Daejeon agujjim restaurant with a private room for 16: Seommaeul

On days when I crave something spicy, a few dishes usually come to mind — tteokbokki, dak-bal, nakji-bokkeum — but this time I was oddly craving agujjim, braised monkfish, loaded with crunchy bean sprouts and thick chunks of monkfish.

But I didn't want an agujjim that's just numbingly spicy for the sake of it. I wanted a sauce that was spicy yet savory and delicious. That's how I ended up at Seommaeul, a spot that's been loved for a long time as a go-to agujjim restaurant in Sinseong-dong, Daejeon.

Where is Seommaeul, and is there parking?

Seommaeul sits right on a main road in Sinseong-dong, Daejeon, so even first-time visitors shouldn't have trouble finding it. We went in the evening, and even in the dark the big 'Seommaeul' sign above the building was easy to spot.

There's a parking space right in front of the restaurant, which took away the usual worry about where to park. These days, even the tastiest food loses appeal if parking is a hassle.

Parking availability matters a lot, especially when bringing parents along or arriving in multiple cars as a family. Being able to park right in front of Seommaeul was really convenient. With good access from the main road plus parking, it seemed like a solid choice for a family meal or group dinner.

I heard the restaurant has been running in the same spot for a long time, and honestly, the exterior does carry a sense of history and the quiet confidence of a longtime local favorite. Rather than flashy or trendy, it has a familiar look that makes you think, 'this place must have earned its reputation through the food.'

A large dining hall and a private room for 16

Stepping inside, the interior was much bigger than it looked from outside. Tables weren't crammed into just one side — they were spread generously across both sides, with a fairly comfortable gap between them.

There were enough seats that a large group wouldn't feel cramped, which makes it a good fit for anyone looking for a spot for group gatherings or company dinners in Sinseong-dong. Tables also lined the windows, and toward the back there was a separate room where you could dine quietly away from other guests.

The room can apparently seat up to about 16 people, making it great for a parent's birthday, a family reunion, relatives gathering, or a small work dinner. Agujjim isn't usually a solo dish — it's more often shared by a group sitting around the table, so having both spacious seating and a group room fits the menu perfectly.

We actually saw several families dining there, and the relaxed atmosphere felt comfortable enough to bring along older relatives without any worry. The whole space uses a lot of wood, giving it a warm, cozy feel with the familiarity that only a long-running restaurant has.

Each table had disposable plastic sheeting laid down, which made eating agujjim — where the spicy sauce can splatter — a bit cleaner and more comfortable.

Side dishes and the clay-pot steamed egg

After ordering, the side dishes arrived neatly plated. Black bowls held kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi), stir-fried potato, stir-fried fish cake, cabbage salad, and seaweed flakes — an overall mild, easy-to-pair spread.

The kkakdugi was crunchy with a spicy, refreshing bite — great to nibble on before the agujjim arrived, and it paired nicely with the fried rice later too. The stir-fried potato, thinly julienned and softly cooked, wasn't salty but had a subtle sweetness that kept my chopsticks coming back.

Along with the side dishes came a warm steamed egg dish. Watching the yellow egg bubbling away in the ttukbaegi (stone pot) was mouthwatering on its own. Bits of scallion, chili, and carrot on top added nice color, and seeing the egg cooked into soft, cloud-like curds all the way to the edge made me pick up my spoon right away.

Fresh off the stove, it was still steaming and gently bubbling in the pot. It's best to let it cool slightly since it can be very hot. One spoonful in, and it was neither tough nor dry — just really soft.

Is a medium agujjim enough for two people?

While we worked through the side dishes and steamed egg, the star of the day finally arrived: Seommaeul's agujjim, medium size. A big bowl brimming with glossy red-coated bean sprouts and monkfish landed on the table, and the visual alone was striking.

Sesame seeds were scattered generously, and green minari (water dropwort) peeked through the bean sprouts along with big pieces of monkfish — mouthwatering just to look at.

Being the medium size, the portion was quite generous, and my first thought was that it might be too much for two. But up close, the monkfish pieces looked so thick and plump that I couldn't wait to dig in.

