Pohang mulhoe restaurant with bean sprout squid soup: Ppwang Mulhoe

A trip to Pohang after a long while. Usually I head home first and eat there before going to the beach, but this time I went straight to Yeongildae in the north. Why? Because when you're in Pohang, you eat mulhoe (cold raw fish soup)! I'd spotted the pink sign of Ppwang Mulhoe near Yeongildae back in February and liked it, and it turns out it's now the most popular mulhoe spot in the area.

Where is Ppwang Mulhoe, and what are its hours and parking?

Ppwang Mulhoe sits right on the main road by Yeongildae Beach in northern Pohang, so it's easy to find. The hot-pink sign stands out too. It's known for its squid mulhoe, but the best part is that parking is available and you can enjoy squid mulhoe year-round!

Ppwang Mulhoe is open daily from 10:30am to 10pm (last order 9pm). On Fridays and Saturdays it closes at 11pm (last order 10pm). There was a self-bar, so there was so much to eat! Highly, highly recommend!

Window seats and ordering half-and-half and flounder mulhoe at Ppwang Mulhoe

Whoa... walking in, the inside is huge, and every table was lined with white plastic sheeting — now it really felt like Pohang. Guests were mostly seated along the window side, and we got a window table too, so we took it right away.

Our seafood-avoiding kid had already headed to the self-bar. I'd brought rice balls in case there was nothing for her to eat, but surprise — tteokbokki, kimmari, chicken nuggets, ham-egg stir-fry, even quail eggs, all on the unlimited self-bar. I really love this place.

Since it's a mulhoe restaurant, the main menu has two options — squid mulhoe ₩20,000 and flounder mulhoe ₩20,000 — with an extra-large size for ₩5,000 more, and a half-and-half option too. There's also raw squid dishes besides mulhoe. We ordered a half squid-and-flounder mulhoe for the kid and a flounder mulhoe for me right at the table, then went to look around and take pictures.

The specialty menu has lots of dishes made with fresh squid — fried squid, blanched squid, squid pancake. Looking again, I see there's even a bulgogi rice bowl on the kids' menu.

What is on the unlimited self bar at Ppwang Mulhoe?

The stars of Ppwang Mulhoe's self-bar are the soup tteokbokki, kimmari, and chicken nuggets kids love. There's even chili sauce set out — what a thoughtful touch. Beyond that, there's a whole row of kid-friendly side dishes, all un.li.mit.ed.

Tteokbokki and fried snacks our kid brought back. There are side dishes and thin noodle sarl (extra noodles) at the self-bar too. Every single side dish was good! The soup tteokbokki was her favorite. The kimmari and nuggets were crispy and tasty too — she went back for more several times.

While we were savoring the side dishes one by one, the food arrived quickly. My flounder mulhoe has entered the chat!

How to eat mulhoe at Ppwang Mulhoe in 4 steps

• First, mix everything with the secret gochujang sauce made from grated green onion, cucumber, and pear, along with cucumber, pear, and the fresh sashimi!
• From the self-bar, add wasabi or chili for a spicy kick!
• Add noodles! Bring thin noodles from the self-bar, pour in the cold broth, and enjoy the noodles first.
• Finally, add the rice that comes with the dish and eat it all together.

This is just one way to eat it — feel free to eat however you like.

My mulhoe piled high with fresh flounder sashimi. Since it had been a while since I'd had mulhoe in Pohang, I was full of anticipation! One bowl of rice comes with each mulhoe order.

Three bowls of the self bar's bean sprout squid soup

Oh, and this bean sprout squid soup at the self-bar was so unbelievably good that I went back for three bowls, all by myself. I ate so much I felt a bit sorry haha.

Even the vegetables were so fresh that just mixing in the sauce that came with it made me feel, ah, I really am in Pohang — a deliciousness I'd forgotten I missed!

Next, pour on the cold, icy mulhoe broth generously! After pouring it in, I ate it up, had the noodles, mixed in rice, and made full use of the self-bar too — so good!

No comparison to what you get in Seoul. Just. So. Good! I ate so well and so filling. A no-regrets choice — Ppwang Mulhoe totally won me over!

When paying, I noticed Naver Pay was accepted, so I paid with Naver Pay Face Pay, and the counter also had a menu board you could see at a glance. The owner was friendly and the food was guaranteed delicious — a truly great mulhoe restaurant.

After leaving, we had coffee and took a walk along the beach. Looking up at the sky, it really felt like autumn.