Siheung cuttlefish restaurant: first-timer's spicy bulgogi at Jogane

Jogane Gabojingeo: a cuttlefish lunch stop on a Mulwang Lake drive

Jogane Gabojingeo Mulwang Hosu Branch (조가네갑오징어 물왕호수점) is a cuttlefish specialist near Mulwang Lake in Siheung. On a nice weekday I went for a drive to the lake and stopped here for lunch. Walk around the lake, eat, then head to a café: the perfect course!

Parking and opening hours at Jogane Gabojingeo Mulwang Hosu Branch

There's a big private parking lot beside the building, so no parking stress! It's open every day: 10:30–21:00 Monday to Friday and 10:30–22:00 on Saturday and Sunday. Break time is 15:00–15:30, but there's none on weekends. They have high chairs, and pets are allowed too.

A café-style standalone building with the restaurant on floors 2–3

The outside is a big standalone building. The pretty floor-to-ceiling windows make it look like a café. The restaurant takes up floors 2–3, and we took the elevator up to the 2nd floor. It's spacious and comfortable, with an elevator, so I think it's also great for family meals and gatherings.

On the 1st floor there's an area with a coffee vending machine and a water purifier. The building's piloti (open ground-floor space) has tables too, so it'd be nice for a short rest with a coffee after the meal.

What's on the menu at Jogane Gabojingeo?

Each table has an ordering screen, so you just order what you want right away. There are so many cuttlefish dishes.

• Cuttlefish bulgogi
• Cuttlefish pork belly bulgogi
• Cuttlefish scallop bulgogi
• Cuttlefish hot pot (jeongol)
• Cuttlefish scallion pancake (pajeon)
• Cuttlefish cho-muchim (spicy vinegar salad)
• Cuttlefish sukhoe (blanched cuttlefish)
• Fried shrimp
• Cuttlefish party sets available

If you like spicy stir-fries, go for the bulgogi dishes; if you like a refreshing broth, I'd recommend the hot pot. But wait, now that I think about it, this is my first time ever eating cuttlefish...?!?! I was curious and excited to find out what it tastes like.

What I ordered: small cuttlefish bulgogi (₩41,000) and fried rice

I was torn, but I was craving something spicy, so I ordered the small cuttlefish bulgogi (₩41,000), a bowl of rice (₩1,000) and fried rice (₩3,000). They stir-fry the rice for you once you've finished the bulgogi.

The next table was eating cuttlefish scallion pancake and it looked so good. It looked like too much for two of us, so I couldn't try it, sob. If three people go, a small bulgogi plus one pancake would be nice.

Mildly seasoned side dishes and seaweed soup

The sides come with seaweed soup, bean sprouts, perilla leaves, dongchimi (radish water kimchi), steamed egg, pickled onions, salad and seokbakji (radish kimchi). All the good stuff is here! The sides aren't salty, just gently seasoned, which I liked. My favorites were the bean sprouts and pickled onions!!! I refilled them twice. They go really well with the spicy stir-fried cuttlefish.

If you come with a baby, the steamed egg and seaweed soup with rice would work well, so it seems good for eating out with little ones. (I didn't even bring my baby bird today, haha, just thinking about the baby.)

Inside Jogane Gabojingeo and its self-serve banchan bar

The inside is spacious and clean, and the big windows keep it from feeling stuffy. The tables are spaced widely apart, so you can eat comfortably. Even though lunchtime had just passed, quite a few guests were still eating. Must be a good place. The side dish self-serve bar is tidy too, and since it's self-serve you can refill without feeling awkward.

How spicy and chewy is Jogane's cuttlefish bulgogi?

The cuttlefish bulgogi came out about 15 minutes after ordering. It arrives already stir-fried, on a stone plate (maybe because of the stone plate, it stayed hot the whole meal). As a first-time cuttlefish eater... is it supposed to be this plump and chunky?!!

Cuttlefish bulgogi spice level: hotter than Shin Ramyun, milder than Buldak

You can feel the spice even in the photos!! I'm not good with spicy food, and the cuttlefish bulgogi felt a little spicy to me. It's hotter than Shin Ramyun but less hot than Buldak noodles! It's not an artificial heat, it's a tasty kind of spicy.

I put rice on a perilla leaf, topped it with cuttlefish, pickled onion and bean sprouts, and yum. Then cuttlefish on plain white rice, yum. The fried rice is good, but plain white rice is a must. I came by car so I couldn't drink, but it would go well with beer.

Tender cuttlefish with a different texture in every cut

The plump cuttlefish wasn't tough at all and was easy to bite through. Some parts of the body are chewier and others softer, so the variety of textures is amazing. With mushrooms, onion, bok choy and rice cakes in there too, you get lots of textures, which I loved!! A texture genius, this cuttlefish bulgogi. The bok choy was especially good 🤍

Finishing with fried rice and plenty of sesame seeds

After finishing the cuttlefish bulgogi comes every Korean's K-dessert: fried rice! Can't skip it, fried rice is the golden rule. It had flying fish roe, perilla leaves, seaweed flakes and vegetables, and it was nutty and delicious~~~~~ Jogane is generous with sesame seeds. Loads of them.

It's a perfect match with the cuttlefish and pickled onions I'd saved. I scraped that iron plate clean. That's what fried rice is for, right?

A walk around Mulwang Lake after lunch

I cleaned my plate, and it was so good. There were snacks by the cash register, but I'd eaten so much that I passed...!! Grabbing a quick ice cream and eating it at the 1st-floor tables would be nice, or you could walk around Mulwang Lake while eating it to help digest.

I walked out patting my full belly. So that's what cuttlefish tastes like for the first time...! Whether you love cuttlefish or are trying it for the first time, I think you'll like it..! Highly recommended! If you can't decide what to eat at Mulwang Reservoir, give Jogane Gabojingeo Mulwang Hosu Branch a try.