Late-lunch kalguksu near Gimhae Lotte Outlet: Seosan Dongjuk

I visit Gimhae Lotte Outlet in Jangyu pretty often~ and this time I was craving cool clam kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and pajeon (savory pancake), so I went to a Jangyu Yulha kalguksu spot near the outlet. Let me introduce Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu, a Jangyu Yulha favorite in Gimhae.

How to get from Gimhae Lotte Outlet to Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu, and where to park

Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu is in Yulha, Jangyu, a 10-minute drive from Gimhae Lotte Outlet. It's open daily from 10am to 9pm, with last order at 8pm. The address is 19 Deokjeong-ro 201beon-gil, Gimhae-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea, 1st floor.

I went for a drive and some outlet shopping, then stopped by for lunch :) There's a parking space right in front of the restaurant, so parking was easy!

Full house even at a late lunch: inside Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu and its counter seats

I got there in the late lunch hour after visiting the outlet, and I was surprised to find the place packed with customers! I didn't want to bother other diners so I took photos on my way out after paying — during peak time there's a wait, and even past 2pm the place was still full of people!!!

Near the entrance there are also bar-style dachi seats that are great for solo dining.

Live clams from the coast and house-made kimchi

Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu, a Jangyu Yulha favorite in Gimhae, gets its live clams delivered fresh from Seosan every dawn, so the freshness really comes through. Plus, they make the kimchi themselves every day using Haenam cabbage, and the flavor was exactly my type, which made the meal even better.

You can easily grab more kimchi, kkakdugi, and chili from the self-serve bar, and the bar itself was kept very hygienic.

What's on the menu at Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu

The main menu at Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu is kalguksu, pajeon, and dongjuk jogaetang (clam soup)! True to a specialty restaurant, I liked that the menu board was simple and focused.

The kimchi and kkakdugi, which really make or break the kalguksu, were fresh and delicious, so the whole meal came together in great balance. Kimchi made fresh daily with domestic ingredients can't taste bad~ the spice level and umami were seriously impressive.

Two servings of dongjuk kalguksu with chili from the self-serve bar

I ordered two servings of dongjuk kalguksu, ohaknae seafood pancake, and a glass of makgeolli :)

The kalguksu comes out in one big bowl for two people~ At first glance the dongjuk clams didn't look like much, but once I scooped with the ladle, more clams kept coming out!!!!!!

I liked that you can choose how much chili to add to the kalguksu and pajeon to your taste, and having chili at the self-serve bar made it easy to add more.

I like my food spicy and loaded with chili, so I grabbed a generous amount from the self-serve bar and piled it in!

The noodles were basically soft yet still had a good chewiness, and they were so tasty! The broth was packed with live clams, so the distinctive clam umami and coolness really came through~ There were more dongjuk clams than I expected, and it was fun fishing them out one by one :)

Ohaknae seafood pancake with a glass of makgeolli

The side dish I ordered was a pancake piled high with shrimp, squid, and small octopus! It was crispier than I expected and loaded with seafood — very satisfying!!!

Kalguksu alone would've felt a bit lacking, but this was better than expected, and I think I would've regretted it if I hadn't ordered it haha

One bite of the seafood pancake and I immediately ordered a glass of makgeolli ^^ hahaha

At the table behind me, some people were day-drinking with clam soup and makgeolli — real connoisseurs haha

Is Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu worth a return visit?

It's a place where you can basically enjoy kalguksu, pajeon, and clam soup made with fresh domestic ingredients, so I'm definitely planning to come back haha. The restaurant is kept hygienic, and a sign noting that each day's food is only used that day gave me a lot of confidence.

The cool, savory taste of the broth itself, made from live clams rather than seasoning, is good enough that I already find myself thinking about it again — so if you're looking for a good restaurant in Jangyu Yulha, Gimhae, or a place to eat near Gimhae Jangyu Lotte Outlet, I definitely recommend giving it a try :)