Best of all, this wasn't a bean-sprout-heavy agujjim — chunks of meaty monkfish were tucked in everywhere, so every stir of the spoon turned up another big piece.

Monkfish here, monkfish there!

Discovering big chunks of monkfish throughout the meal was genuinely fun.

Thick, tender monkfish in the braise

Picking up a piece of monkfish with chopsticks, the size alone was satisfying. The meat wasn't thin or broken up — it was thick and plump, with a real heft even in a single piece.

In the mouth, the outside was evenly coated in spicy sauce while the inside stayed moist and tender. Fish meat can turn dry if overcooked, but Seommaeul's monkfish kept its moisture and chewed softly. It had a firm-yet-tender texture that pulled apart along the grain, with almost no fishy taste, so I kept going back for more.

Monkfish looks a little intimidating with its odd shape, but there's a reason people say nothing about it goes to waste. The mild flesh soaks up the sauce well, and depending on the part, you get different textures — chewy in some spots, tender in others — which is part of the charm of agujjim.

Piling minari and sauce on top of a plump piece of monkfish, as in the photo, added a fragrant note that made it even tastier. The meat is good on its own, but layering it with crunchy bean sprouts for a bigger bite made the texture richer. Dipping it lightly in soy sauce mixed with wasabi was also a fun twist, the spicy sauce and sharp wasabi playing off each other nicely.

Crunchy bean sprouts and fragrant minari (water parsley)

As important as the monkfish in agujjim are the bean sprouts. Seommaeul's bean sprouts weren't overcooked or limp — they kept a nice crunch.

Scooping up a spoonful of bean sprouts, the crisp crunch in my mouth was satisfying. Fragrant minari mixed in among the plump sprouts gave the spicy sauce a fresher edge. The cool crunch of the bean sprouts, the fragrance of minari, and the mild richness of the monkfish came together as a textbook agujjim combination.

Along the way, I also found some chewy specialty parts — a completely different, crunchy-chewy texture from the soft flesh, which made for fun chewing. Having different textures across parts meant you could enjoy several kinds of bites within a single plate of agujjim.

My companion isn't a fan of sea squirt (miduck), and since Seommaeul's agujjim doesn't include it, they said they could enjoy the dish more comfortably.

Finishing agujjim the right way: two servings of fried rice

After we'd nearly finished the agujjim, I asked the staff for two servings of fried rice. They stir-fried rice using the leftover sauce and bean sprouts, and before long a generously portioned bowl of fried rice appeared.

The fried rice came piled high with seaweed flakes, looking delicious right away. The agujjim sauce had soaked evenly into every grain, giving it an overall reddish color, and the leftover bean sprouts and minari mixed in added good texture too. Spread across the hot bowl, the fried rice gave off a fragrant, spicy aroma.

By the time we ordered fried rice, we were already pretty full, so I thought two servings might be too much. But once I took a spoonful, that worry disappeared. The spicy sauce had soaked into the rice, but it tasted noticeably milder and nuttier than eating the agujjim on its own.

Final verdict on Seommaeul in Sinseong-dong, Daejeon

If you're looking for good agujjim in Sinseong-dong, Daejeon, I'd recommend Seommaeul. The monkfish was thick and plump, the bean sprouts were crunchy, and the fragrance of minari rounded out both texture and flavor.

Above all, the sauce wasn't just spicy for the sake of it — the heat and savoriness were well balanced, so it never got tiring even by the end. We ordered the medium agujjim and finished it between the two of us, then filled up further with two servings of fried rice. The fact that we polished off a medium agujjim between two people says a lot about how addictive the flavor was, haha.

This is a place I'd want to revisit on a day I'm craving thick monkfish and crunchy bean sprouts smothered in a delicious spicy sauce, finished off properly with fried rice. If you're looking for a good agujjim restaurant in Sinseong-dong, Daejeon, or a place with parking for a group gathering, try a hearty plate of agujjim at Seommaeul.

Just be sure to save room for the fried rice — you might end up like us, finishing a medium agujjim between two people and still scraping the bottom of two servings of fried rice, haha!