flavor](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-07-gtzf0-966.webp)

Each flavor was individually packaged in the box, so buying several didn't mean anything got mixed up. Each croquette also had a sticker marking the flavor, so there was no confusion over "wait, which one is this?"

Even just looking at them, the size was fairly substantial — eating one as a snack ended up being more filling than expected.

![A large croquette with a flavor-name sticker](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-08-13slk-966.webp)

### Abai croquette

First up, the abai croquette.

Since abai sundae is also famous in Sokcho, this definitely felt like a menu item built around the area's identity. It brings the feel of squid sundae into a croquette, giving it a different charm from a typical croquette.

If you want that "I'm on a trip to Sokcho" feeling, this one is worth picking alongside the red crab croquette.

## My personal top pick: the gochu japchae croquette

![Cross-section of the Chinese-style gochu japchae croquette](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-09-18qca-966.webp)

One of the menu items I especially want to recommend is the Chinese-style gochu japchae croquette.

Gochu japchae (stir-fried peppers and glass noodles) already pairs well with bread, and this is like eating it with crispy fried croquette dough instead of flower-shaped steamed buns — the combination worked better than I expected.

The savory depth of the gochu japchae filling was distinct, and the crispy outside kept me reaching for more. Even after eating several different flavors, the gochu japchae one stuck with me the most.

I thought a croquette might only have a small amount of filling, but the filling here was surprisingly generous.

![Mentaiko cream croquette](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-10-oxnk1-966.webp)

### Mentaiko cream croquette

The mentaiko cream croquette was tasty too.

The salty flavor of mentaiko (seasoned pollock roe) combined with a soft cream made this one gentler and more savory-rich compared to the others. If you can't handle spicy food well, mixing in one of these cream-style flavors when ordering is a good idea.

Trying several flavors made it clear each one has a distinct character, which was fun. Personally jjamppong and gochu japchae were my favorites, but the rest were all good overall too.

## If you like spicy, go for the jjamppong croquette

![Meat-packed jjamppong croquette](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-11-19ob6-966.webp)

And another one of my personal recommendations: the meat-packed jjamppong croquette!

If you like spicy food, be sure to add this one. The savory, crispy croquette shell paired with the spicy, rich flavor of jjamppong went together better than I expected.

Regular croquettes can get a bit greasy after a while, but the jjamppong croquette has that spicy kick, so eating one in the middle really wakes your palate back up.

Among all the flavors, jjamppong and gochu japchae were my top two. I'd definitely buy these two again if I visited again.

## Opening the box back at the room made it even more satisfying

![The croquette set box opened back at the accommodation](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-12-egtme-966.webp)

Opening the box back at the accommodation, it was full of big, chunky croquettes!

When people think of Sokcho Jungang Market, a lot of them pack a whole box of fried chicken, but if buying just the chicken feels like not quite enough, I'd recommend packing some croquettes too.

The two are completely different foods, so they go well together, and the crispy texture that only fried croquette shells give was especially good as a snack or late-night bite.

Eating them piping hot right away would obviously be the crispiest, but even packed and eaten later, the savory flavor and crunch of the fried shell still came through pretty well.

![Cross-section of a bitten-into croquette showing the filling](https://img.superchart.com/images/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack-13-rudsq-966.webp)

Bite into one and you can see it all at once — the crispy exterior and the filling packed inside.

With croquettes, sometimes it's mostly bread with just a little filling inside, but Samsam Goroke's fillings had real presence. Because of that, the flavor differences between types came through clearly, so eating several didn't get boring.

Especially the strongly seasoned ones like jjamppong paired really well with beer. It made for a great combo — packing up some market food and having a simple drink back at the room.

## Don't just buy fried chicken at Sokcho Jungang Market — get croquettes too

Sokcho Jungang Market has plenty of famous food — fried chicken, squid sundae, sashimi — but Samsam Goroke turned out to be a pretty satisfying travel snack too.

The biggest strength was the variety: local-flavored options like Sokcho red crab and abai, easygoing everyday flavors like potato and mentaiko cream, and standout distinct flavors like jjamppong and gochu japchae.

Personally I'd most recommend the jjamppong croquette and the gochu japchae croquette, but the other flavors each have their own character too, so trying a set to sample a bit of everything is worth it.

Above all, that fresh-fried crispiness is hard to give up. If you're picking up fried chicken at Sokcho Jungang Market and looking for something to bring along, add Samsam Goroke to your list of Sokcho travel eats. It's great as a late-night snack back at the room, and just as good for eating on the move.

## Where it is

- Samsam Goroke (삼삼고로케)
- 28 Jungangsijang-ro 6-gil, Sokcho, Gangwon-do, South Korea
- 강원특별자치도 속초시 중앙시장로6길 28
- 38.204443, 128.5898342
- Google Maps: https://www.google.com/maps/search/%EC%82%BC%EC%82%BC%EA%B3%A0%EB%A1%9C%EC%BC%80/@38.204443,128.5898342,17z

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Superchart · https://superchart.com/en/@gangwon-first-table/sokcho-market-croquette-night-snack/ · https://superchart.com/llms.txt