Flatfish sashimi and special sushi cooler bag takeout in Jeju

While traveling around Jeju, we went to Dongmun Market one day. There was so much food to try there, and since we wanted to eat comfortably back at our accommodation in the evening, we decided to pack sashimi and sushi to take with us.

The place we visited was Dutumhoe, inside Dongmun Market. Dutumhoe was easy to find, close to Gate 8 of the market. They sold everything from sashimi and sushi to futomaki and fried shrimp, so it was a great one-stop shop for putting together a dinner menu.

Finding Dutumhoe inside the Gate 8 night market at Dongmun Market

Dutumhoe wasn't really a place to sit down and eat — it was more suited to packing sashimi and sushi to enjoy back at your accommodation. Next to the takeout counter there was an aquarium with live fish swimming in it, which made the sashimi feel even fresher before we even packed it.

Sushi and futomaki prices — a tough choice

• Single sushi 6 pieces ₩9,000
• Futomaki ₩13,000
• Mackerel pressed sushi ₩15,000
• Special sushi 12 pieces ₩15,000
• Coconut fried shrimp 8 pieces ₩10,000

I usually love futomaki, so I agonized for a while over whether to get futomaki or special sushi. Decision paralysis makes choosing hard. In the end, the futomaki looked delicious too, but since I wanted to try a variety of sushi types during our Jeju trip, I went with the special sushi.

Flatfish, salmon, and sweet shrimp sashimi prices

At Dutumhoe they sold various kinds of sashimi, including flatfish, salmon, and sweet shrimp.

• Flatfish sashimi ₩25,000
• Salmon sashimi ₩25,000
• Sweet shrimp sashimi ₩25,000
• Dutum Signature assorted sashimi ₩40,000

The sashimi looked so fresh and visually appealing that it was hard to decide what to buy. I wanted to eat everything... T_T

Why we also added coconut fried shrimp

While we were still debating over sashimi and sushi, people passing by had already bought the coconut fried shrimp. So of course we couldn't not buy it either. That's how our dinner menu kept growing — I guess that's just how it goes when you're traveling.

What comes packed with the sashimi

Every sashimi order comes with vinegar-chili sauce, soy sauce, wasabi, baek-kimchi (white kimchi), and an ice pack for the cooler bag.

We ordered the flatfish sashimi, special sushi, and coconut fried shrimp. The blue cooler bag had such a pretty color — it somehow felt like the sea and freshness.

Was it okay not to go straight back to the accommodation?

We weren't planning to head straight back to our accommodation after packing the food at Dutumhoe, so I was a little worried about whether it would be okay to pack the sashimi that far in advance. But they packed everything carefully with ice packs and a cooler bag. They told us it would be fine for about a day, so we could keep exploring without any worries. When traveling in Jeju, it's common to stop by Dongmun Market and then keep exploring instead of heading straight to your accommodation, so this kind of insulated packing was really appreciated.

Since sashimi is a food where temperature control really matters, I also care a lot about how well it's packed, and it was reassuring that they took such care with it. Like Dutumhoe, takeout specialty stores often sell menus that come with a cooler pack included, showing they pay close attention to packing so travelers can eat comfortably back at their accommodation.

The spread we set up at our accommodation

In the evening, once we got back to our accommodation, we unpacked the food one item at a time. It wasn't just the sashimi that was packed — they included vinegar-chili sauce, soy sauce, and wasabi as well. Disposable containers came included too, so we didn't need to prepare separate plates and could eat straight out of them. Pickled ginger and rakkyo (pickled shallots) to go with the sushi, plus the baek-kimchi, were all packed together. They even included a separate sauce for the fried shrimp. When eating at your accommodation while traveling, it's oddly inconvenient if even one thing is missing, but since almost everything we needed was included, we could set up a full meal with ease.

Flatfish sashimi

We started with the flatfish sashimi first. It was sliced thick, and the soft texture was great.

It was delicious with just a little soy sauce and wasabi on top, but eating it with the baek-kimchi that came packed with it turned out to be a surprisingly good combination. The crunchy texture and tangy flavor of the white kimchi paired well with the mild flatfish. At first I thought it was just a side dish, but once I tried it with the sashimi, I kept going back for more.

Special sushi

After going back and forth with the futomaki, ordering the special sushi turned out to be the right call in the end. It was nice being able to try several kinds of sushi instead of just one.

When traveling, there's often more than one thing you want to eat in a single meal, and since we wanted both sashimi and sushi, this combination was perfect for us. Putting a bit of the baek-kimchi on top of the sushi gave a different feel than eating it with the flatfish sashimi — it was almost like eating an aged-kimchi flatfish sushi. The rice, fish, and crunchy white kimchi all came together surprisingly well. I never knew baek-kimchi could be used in so many ways, haha.

Coconut fried shrimp

The shrimp were bigger than expected too. A lot of places have thick batter with tiny shrimp inside, but here the shrimp had a decent size, so it was satisfying to bite into. The distinct nutty aroma of coconut went really well with the fried coating.

Sashimi takeout at Dongmun Market — final thoughts on Dutumhoe

Jeju's Dongmun Market has so much food that it's hard to decide what to eat. But if you want to pack sashimi and sushi together to enjoy comfortably at your accommodation, a place like Dutumhoe where you can buy several menu items in one spot is convenient. Bringing back a full spread of flatfish sashimi, sushi, and fried shrimp made it feel like a proper dinner at our accommodation.

What I especially liked was that even though we weren't heading straight back to our accommodation, they packed everything carefully with ice packs and a cooler bag, so we could keep traveling without any worries. The flatfish sashimi was soft, and the special sushi was nice for trying several kinds at once. And the baek-kimchi, which I thought was just a side dish, turned out to be a surprisingly good match with both the sashimi and sushi — that combination really stuck with me. The coconut fried shrimp was also good, with hearty shrimp and a nutty flavor that worked well alongside the sashimi.

If you're stopping by Jeju's Dongmun Market and looking for a place to pack sashimi or sushi to eat back at your accommodation, this is a place worth visiting.