Boneless monkfish stew for two in Jinju: Jjimgoeul Gajwa Branch

Hi, this is Soha :) This time I visited Jjimgoeul, a monkfish stew restaurant that anyone from Jinju has probably heard of.

The original Jjimgoeul in downtown has long been famous for monkfish stew, and I already knew about it — but I heard they opened a branch near Sinjinju Station too! I was looking for a lunch spot in Gajwa-dong and happily decided to check it out.

The sauce tasted just as good as I remembered from the original branch, so I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a good seafood stew restaurant in Jinju.

Where is Jjimgoeul Gajwa Branch — close to Sinjinju Station?

This time I visited the Sinjinju Station branch of Jjimgoeul! It's in a convenient spot to visit from Sinjinju Station and Gajwa-dong, so it's easy to stop by when you're deciding on lunch or dinner nearby. It's great that Jjimgoeul, long known in Jinju for monkfish stew, is now accessible near Sinjinju Station too. Especially if you like spicy food, monkfish stew is a solid recommendation for lunch in Gajwa-dong!

Inside Jjimgoeul Gajwa Branch: is it good for a family meal?

The interior was clean overall, as befits a newly opened restaurant. The tables were set up for comfortable dining, so it looked like a good option for a family meal or a visit with friends.

Monkfish stew is a dish that's great to share with a group, so this place will come to mind when I'm looking for a Jinju restaurant to visit with family.

The banchan spread that comes with the stew

After ordering, the banchan (side dishes) came out neatly arranged. Since the monkfish stew sauce is on the spicy side, pairing it with the banchan in between bites worked really well. And after a short wait, the main dish finally arrived!

Small boneless monkfish stew: enough for two people?

📋 Recommended menu | Boneless monkfish stew, small We ordered the small size boneless monkfish stew! The small size was just right for two of us, and once we later added udon noodles and roe, we ended up nice and full.

If you usually like monkfish stew but find picking out the bones a hassle, I fully recommend the boneless version. With no bones, you can dig in the moment it arrives, which was so convenient.

Same spicy sauce as the original Jinju branch, with crisp bean sprouts

🔥 The sauce is delicious, as you'd expect from a Jinju monkfish stew favorite

When it comes to Jjimgoeul, it's all about the sauce! Just like at the original branch, the sauce at the Sinjinju Station location was delicious too. The spicy, savory sauce was packed with tender boneless monkfish, and the combination with crunchy bean sprouts was amazing.

Pick up a piece of monkfish, pile on plenty of bean sprouts, and eat them together for the full texture experience! The bean sprouts weren't overcooked or mushy — they stayed crisp, which made it even tastier. It reminded me all over again why Jjimgoeul has long been known as a top seafood stew spot in Jinju.

Why udon noodles are a must-add at Jjimgoeul

🍜 Adding udon noodles is a must! As we were finishing the monkfish stew, the leftover sauce was just too good to waste, so we ended up adding udon noodles lol. Mixing the chewy udon noodles into the remaining sauce turned out to be a real treat. Personally, if you visit Jjimgoeul, I'd say definitely add the udon noodles! The sauce itself is so tasty that it went perfectly with the noodles too.

Adding monkfish roe to the stew

🤍 We even added roe! It felt like a shame to stop at just the udon noodles, so we added monkfish roe too. The soft, savory roe combined with the spicy monkfish stew sauce was so delicious. We started out ordering just the small boneless monkfish stew, but ended up adding udon noodles and roe, and finished every last bit of sauce lol. If you're a fan of monkfish stew in Jinju, I'd recommend this combo.

Who should eat at Jjimgoeul Gajwa Branch

• ✔️ A monkfish stew restaurant long known in Jinju
• ✔️ Convenient location near Sinjinju Station and Gajwa-dong
• ✔️ Clean interior, good for a family meal out
• ✔️ Boneless monkfish stew you can eat comfortably
• ✔️ Combination of crisp bean sprouts and tender monkfish
• ✔️ Spicy, savory sauce
• ✔️ Adding udon noodles and roe is worth it

For anyone near Sinjinju Station looking for a solid lunch spot in Gajwa-dong, this was a satisfying, filling meal.

If you're from Jinju, you know Jjimgoeul! Same delicious sauce as the original branch — add udon noodles and roe to the boneless monkfish stew for the perfect combo🔥

Final thoughts on Jjimgoeul Gajwa Branch

🤍 Wrapping up This was my first visit to the Jjimgoeul Sinjinju Station branch! Since the original branch is so famous, I had some expectations for the flavor, and I was satisfied to find that familiar Jjimgoeul sauce taste at the Sinjinju Station branch too. The boneless monkfish stew I had this time was especially convenient since I didn't have to pick out bones one by one, and the combination of tender monkfish and crisp bean sprouts was great.

On top of that, the sauce was so good that we added udon noodles and roe and ate every last bit haha. If you're near Sinjinju Station or Gajwa-dong looking for a good lunch spot in Gajwa-dong, a seafood stew restaurant in Jinju, a Jinju restaurant in general, or a place that does monkfish stew well, I recommend Jjimgoeul Sinjinju Station branch. Come enjoy the Jjimgoeul that locals in Jinju already know and love, now at this clean new Sinjinju Station branch too! 🔥