Sokcho makguksu restaurant with jumbo acorn jelly, oversized side

Why you need to go to Sokcho Topgol Makguksu, a Sokcho makguksu restaurant

A shrine to deulmemak, patented with the Korean Intellectual Property Office

Uses 100% Bongpyeong buckwheat flour, house-made noodles

Great access, 1 minute from the beach

I went on a Sokcho trip after a long while. I love eating, so picking the right restaurant matters most on any trip — and after visiting Sokcho Topgol Makguksu, this Sokcho makguksu restaurant, I honestly still can't stop thinking about it. I want to go back to Sokcho just to eat this again, haha.

5 minutes from the bus terminal, and they even give you a parking voucher

Honestly the location was part of why I chose it. It's a 5-minute walk from the intercity bus terminal. They also give out a 2-hour parking voucher with a meal, and the lot is really close, just a 1–3 minute walk! The access is basically unbeatable. That's probably why so many families come here — on weekends past noon, you'll need to wait.

For parking, just use the public lots — 1, 2, and 3 all work!

The waiting area, wide table spacing, and inside the restaurant

Being such a popular spot, a wait had already built up, but there's a space to wait and even take a quick photo, so it doesn't feel boring! And since the menu comes out fast and gets eaten fast, turnover was pretty quick too.

The dining room has several big tables spaced well apart so it's not awkward to move around. Each table has a plastic cover for hygiene, and they clear tables quickly too.

Plenty of high chairs too — and the infused liquor in the background looks pretty tasty ^^

Looks like a lot of celebrities have stopped by too.

At this Sokcho makguksu restaurant, they say the buckwheat noodles are made fresh the moment you order. They use a house-made noodle mixed with squid ink and Phellinus mushroom powder, and these noodles are genuinely on another level. The umami, the texture, the aroma — it made me wonder if every deulgireum (perilla oil) makguksu I'd eaten before this was fake.

The self-serve bar and yagwanmun

If you need more side dishes, you can freely help yourself at the self-serve bar. Next to it there's yagwanmun (a Korean herbal liquor), which is said to be good for detox, so I had a glass.

The menu: what to order

If you're at this Sokcho makguksu restaurant, the patented deulmemak is a must! Personally I'm a bibim-makguksu (spicy mixed noodles) person, but here you absolutely have to get the deulmemak. The signature acorn jelly is also great, and there's a solo-size bossam (boiled pork wrap) that's a nice side.

Join the Naver receipt review event and get 2 buckwheat mandu (dumplings) free.

The side dishes on the table

The side dishes were radish salad and young radish kimchi — clearly homemade, refreshing and delicious. Best when piled on top of the makguksu!

The patented deulmemak, a texture like cotton candy

Even looking at the photos now makes me drool — the deulmemak, the signature dish of this Sokcho makguksu restaurant, came out first and it was that good. It looks plain, but the depth of flavor is no joke.

It looks super bland and mild, right??? The flavor is on another level, genuinely insane... how does the noodle itself carry this kind of aroma? The overall balance of flavors is great. The perilla scent is strong, and it goes perfectly with the buckwheat noodles!

When you scoop up a big bite, you'd think it would be hard to chew through, but it's so soft it disappears the moment you bite it. Like putting cotton candy in water!! It was almost sad how quickly it went, haha.

For the finish, adding dongchimi (watery radish kimchi) broth for a tangy twist is also a nice treat! Personally I liked it best eaten plain though. Definitely order the suyuk to go with it too. I thought about that flavor all day.

Solo suyuk, and the combo of piling it on the deulmemak

The solo suyuk comes with two rows of thin-sliced meat — you can tell just by looking at the skin how tender it is, right? It comes with radish salad, garlic, and chili.

So tender~~ warm and soft. The fat is distributed just right, giving it a rich, savory finish.

It's delicious even just with ssamjang (dipping sauce) and salted shrimp on top,

but piling it on top of the deulmemak is the best!!! This combo was the best thing I ate that day. Ugh... I need to go back for this.

The size of the acorn jelly — like three servings of pot kalguksu

I ordered the acorn jelly thinking of it as a side dish??? Huh??? The size is genuinely huge. Like three servings of pot clam kalguksu;;

I was so surprised I took a comparison shot with my hand. It's not just a big bowl — it's packed generously with acorn jelly, cucumber, vegetables, and more. Compare it to the other bowls and it's in a whole different league, haha.

Put on the plastic gloves and shake it up~ the seasoning sauce was mixed in just right. Wow, mixing this up sent up such a savory smell, it made me drool so much — this is absolutely a makgeolli (rice wine) pairing!!

Soft, silky acorn jelly meeting crunchy cucumber and onion — a perfect match! If I didn't have plans right after, I'd have dropped everything and cracked open a makgeolli, haha.

They also sell the house-made buckwheat noodles and buckwheat crackers to take home! Ugh, I should've bought some!! And on the way out they give free parking, so if you parked, be sure to grab that!

Overall verdict

• A great Sokcho restaurant to visit as a family
• Good location too, close to the beach
• There's a wait, but turnover is fast
• A truly rare feeling of visiting a restaurant that actually lives up to the hype! I'd go back to Sokcho just to eat this again!