Jeju Korean restaurant for family fish stew: Onjeong Jorim

Autumn is here, and the weather has been so lovely lately. I’m going to share a great-value restaurant I tried on a recent trip to Jeju.

A family dinner stop while heading to Hyeopjae

While traveling around Jeju and heading toward Hyeopjae, I visited Onjeong Jorim Jeju Hyeopjae Branch (온정조림 제주협재점) for dinner with my family. The sign boldly said it specialized in hairtail and mackerel dishes, so I went in with high expectations. The building exterior was neatly kept too, which made for a good first impression. With stairs nearby and other shops around it, it was not difficult to find.

Parking right in front of the restaurant is a little limited, but there was a free public parking lot down the alley. Or, it seemed that parking in the public lot at Hyeopjae Beach, across from the restaurant, was free as well.

A comfortable interior with no wait

There was plenty of seating inside, including seats by the window, so we could sit comfortably. Even though it was dinner time, we were able to walk right in without waiting. The tables were nicely spaced too, making it a good place for a family meal and conversation. The brick-finished interior and wood-toned lighting felt relaxing, and a glimpse of the scenery outside the windows kept the room from feeling closed in.

From side dishes to braised fish

As soon as we sat down, the side dishes were set out. There were four: dried shredded radish, bean sprouts, seasoned seaweed, and napa cabbage kimchi. They arrived neatly presented and were great for whetting our appetites before the main dish. The seasoned seaweed in particular was nutty and delicious with rice, while the napa cabbage kimchi had just the right amount of fermentation, so I kept reaching for it.

Our main order was the braised fish stew. It was ₩30,000, and it looked appetizing from the start, piled high with garlic. The bowl was filled right up, so the portion looked generous too. The red sauce had soaked in nicely, and it looked like just the thing to have with rice.

I took a video when the braised mackerel and hairtail arrived. Even looking at it now, it looks so good. Honestly, I had not expected much before visiting, so I thought, well... it will probably be decent. But it came out far more generously and with much better value than I expected. The size of the mackerel and hairtail pieces, and the amount of flesh on them, really made me exclaim.

Did the hairtail and mackerel come cleanly off the bones?

I picked up a piece each of hairtail and mackerel with the tongs and looked closely. Both were clearly seasoned all the way through. The hairtail had thick, tender flakes that came apart easily even with chopsticks, while the mackerel had a rich coating of sauce on the skin side and delivered plenty of savory flavor without any fishiness. The flesh of both fish separated well from the bones, so picking out the bones was not difficult.

When I pulled off a piece of fish, it came away softly and was well seasoned. It was not salty, with seasoning that was just right for eating with rice. There was lots of garlic on top, so its aroma came through strongly with every bite, and the heat was not overwhelming either.

A meal with bean sprouts and refillable sides

Personally, I found the braised fish especially delicious with bean sprouts. Since you can only really enjoy such substantial fish in Jeju, it felt like an especially great-value meal. We refilled the seaweed and bean sprouts at the self-service bar and thoroughly enjoyed the braised mackerel and hairtail. You really cannot beat the taste of eating it locally.

My whole family shared it, and everyone enjoyed it. I was glad that the adults were happy with it too. It was nice to stop by easily during our trip and leave feeling properly full. We paid ₩30,000 that day. I would give it five stars, and I would revisit. It was somewhere I wanted to stop by again the next time I go to Jeju.