Chungju pheasant course meal: Suanbo Daejanggun

During a trip to Chungju, I wanted to try a local dish I had never eaten before, so I visited Suanbo Daejanggun (수안보대장군). Since it was my first time eating pheasant, I was a little worried whether I would like it, but the course let me try it prepared in several ways. This meal followed a visit to Suanbo’s hot springs.

When should you make a reservation?

Suanbo Daejanggun is at 105 Mireuksonggye-ro, Suanbo-myeon, Chungju-si. I was told that reservations by phone or Naver are required at least one day ahead because the restaurant prepares the pheasants for sale that day at its own pheasant farm.

At the time of the original article, the hours were 11:00–20:00 except Wednesdays. The break was 15:00–17:00, last order was 18:30, and Wednesdays were listed as the regular closing day.

Is the space suitable for parking and family gatherings?

I heard that this restaurant has specialized in pheasant dishes for 40 years. The parking lot was spacious, making it convenient to arrive by car, and it was easy to continue with a meal after visiting the hot springs. House-made pheasant dumplings and pheasant yeot were also sold separately.

There were quite a few tables inside, and the whole space was kept clean. I felt it would suit a family gathering, birthday meal, or occasion when bringing parents. They also said that groups of former classmates visit together every year.

What are the price and serving style of the Jeongchan Surasang?

The pheasant courses included the Daewang Surasang and Jeongchan Surasang, and traditional liquor was also available. We ordered the Jeongchan Surasang for two. It cost ₩69,000 per person, or ₩138,000 for two.

After we ordered, they showed us a pamphlet listing the order in which the dishes would arrive. Each dish was followed by the next, and a staff member explained the ingredients and how to eat them. Since this was my first pheasant meal, those explanations were helpful.

How did the porridge, dongchimi, and chilled salad taste?

The first dish was nourishing porridge. They explained that it was made with pheasant broth, ginseng, mung beans, and pine nuts. It was nutty and deeply flavored, which suited the start of the meal. The pheasant dongchimi that followed was said to be made with pheasant broth and Jeju radish. Its broth was refreshing and clean, but tasted deeper than the dongchimi I usually eat.

Cucumber salad and pickled radish also came out. Their tangy, fresh flavors made them good to have alongside the course from time to time.

The five-color pheasant chilled salad used the inner breast meat, they said. The tender meat was paired with a tangy, sharp garlic sauce. The mild meat and sauce went well together and whetted my appetite.

How were the pheasant samhap and sinseollo hot pot served?

The main dish, pheasant samhap (a three-part combination), came with pheasant sashimi, abalone, and octopus. The pheasant sashimi was thinly sliced breast meat, and an organ sauce came beside the abalone. They explained that the abalone was steamed at low temperature for three hours.

The pheasant sashimi was softer than I expected. To me, its texture was somewhere between tuna and salmon, with a mild flavor and subtle nuttiness. I alternated between dipping it in sesame oil and eating it with wasabi.

The abalone was chewy without being too tough, while the octopus had a springy texture. Dipping the abalone in the organ sauce added a rich, nutty flavor.

Next came sinseollo hot pot with various vegetables in pheasant broth. The broth was more familiar than I expected, clean and mild enough that I kept taking another spoonful. We also put some pheasant meat into the hot pot, and its nutty flavor was different from when we ate it as sashimi, which stayed with me.

What was different about the pheasant dumplings, mountain greens pancake, and japchae?

They explained that the Empress Pheasant Dumplings were handmade dumplings filled with pheasant meat. They were steamed once and then grilled, so the outside was lightly browned while the inside stayed moist. The generous filling of pheasant and dumpling mixture tasted mild and nutty.

The dumplings came in both a darker color and a more typical color. The darker ones were made with buckwheat, they said. I was also told that the house-made pheasant dumplings could be packaged to take home.

The Chungju pheasant mountain greens pancake contained mountain greens such as chamnamul, chwinamul, and wild celery, with pheasant meat on top. The fragrance of the greens went well with the mild meat, and the pancake was fried until crisp.

For the royal-court pheasant japchae, the vegetables were prepared separately, while the pheasant and glass noodles were stir-fried. The pheasant was combined with a sweet sauce, and the vegetables were not cooked until soft, so they retained a crisp texture.

They said that several parts of the pheasant were used in the japchae. The textures worked well when I picked up the noodles, meat, and vegetables together, making it memorable.

How filling was the final meal and dessert?

At the end, they added three-color handmade sujebi (hand-torn dough pieces) to the sinseollo hot pot we had eaten earlier and served four side dishes. After the course continued through warm broth and sujebi, I was very full.

The side dishes were stir-fried eggplant, napa cabbage kimchi, potato salad, and flower greens salad. Overall, they tasted mild rather than strongly seasoned. They said the three-color sujebi was colored with kabocha squash, broccoli, and chestnut, and I liked its chewy texture.

For dessert, I received house-made pheasant yeot (a traditional grain syrup candy). It did not stick to my mouth as much as I expected, and the sweetness did not feel excessive, so it was pleasant to eat at the end of the meal.

I was worried at first because the ingredient was unfamiliar, but trying pheasant in different forms, from porridge and chilled salad to dumplings and japchae, made it feel much more familiar. I especially liked being able to hear an explanation with each dish. If I return to Suanbo, I felt I would like to eat here with my parents.