Gwangalli pot rice lunch: eel, abalone and seed jeotgal at Solsot

Where is Solsot Gwangalli, and where do you park?

Solsot Gwangalli (솔솥 광안리점) is at 78 Gwangnam-ro, Suyeong-gu, Busan, on the 1st floor, and it's open every day from 11:00 to 21:00 (last order 20:30). There are no regular days off, and they have baby chairs.

I visited Solsot Gwangalli, a pot rice spot for lunch in Gwangalli, Busan. It's a 4-minute walk from Exit 1 of Geumnyeonsan Station, opposite Ansiang, and 2 minutes on foot from Gwangalli Beach. There's no parking of its own, so I recommend the Gwangalli Beach public parking lot, which is close (5 minutes on foot) and cheap..!

If you're looking for a Korean restaurant or a place to eat rice in Gwangalli, I'd recommend Solsot Gwangalli, good for taking your parents and also for eating with a baby.

The inside was warm and had an atmosphere that feels like being on a trip to Japan.

Solsot Gwangalli menu and prices

Pot rice at Solsot Gwangalli runs from ₩14,900 to ₩25,900, and you can double the main ingredient in every pot rice.

• Steak pot rice ₩17,900 / double meat +₩8,500
• Sea bream and scallop pot rice ₩17,900 / double sea bream +₩8,000, double scallop +₩4,500
• Freshwater eel pot rice ₩25,900 / double eel +₩17,000
• Abalone pot rice ₩17,900 / double abalone +₩8,500
• Salmon pot rice ₩17,900 / double salmon +₩8,000
• Boneless hairtail pot rice ₩17,900 / double hairtail +₩9,000
• Pork and bracken pot rice ₩14,900 / double meat +₩7,000
• Cockle pot rice ₩14,900 / double cockle +₩7,500
• Cheese dakgalbi (spicy stir-fried chicken) pot rice ₩14,900 / double dakgalbi +₩5,000
• Extra pot rice ₩2,500

• Handmade fried shrimp ₩7,900 / extra fried shrimp ₩2,700 (can be ordered by the piece)
• Yurinki (Korean fried chicken with soy-citrus sauce) ₩8,500
• Cheese pork cutlet ₩9,900
• Lobster shrimp pot rice ₩17,900

Every dish is cooked to order, so it can take a little while, and I loved that you can double the main ingredient on every menu item. The new lobster shrimp pot rice looked so appetizing too.

How to eat Solsot pot rice, from bowl to nurungji tea

The Solsot way is to mix the rice, move all of it to a bowl, then pour broth into the pot to make nurungji (scorched rice) tea to finish.

• 1. Mix the rice, then move all of it into your bowl
• Sea bream and scallop pot rice: mash the sea bream well, then mix
• Cockle pot rice and cheese dakgalbi pot rice: don't mix in the pot; move some to a small plate first, then mix
• 2. Pour in the broth, close the lid and let it turn into nurungji
• After enjoying your meal, open the lid and eat the nurungji

The broth is made with mackerel powder, anchovies and more.

After pouring in the broth, you just add the nurungji kept on the table and let it make itself.

How does the freshwater eel pot rice (₩25,900) taste?

This day at Solsot Gwangalli I ordered the freshwater eel pot rice for ₩25,900 and the abalone pot rice for ₩17,900. Honestly I wanted the cheese dakgalbi pot rice, but it was sold out the day I went. Next time, then..!

For the eel pot rice, they say you don't mix the rice and eel but scoop them up together, and when about a third of the rice and eel is left, move it to a small plate and pour broth over the rice with wasabi and perilla leaf for an even better bite.

The eel was plump, the sauce was tasty, and even without adding more there was plenty of eel, so I enjoyed it so much. It comes out as a neat full set meal, so I think it's a good place to visit when you bring your parents to Gwangalli.

Moving some to a small plate and eating it in the broth was a different taste again. Eating it the way they recommend, I felt like I enjoyed it twice as much.

What does the abalone pot rice (₩17,900) look like?

The abalone pot rice at Solsot also comes out as a neat full set. The abalone is separated into flesh and innards: the flesh goes in with the rice and the innards are made into a sauce, so you get the deep, true flavor of abalone.

It has butter and a rich innard sauce, and mixing them together made it nutty and so delicious.

Mix it, set some aside on a small plate, then add nurungji to the pot and make nurungji tea (sungnyung)..!

Seaweed and seed jeotgal worth a refill

Pot rice at Solsot Gwangalli comes with seaweed and seed jeotgal (salted seafood). The seaweed is there for wrapping, and wrapping did make it taste even better.

The seed jeotgal comes along too, and putting it on top was the kicker. They went together so well that I got a refill and ate happily.

I recommend Solsot Gwangalli as a pot rice spot for lunch in Gwangalli, Busan..!