Suanbo, Chungju pheasant shabu-shabu: Suanbo Daejanggun

This post follows my last one — after healing up in Suanbo's 👑royal hot springs♨️, it's time for the 👑royal table.

Pheasant~! Pheasant~! Pheasant~! Today's star is none other than pheasant!! A ✨precious royal table✨ set entirely with pheasant.

So the place we headed to was.. 📍 Daejanggun, the pheasant cuisine masters of Suanbo-myeon, Chungju (feat. Dalgun).

That gorgeous pink color.. "Wait, this is really raw pheasant?"

What is Suanbo Daejanggun?

Suanbo Daejanggun is a pheasant restaurant at 105 Mireuksonggye-ro, Suanbo-myeon, Chungju. After enjoying the royal hot springs of Suanbo, we moved on — because Suanbo isn't only famous for its springs!

Another local icon of Suanbo 👑 a wellness collaboration that begins with the royal hot springs and finishes with the royal table 🍲

Designated a 'Local Food Pilot Village,'

and named among 'Local Specialties You Must Eat Before You Die' — the star of that special local cuisine is.. pheasant.

Squawk~

And this is the place where you can meet a royal table set entirely with pheasant —

the pheasant cuisine masters, Daejanggun.

Ooh~ "A precious royal table set with pheasant" and even a cute pheasant sculpture guarding the entrance. "Yes, I've found the right place today" — the entrance alone had a certain dignity to it.

📍 Suanbo Daejanggun hours, address and how to visit

The phrase 'House of a Certified Pheasant Cuisine Master' catches your eye at the entrance — apparently this place is run directly by Korea's first-generation pheasant cuisine master (impressive~).

🏅 It's also been selected as a Hundred-Year Store, and off to one side of the entrance is the phrase, following the spirit of 'nine visits, one peck' — "We will treat every single guest like a king." Reading that before even stepping inside got me strangely excited and a little nervous~ 😄

Let's go in~ As always I love an opening run, so we walked in as the very first customers (yes, first in line! 😆)

Wow... such an upscale, clean interior. Bright, tidy space with neatly set tables (I love it~)

Then this caught my eye: 'chicken instead of pheasant.' Apparently pheasant used to be such a precious ingredient reserved for the king's royal table that when it couldn't be found, chicken was used instead — the origin of the Korean saying 'chicken instead of pheasant.'

Maybe that's why the pheasant dishes we were about to try felt even more precious and special.

We sat by the window~ a clean table setting befitting a royal spread.

What comes in the 69,000-won Daewang Sura course?

What we ordered was Daejanggun's signature course, the Daewang Sura course, for two people.

Suanbo Daejanggun menu and prices

• Daewang Sura course ₩69,000
• Jeongchan Sura course ₩49,000
• Kids' set meal ₩27,000

The Daewang Sura course guide listed everything in order: dongchimi (radish water kimchi) and a health porridge to start, then five-color pheasant sashimi, raw pheasant, steamed abalone, boiled octopus, pheasant sinseollo hot pot, pheasant dumplings, wild greens pancake, royal court pheasant japchae, basic side dishes, and finally three-color sujebi (hand-torn noodle soup). Wow... such a substantial course. Rather than just one or two dishes, it's built so you can experience the same ingredient — pheasant — prepared many different ways, which felt really special.

🥄 Dongchimi and pheasant-ginseng tonic porridge to start

The Daewang Sura course opens with cool dongchimi, made with pheasant broth and Jeju radish, which apparently won top prize at the Gwangju Kimchi Grand Festival.

Its clean, refreshing flavor woke up the palate before the meal and gently carried the flavors of the dishes to come.

Right after came the pheasant ginseng longevity porridge. Said to be a version of the royal family's early-morning tonic porridge from the Joseon court. The look of it... isn't that basically cheating?? 😆

Set the dongchimi aside, spoon out some porridge — royal early-morning breakfast, complete!!

Can you see the sheen on the porridge? Seriously glossy~!! 🤤

The porridge was savory yet smooth, and the seasoning wasn't overpowering at all, which I loved. Nom! Nom! Nom!

🌈 Crisp five-color pheasant salad

Next up in the course was the five-color pheasant sashimi.

This dish mixes assorted vegetables with pheasant tenderloin.

It's a real feast for the eyes. Once you toss it together, the mix of colors really stirs up your appetite —

and the crisp texture of the vegetables blended naturally with the clean flavor of the pheasant, making it a refreshing way to kick off the course.

I especially think that even someone unfamiliar with pheasant would find this mixed-raw style an easy, low-pressure entry point.

🍲 Pheasant sinseollo hot pot, served bubbling

Marking the middle of the course, the pheasant sinseollo hot pot arrived, loaded with vegetables and mushrooms.

