Mugeo-dong kimchi jjigae restaurant in Ulsan: ramyeon and sujebi

I was craving a hearty Korean meal for once, so I went looking for a good-value spot in Mugeo-dong near Ulsan University. There are actually quite a few filling, affordable Korean restaurants around the university, and the one we visited this time was Jeontong Sigol Chueotang Ulsan Mugeo Branch.

Where Jeontong Sigol Chueotang Ulsan Mugeo Branch is, and its opening hours

Jeontong Sigol Chueotang Ulsan Mugeo Branch is located at 6 Sinbok-ro 21beon-gil, Nam-gu, Ulsan, South Korea. It's open 09:00–20:00, closed every Sunday.

Parking and what the dining room feels like

There's parking for about 2 cars right in front of the restaurant, and we got lucky with an open spot. If there's no space, you can also try parking at Ulsan University nearby — worth keeping in mind.

The vibe inside was cozy and welcoming, like a classic neighborhood spot near a university campus.

Menu and prices at Jeontong Sigol Chueotang

True to being a university-area restaurant, the menu prices are pretty low. This is probably why I sometimes get the urge to eat around a college campus, haha.

The signature dishes are chueotang (loach soup) and pork stir-fry on a hot plate, alongside kimchi jjigae, kalguksu, and dumpling soup. In summer they also have yeolmu guksu (young radish kimchi cold noodles) and yeolmu bibimbap. Prices run from ₩5,000 to the ₩9,000s, so you can eat a filling meal without spending much.

What comes as banchan (side dishes)

After ordering, they bring out the side dishes, and they're all solid rice-pairing options — honestly, you could finish a whole bowl of rice with just the banchan alone.

What we ordered was kimchi jjigae for two, pork stir-fry on a hot plate for two, plus dumpling soup and kalguksu. We wanted to try a bit of everything, so we went all out.

Pork stir-fry on a hot plate, cooked with ramyeon noodles in the pan

The pork stir-fry comes served on a literal hot plate, so be careful not to burn yourself. It sizzles the whole time, which meant we could keep eating it piping hot until the very end — that was the appeal.

The stir-fry is loaded with pork and various vegetables, and since it's cooked over high heat, it stayed dry with no watery liquid pooling even down to the last bite — I liked that.

Even though it's a pork stir-fry, they throw in ramyeon noodles too, which makes it extra filling — that's the perk. Probably because of that, it's one of the most popular dishes at Jeontong Sigol Chueotang Ulsan Mugeo Branch, a well-known spot near Ulsan University.

It pairs really well with plain white rice too — I made quick work of the stir-fry.

The 6,000-won kalguksu and the dumpling soup

The kalguksu with dumplings had this nutty sesame oil aroma that made my mouth water. At ₩6,000, the generous amount of ingredients really shows the value.

It has mul-mandu (water dumplings) in it, which were easy to slurp up in one bite.

The kalguksu noodles were nice and chewy too, satisfying to slurp down. It honestly worked pretty well as a hangover-cure kind of meal.

Kimchi jjigae for two, with ramyeon noodles and sujebi in the pot

We also ordered the kimchi jjigae for two, which is just as popular as the pork stir-fry. Turns out there's ramyeon noodles inside the kimchi jjigae too — another dish that's great for a filling meal.

The kimchi jjigae comes out to be boiled at the table, so it stayed hot all the way through, which I liked.

There was a generous amount of pork inside the kimchi jjigae — genuinely a lot of ingredients for the price!

Once the ramyeon noodles were cooked, I made sure to fish them out first — if you don't eat them quickly, they get soggy or the broth disappears.

Probably because it was packed with well-fermented kimchi, the tangy flavor really stood out. It was also fun fishing out pieces of meat along the way.

As we kept eating, I noticed there was also thin dumpling-dough strips (sujebi) in there. Being thin, they were surprisingly easy to keep reaching for. We ordered kimchi jjigae but ended up with ramyeon noodles and sujebi too, which made for a really satisfying, filling meal.

Is Jeontong Sigol Chueotang worth a visit?

Jeontong Sigol Chueotang Ulsan Mugeo Branch in Mugeo-dong is a great pick when you want good, affordable Korean food near Ulsan University. It's filling and reasonably priced, so if you're looking for a hearty Korean meal in the area, I'd recommend giving this place a try.