Suwon grilled fish revisit, Atka mackerel & banchan bar: Godeungeo

A west Suwon restaurant for eating out with the kids: Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda

Why I went back to Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda Suwon Branch

Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda Suwon Branch (고등어명품이되다 수원점) is a grilled fish restaurant in west Suwon with lots of fish dishes and a banchan (side dish) self-bar. I went once, liked it, and came back. I love grilled fish and seafood, so I'm always hunting for good places, and this one is great for eating out with kids, which is why I returned.

What are the parking and interior like?

The big parking lot makes this a west Suwon fish restaurant that works even when several families eat together! I went at a quiet weekday time, so it felt even roomier, haha. On weekends it's popular enough that you may have to wait.

The tables are spaced widely and the room feels pleasant, so family gatherings, meals with kids, treating your parents, company dinners, you name it, all totally doable.

Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda Suwon menu and how to order

You order at a kiosk. The grilled fish options are mackerel, Atka mackerel, Spanish mackerel, cutlassfish, croaker and bakdae (fine-scaled sole), and the raw options include croaker sashimi, mackerel mulhoe (cold raw fish soup), mackerel sushi and mackerel sashimi, so there's plenty to choose from.

The country of origin is also clearly displayed. If you're particular about that, give it a scan before ordering, right?

We ordered grilled mackerel, grilled cutlassfish and my favorite, grilled Atka mackerel. We ordered to fit our party, and you could add more if it's not enough, but please, don't. The portions are generous, haha.

What's on the banchan self-bar?

As I mentioned, the restaurant runs a banchan self-bar, and the sheer variety is impressive! I think the lineup was similar last time too..

• Napa cabbage kimchi
• Mung bean jelly salad
• Cucumber salad
• Chamnamul (pimpinella) salad
• Platycodon root salad
• Japchae (glass noodles)
• Bean sprouts
• Seaweed soup
• Nurungji (scorched rice)
• Sikhye (sweet rice drink) and more

The platycodon root and cucumber salads suited my taste so well that I went back for a couple more helpings.

Grilled mackerel, cutlassfish and Atka mackerel on one table

Three grilled fish, cooked fresh after we ordered! They're bigger and thicker than I expected. They came out so neat and tidy that we said it felt like a hanjeongsik (Korean set meal) place.. haha

Warm seaweed soup, bursting with savory depth!

Rich, tender japchae! Crunchy cucumber salad! Radish namul full of perilla aroma! Chamnamul salad full of herby fragrance! Crisp bean sprouts! And the platycodon root salad, with seasoning and texture just right!!

And here's the pork jeyuk-bokkeum (spicy stir-fried pork) sizzling warm on an iron plate. The pork is chewy, the seasoning soaked in deep, and it's full of savory flavor.

The grilled cutlassfish and grilled mackerel arrived together on one plate, ta-da~

Grilled cutlassfish: rich, sweet flesh

I went for the cutlassfish first! I picked out the bones, removed the skin, and pulled out just the flesh, and the sweetness spreads richly. When eating out with kids, if you put it on top of rice they'd probably swallow it down without even chewing.. haha

Grilled Atka mackerel: the best dish of the day

The one I enjoyed most that day was the Atka mackerel! I removed the center bone and tasted the thick flesh, and it's moist and so soft it crumbles apart, the real highlight~ And so nutty.. I ended up picking off even the golden parts stuck to the bones.

Grilled mackerel dipped in soy sauce and wasabi

The mackerel I tried last felt like the poster child of grilled fish~ chewy with no fishy smell. Mix the grill soy sauce and wasabi in the small dish at the table, dip, and it's amazing...

Nurungji to finish, and what fell short

I think my mouth had a great time trying so many kinds of grilled fish. I finished with nurungji (scorched rice) I brought from the self-bar!! haha Personally, I think it'd be even better if the self-bar had one salted seafood (jeotgal) or dried side dish. It'd go perfectly with the nurungji;

After the meal: coffee and cocoa corner

Besides the sikhye at the self-bar, there's a coffee corner for coffee drinkers!! There's drip coffee and instant mix coffee, plus cocoa. If you take the kids out to eat and get them a cup, they'd love it, right? ^^

Lots of you probably go hunting for good restaurants with your family on weekends, right? How about a filling meal of assorted banchan and grilled fish?