Whole perilla seed abalone soba in Sinjungdong, Bucheon: Haehwagaban

Went to Lotte Department Store Jungdong Branch with my mom and had an eel rice bowl and abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles at Haehwagaban (해화개반) on the basement floor~

The eel rice bowl came with a whole eel on top, so it was more filling than I expected, but honestly what surprised me most that day was the whole perilla seeds piled on the abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles.

Let me write up the review — from the eel rice bowl, to how to eat ochazuke, to the perilla oil noodles my mom loved so much!

Where is Haehwagaban? Basement 1F of Lotte Department Store Jungdong, near Sinjungdong Station

Haehwagaban is on the basement floor of Lotte Department Store Jungdong Branch near Sinjungdong Station. It's a great spot to eat while shopping at the department store.

After we finished eating, we even walked around the department store to help digest. Since you can shop right after eating without moving to another location, that was really nice haha

Menu and prices: eel rice bowl ochazuke 19,500 won, abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles 15,000 won

That day, my mom and I ordered the eel rice bowl ochazuke and the abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles.

The eel rice bowl ochazuke was ₩19,500 and the abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles were ₩15,000. Haehwagaban sells both rice bowls and buckwheat noodles, so it was easy to pick a dish that suited each of our tastes. The eel rice bowl in particular starts as a regular rice bowl, then you pour broth over it at the end to finish it as ochazuke.

Haehwagaban's eel rice bowl: a whole eel, wrapped in seaweed

When my eel rice bowl ochazuke arrived, the first thing that caught my eye was the amount of eel. A whole eel was laid on top, so it looked filling enough that the ₩19,500 price felt totally worth it.

I mixed the rice bowl evenly and wrapped it in the seaweed that came with it. Wow... this combination was so good haha

I wanted to ask for more seaweed but being too shy got the better of me... I never said anything and just held back haha. I also liked the eel sauce — it wasn't too strong, just a little sweet.

With every bite, a subtle ginger aroma spread through and cut through the eel's usual heaviness. Eel rice bowls can sometimes get a bit greasy halfway through, but this one I enjoyed all the way to the end.

How to eat the ochazuke: leave a third of the rice, then add broth and toppings

Another charm of Haehwagaban's eel rice bowl is that you can enjoy one dish two different ways. Once you've eaten about two-thirds of the bowl, you pour in the separately prepared broth and toppings to turn it into ochazuke.

At first, the eel rice bowl wrapped in seaweed was so good I wanted to keep eating it that way. But once I tried pouring in the broth, it had a completely different charm.

To my taste, the broth had that refreshing quality like an anchovy stock. Adding the separate toppings on top brought a crunchy texture too, which made it more fun to eat. After the sweet eel rice bowl, finishing with the cool broth meant I never got tired of it, right to the last bite.

Abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles: the whole perilla seeds make the dish

The dish my mom really loved was the abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles.

As soon as I started mixing the buckwheat noodles, a nutty perilla oil aroma rose right up. I hadn't even finished mixing and already wanted to dig in haha

But Haehwagaban's perilla oil buckwheat noodles had something a bit different from the ones I'd had before. It was the whole perilla seeds sprinkled on top!

I've had buckwheat noodles topped with ground perilla powder many times, but this was my first time seeing whole perilla seeds piled on like this. It was really the kick of the dish. The nutty flavor came alive more with every chew — I never knew whole perilla seeds could bring out a dish's flavor like this...

My mom really enjoyed it too, and I never got tired of it no matter how much I ate. If you usually like perilla oil buckwheat noodles, you should try the nuttiness that whole perilla seeds add.

Is Haehwagaban worth it? Final thoughts on lunch with mom

While looking for good restaurants near Sinjungdong Station, my mom and I had lunch at Haehwagaban. What stuck with me most was the eel rice bowl with a whole eel on top. It was so good wrapped in seaweed that I still regret a little not being able to ask for more seaweed haha. The abalone perilla oil buckwheat noodles my mom loved were also a unique experience thanks to the whole perilla seeds.

If you're looking for an eel rice bowl or a good Japanese restaurant in Bucheon, check out Haehwagaban on the basement floor of Lotte Department Store Jungdong Branch. If you order the eel rice bowl like I did, be sure to wrap it in seaweed first, then finish it off as ochazuke haha