The clear, clean broth reset the palate after the sashimi, and as the vegetables and mushrooms cooked further, the broth's flavor deepened bit by bit. Nom! Nom! Nom!

🥢 The star dish: fresh raw pheasant and pheasant shabu-shabu

And finally, today's true star arrived — raw pheasant sashimi made from the breast meat. Neatly arranged pink pheasant meat on a large black plate — my first impression was that it looked like premium tuna sashimi.

According to the owner, the restaurant runs its own pheasant farm right next door, supplying fresh pheasant meat, which is why they can serve it raw. Apparently Daejanggun is currently the only place where you can try raw pheasant like this (told you I found the right spot~haha).

Picking up a piece with chopsticks, you could see the thin, smooth grain of the meat. Rather than rich or fatty, it was clean and lean, with a subtle savoriness that built up slowly the more you chewed.

After eating it raw first, we blanched a few pieces in the broth for just 5–10 seconds — and that's pheasant shabu-shabu right there. It has a completely different texture from the raw version, so there was fun in enjoying one ingredient two different ways.

🐚 Steamed abalone and boiled octopus on one plate

The abalone served alongside the pheasant sashimi had been steamed at low temperature for 2 hours, coming out tender yet pleasantly springy.

The boiled octopus, chewy in texture, paired nicely alternating with the clean flavor of the pheasant sashimi. Even on a single large plate, we got to experience a variety of textures and flavors.

🥟 Pheasant dumplings, wild greens pancake and royal court pheasant japchae

Enter the pheasant dumplings. Filled 100% with pheasant meat, steamed and then pan-fried once more, these are said to have been a delicacy of the Joseon royal court and Hanyang's noble households.

The golden-brown dumpling skin paired well with the savory pheasant filling — an easy, approachable dish even for those unfamiliar with pheasant.

The wild greens pancake was made by combining fragrant wild greens foraged from Mt. Wolak in Chungju with pheasant meat — not at all overpowering, with the natural aroma of the mountain herbs coming through clearly.

Golden and mouth-watering, right~? Tear into that wild greens pancake~ Nom! Nom! Nom!

And now presenting the royal court pheasant japchae~

The seasoning wasn't overpowering and let the natural flavor of the ingredients shine, tying in naturally with the pheasant dishes that came before.

With every bite, I kept thinking, 'this must be the kind of food that once graced the royal table.' Between the more unusual pheasant dishes, familiar items like the pancake and japchae kept the meal approachable from start to finish.

🍲 Four-color side dishes and three-color sujebi to finish

The Daewang Sura course closed with tidy four-color side dishes and colorful three-color sujebi.

A clean, understated way to end a lavish course. The chewy sujebi and mild broth brought the long course to a comfortable close.

👑 Pairing the royal hot springs with a pheasant feast

A day of healing at the ♨️ royal hot springs followed by a hearty 👑 royal table — a flow you can only experience in Suanbo, all coming together naturally.

Pheasant isn't something most of us eat often, so it can feel a little unfamiliar at first. But the pheasant meat we actually tasted had almost no gamey smell, with a soft, clean flavor that left an impression. In particular, the raw pheasant sashimi, reminiscent of tuna sashimi, was the most memorable dish of this Daewang Sura course.

As we finished up and headed out —

whoa! Not a single empty seat left.. We walked in as the very first customers, and by the time we left the place was nearly full haha. Daejanggun really is the general in charge here.. 😄

🏆 JP Rank score for Suanbo Daejanggun

• 🍽 Taste ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.8 / 5.0 — Clean yet deep flavors left a strong impression. The raw pheasant sashimi and dongchimi especially exceeded expectations
• 💰 Value ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ 4.4 / 5.0 — Prices run a bit high, but considering the course composition, the rarity of the ingredients, and the care put in, it felt satisfying
• 😊 Service ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.9 / 5.0 — With every dish, the staff explained its meaning and how to eat it, which made the meal even more enjoyable
• 🏠 Atmosphere ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.9 / 5.0 — Traditional hanok charm paired with dignified interior design made it a fitting space for a special meal
• 🔁 Would I return ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 / 5.0 — If I visit Suanbo again, this is the first place I'd book. Somewhere I'd love to bring my parents or honored guests
• ⭐Overall⭐ 4.8 / 5.0

Final thoughts on Suanbo Daejanggun

From raw pheasant sashimi, hard to find anywhere else, to the full Daewang Sura course — this was a special culinary experience you can only have in Suanbo.

A meal that healed with ♨️ royal hot springs and filled us up with a 👑 royal table. Being able to enjoy both hot springs and fine food in one trip made this visit to Suanbo an especially memorable one.

The first place I'd want to book if I return to Suanbo's hot springs again.. it was Daejanggun. Thanks for the meal 😊