Sisters' weekday dinner shabu kalguksu in Busan Munhyeon: Yunujae

Last week, on a weekday I was finally a free woman for the evening: meeting up with my sister. She said she wanted shabu shabu, and the place that immediately came to mind was Yunujae Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu. My family loves it and goes fairly often, so this time too, no hesitation — off we went haha.

Where is Yunujae Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu, and where do you park?

Yunujae Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu is on the main road at Munhyeon Rotary in Nam-gu, Busan, inside the Daerim Munhyeon City Plaza building. You can park in the building, so no parking stress at all :)

Once you park and step outside, you can walk straight to Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu. It's right on the main road at Munhyeon Rotary and it's a big place, so easy to find ^^

Yunujae Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu makes a point of its house-made noodles! No wonder the kalguksu is delicious ^^ haha

Weekday evening at Yunujae: no wait and a window seat

I was a little worried we'd have to wait if we went at mealtime, but since my sister got off work a bit early, we got to eat with plenty of room to spare.

We headed as far in as we could ~ toward the window haha. There are so many tables — great for family meals, company dinners, weekday lunches, group gatherings, all of it!

There's some kind of water ornament across from us (not sure exactly what it's called ^^;), and once you start looking at it you can't stop. Great for zoning out lol.

What two sisters ordered: the 11,000-won-per-person course

What we ordered: 2 servings of white-broth shabu + crispy seafood pajeon + one drink. The shabu shabu is ₩11,000 per person, so from the price alone you might think you'll only get a small bit of meat... but no — vegetables, mushrooms, house-made kalguksu, even fried rice, it all comes generously :>

On top of that. What if you also write a receipt review?

Yunujae's receipt review event: free sirloin

Write a receipt review with a photo, covering the taste, staff service, wait time, suggestions and whatever else you felt, then show it, and you get a free serving of sirloin!! Owner, do you have enough left over? ^^;;

There's also a note on the table about how to best enjoy Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu, so if it's your first visit it's worth checking. They even dip the spoons and chopsticks in hot water to sanitize them! The place is clean and hygienic, so you can eat with peace of mind.

White broth vs red broth at Yunujae: which one tastes better?

Yunujae Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu has two broth options. White broth vs. red broth. We ordered the white broth at regular spice.

Even though it's called white broth, it's not bland — it's clean-tasting with added umami, so you get the deep flavor of shabu, and you can also adjust the spice: choosing regular or spicy lets you feel the kick and heat too. Great to eat spicy when you want a hangover cure, and mild if you're eating with kids ^^

1) The shabu shabu course

First up, the shabu shabu! You put the vegetables in first to cook, and once they're mostly cooked and the broth is boiling, you add the meat and cook it ~ you all know the drill, right? Hahaha

Just looking at the meat, it's tender-looking ^^ great color, marbling that's just right without being greasy ~ so good.

And kimchi and pajeon sauce came as sides. Pour the meat sauce that's already on the table on top ~ haha.

Chanting a spell to make it taste good ~~ hahaha (actually. It was more like 'cook fast!!' lol, the taste is already guaranteed~)

It's starting to boil now!! haha the vegetables look about done! Time to add the meat haha here we go!

Add it, add it, add more lol we wanted to eat a lot so we dumped in a full serving each at once lol. Since you don't overcook the meat and just eat it the moment it's done, it's tender and not chewy at all. Eating it together with vegetables makes both the flavor and texture even richer :>

And as the vegetables cook they release their own broth, and as you keep cooking meat in it, the soup fills with umami — to the point where later you almost want to just keep spooning up broth instead of meat lol. Every time I eat shabu, that broth's umami... I can never let it go ㅠㅠ haha.

Without realizing it I dipped meat into the pajeon sauce too, and it went together perfectly hahaha.

Eating it with vegetables gives you a fragrant harmony with the meat — the best! A lot of people skip vegetables when eating meat, but with shabu shabu vegetables are basically mandatory lol, so even veggie-avoiders turn into good grown-ups who eat their vegetables lol. Great for your health too! haha

We finished one full serving. And then dumped the rest of the second serving in too hahaha.

The crispy seafood pajeon we order every visit

While we were eating the shabu shabu, the seafood pajeon showed up!! Honestly the shabu set alone could fill you up, but since my sister was visiting this place for the first time, this older-sister heart really wanted her to try this pajeon hahaha. If it's delicious, it all fits in even when you're full... you know how it is right? haha

Just looking at it — truly crispy, exactly as the name suggests, this seafood pajeon looks crispy through and through :> My family prefers a crunchy texture over a soft, moist pancake, so this is the dish we order every time we come here. It's got quite a lot of seafood, and above all the pancake itself is so crispy!

It's so crispy that sometimes it feels less like a pancake and more like eating fried food!! haha There's so much seafood in it that even cutting it with scissors is heavy going and doesn't cut easily haha so I couldn't eat it neatly ㅠㅠ haha.

I confidently told my sister 'you have to order this,' and sure enough, she ate it up happily ~~ success!! haha. Who was it that said they'd probably be too full to finish it? lol

Kalguksu time: the house-made knife-cut noodles

After the shabu shabu and pajeon, we were starting to get full, but now round two begins, right? Time for kalguksu haha.

Before eating, we went to the self-serve bar and grabbed more kimchi and kkakdugi, kalguksu's best friends haha. Broth and water are also self-serve, so help yourself whenever you need.

Maybe because they're house-made, the noodles are chewy and delicious, and besides the regular kalguksu noodles there's also a wide, thin sujebi (hand-torn dough)-like dough mixed in! And that one's a real treat too :> its smooth surface gives it a completely different texture from the kalguksu, fun to eat ~ (was too busy eating to take a photo ^^;;)

The weather's turning chilly again these days.. and seeing this makes me want it again ㅠㅠ lol. Fall is shabu shabu season ^^ Winter is shabu shabu season too ^^

While we were digging in, I looked around and suddenly noticed the place had filled up with customers. There was even a wait forming. It happens all the time here so it's no surprise haha. So glad we came early, seriously! haha

Not over yet: fried rice to finish

Once you've finished the kalguksu, it's time for the final course!! Fried rice. You have to finish with fried rice — that's when you really feel like you've properly finished a shabu shabu meal! (Wait, I heard saying stuff like that makes you sound old lol oh my god)

If you leave a little broth, you can make it into fried rice, and if you leave more broth, you can make it into a porridge instead! We went with fried rice, and even though we were already full, it still went in.. ㅠㅠ

In the end we finished off the rest of the pajeon too lol and cleaned the fried rice plate completely lol swept everything clean. By the time we finished eating, our stomachs looked five months pregnant lol.

On our way out, I spotted the noodle-making room by the entrance and took a photo, though I was too shy to get a good shot ㅠㅠ haha. That's where they make those chewy noodles ^^

Yunujae Munhyeon Shabu Kalguksu: the verdict

My sister was the one who wanted shabu shabu, and since she was satisfied with the meal, it was worth the recommendation.

• At ₩11,000 per person you get not just meat but vegetables, mushrooms, kalguksu, and fried rice — amazing value for the price!
• If it's your first visit, note that meal times can have a wait, so going a little earlier is recommended.

If you're looking for a good shabu shabu or kalguksu spot in Munhyeon-dong, this one's worth a try ^^

Who should eat at Yunujae?

• Anyone looking for good-value shabu shabu
• Anyone who likes a spicy broth
• Anyone who likes crispy seafood pajeon
• Anyone looking for a place to eat out with kids