Nonsan Korean restaurant with a hanjeongsik feast: Sonamu Hanjeongsik

Today, I visited Sonamu Hanjeongsik (소나무 한정식), a great hanjeongsik restaurant in Nonsan. The charm of a traditional hanok was obvious at first glance, so the atmosphere was lovely even before going inside. The quiet hanok and well-kept garden worked beautifully together, making it fun to take in the surrounding scenery as well as the meal.

The hanok atmosphere at Sonamu Hanjeongsik in Nonsan

The large Sonamu Hanjeongsik sign at the entrance made it easy to find. It blended nicely with the scenery around it, and I could already feel the atmosphere of a proper hanjeongsik restaurant before stepping in.

Sonamu Hanjeongsik in Nonsan fully retained the charm of a traditional hanok. Its spacious yard and serene hanok buildings came together so beautifully that the mood was wonderful even before the meal began.

Inside, you take off your shoes and change into slippers before entering. A shoe cabinet is set up separately by the entrance, so storing your shoes was easy.

And the stairs in the photo lead up to the second floor. The wooden stairs and railing suited the hanok setting well, so the interior also had a strong traditional feel.

The Sonamu Set Meal in Cheongsil Room 5

We used Cheongsil Room 5. The space was separated by a door, making it comfortable to dine just with our group, and the table was spacious enough to sit back and relax.

We ordered the Sonamu Set Meal.

The first item to arrive before the meal was pumpkin porridge. It was warm and smooth, a nice way to gently settle the stomach before eating. The basic side dishes arrived too: pickled onions, kimchi, lotus root, and seasoned greens. Everything was neatly prepared, and it was nice to sample such a variety of banchan (Korean side dishes), as you would expect with hanjeongsik.

For little nibbles, there were nuts, purple sweet-potato chips, and dried jujubes. They were perfect for lightly snacking on while waiting for the food.

A table full of dishes, starting with the first course

As the Sonamu Set Meal was laid out, the first-course dishes came first. There were Andong Chinese yam tomato pickles, gangjeong with seed jeotgal (salted seafood), chilled chicken salad, glutinous-rice bukkumi pancakes, a seasonal salad, sulbap rice made with ingredients grown on-site, soybean-paste soup, and more. So many dishes arrived at once, and it was fun tasting them one by one.

Hairtail, soy-marinated shrimp, and perilla-oil buckwheat noodles

The golden grilled hairtail was crisp on the outside and moist inside—so delicious. Its clean yet nutty flavor went wonderfully with rice.

The savory soy marinade had soaked nicely into the shrimp, making them great with rice. The shrimp flesh was plump and springy too, so I could really enjoy the soy-marinated shrimp.

The perilla-oil makguksu (buckwheat noodles) had a gentle, nutty perilla-oil aroma. The buckwheat noodles and nutty ingredients came together for a light, clean flavor, making this a nice dish to have between the others.

The menu said the galbi had been slow-cooked at a low temperature for 24 hours. The seasoning had soaked well into the ribs, with vegetables such as onion and chili pepper alongside. Its savory seasoning made it another good dish with rice.

The crispy fried ginseng could be dipped into the sauce served separately. Its golden batter made it look just as appetizing as it was. The stir-fried octopus also included somyeon wheat noodles. The seasoning was a little spicy and really woke up the appetite; mixing the noodles with the octopus worked so well. The squid was tender rather than tough, so it was easy to enjoy too.

Once the entire Sonamu Set Meal had been laid out, the table was completely filled with food. There were so many choices, from the basic side dishes to the different cooked dishes, so tasting each one was fun—and the full table looked wonderfully generous.

Dessert and a place to rest after the meal

Finally, yuzu yanggaeng jelly and Nonsan strawberry juice arrived for dessert. The yanggaeng was sweet with a delicate yuzu aroma, while the Nonsan strawberry juice was fresh and sweet—a lovely way to cleanse the palate after the meal. There was also a separate area for guests to wait their turn if the restaurant was full and they could not be seated right away.

After finishing the meal, there was also an area with coffee and tea available. It was a nice place to take a short break over a warm cup of tea or coffee. Overall, every dish was neatly presented and there was such a variety that it was a satisfying meal. With the Sonamu Set Meal, I liked being able to try an even spread of different dishes. The hanok-style restaurant felt relaxing throughout the meal, and everything from the food to the space made it easy to dine at an unhurried pace. It is a good place to visit at least once when you are craving hanjeongsik in Nonsan.