Nampo, Busan Japanese course with cod stew and roe rice: Ppong Sashimi

If you're looking for a Japanese course restaurant in Busan with great value for the price, here's a place worth visiting at least once. I love sashimi restaurants and Japanese course meals, so I've tried quite a few.

This time I'm introducing Ppong Sashimi (뽕사시미), a Jungangdong sashimi restaurant near Nampo where I ate really well, thanks to the friendly staff and quality food. My husband, who has had plenty of Japanese courses, kept marveling that he had never seen this quality at this price. It's also close to Busan Station, so I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a Japanese restaurant or omakase near Busan Station.

Where is Ppong Sashimi and what are its hours?

Ppong Sashimi is at 56 Chungjang-daero 5beon-gil, Jung-gu, Busan. Lunch is 11:30–14:30 (last order 14:00) and dinner is 17:00–22:00 (last order 21:00). It's closed every Sunday, but if Monday is a public holiday it opens on Sunday instead. Reservations are possible, and for parking you use nearby car parks.

It's a fine walking distance from Busan Station, so access was easy. I heard it's a course-focused restaurant built around fresh live fish and seasonal seafood, sourced every dawn by a Japanese chef with 30 years of experience.

What's the atmosphere at Ppong Sashimi like?

The restaurant is mostly private rooms, so it was nice for a quiet meal. It seemed like a good fit for a date, a family gathering or a company dinner.

Ppong Sashimi menu and prices

The course meals are omakase at ₩120,000 per person, and the assorted sashimi course and tuna sashimi course each come in ₩45,000, ₩60,000 and ₩80,000 tiers. There are also separate takeout sets, a lunch menu and extra dishes.

Takeout

• Assorted sashimi set: small (30 pieces) ₩60,000 / medium (40 pieces) ₩80,000 / large (50 pieces) ₩100,000
• Tuna belly set: small (30 pieces) ₩60,000 / medium (40 pieces) ₩80,000 / large (50 pieces) ₩100,000
• Bluefin tuna belly set: small (25 pieces) ₩70,000 / medium (35 pieces) ₩100,000 / large (45 pieces) ₩130,000

Course meals

• Omakase ₩120,000 per person
• Assorted sashimi course ₩45,000 / ₩60,000 / ₩80,000
• Tuna sashimi course ₩45,000 / ₩60,000 / ₩80,000

Extra dishes

• Sweet shrimp, 20 pieces ₩30,000
• Spot prawns, 15–17 ₩45,000
• Abalone sashimi ₩30,000
• Salmon sashimi: medium ₩35,000 / large ₩55,000

Lunch menu

• Lunch special ₩28,000
• Special Lunch ₩35,000
• Assorted sushi ₩15,000
• Fish sushi ₩18,000
• Salmon sushi ₩18,000
• Flame-seared beef sushi ₩20,000
• Cold pork and seared beef sushi ₩20,000
• Premium omakase sushi ₩23,000
• Steamed abalone sushi ₩25,000
• Freshwater eel sushi ₩25,000
• Bluefin tuna belly sushi ₩30,000

What does the first spread of the ₩60,000 assorted sashimi course look like?

We ordered the course (₩60,000 per person), and even the first spread beat my expectations. Out first came sushi, abalone porridge, tuna yukhoe (seasoned tuna sashimi), and cold boiled pork.

Abalone porridge and tuna yukhoe

The abalone porridge was soft and nutty, great for settling the stomach, and the tuna yukhoe paired fresh tuna with well-balanced seasoning and got my appetite going.

Cold boiled pork

The cold boiled pork was clean and mild with no gamey smell, so I was satisfied from the very start. Even that much felt like a generous table, and then plenty of seafood arrived right after.

Seafood

With sea squirt, tako wasabi (raw octopus with wasabi), abalone, sweet shrimp and more fresh seafood to try, it was a great lineup for a drink or two.

How do the assorted sashimi and tuna taste?

The star of the course, the assorted sashimi, was cut thick with a great chew and tasted clean with no fishiness. The plating was neat and the fresh fish looked appetizing, so the first impression was great. The sashimi arranged prettily on the plate looked upscale right away.

Assorted sashimi

The slices were cut thick with a really nice chew, and the freshness meant we could enjoy it cleanly with no fishy taste.

Tuna sashimi

While we were still eating the sashimi, the tuna followed, and its melt-in-your-mouth texture was really impressive. Anyone who loves tuna will surely like it.

What hot dishes come after the sashimi?

After the sashimi, the course continues with cheese-grilled shrimp, abalone and scallops, a beef hot pot, grilled sea bream head and fried shrimp. And that wasn't the end. The scallops were topped with plenty of cheese and tasted rich, and the abalone kept its chewy texture, which was fun to bite into.

Grilled abalone, shrimp and scallops, grilled sea bream head

It isn't a place that serves only raw fish; the hot dishes come out evenly too, which made the course even more enjoyable. The sea bream head was grilled fresh, with mild, tender flesh that was well seasoned, and it was one of my favorites, haha.

Beef hot pot

The beef hot pot in particular had a rich broth and plenty of meat, and the broth tasted similar to the sukiyaki I'd had in Japan.

Fried shrimp with curry salt

The fried shrimp was crispy too, so I could enjoy it to the very end. Even the salt wasn't plain salt; they gave us curry salt, and I fell for that kind of detail again. I was eating like mad and got so full that my true inner voice was "please, no more now." haha

How are the Daegu (cod) stew and egg rice that finish the course?

The course's final meal was Daegu (cod) stew and egg rice (albap), and the cod stew was truly the highlight. Even after all that, it still wasn't over, lol. The broth was clear and deep, easily on par with a specialist cod stew restaurant.

The broth really settled my stomach, and it was so addictive that we ended up ordering one more bottle of alcohol. With egg rice coming as the finish, I was so full I felt I couldn't eat any more.

And yet I caught myself still eating, haha. Considering the price, the lineup was honestly unbelievable, and my husband, who has tried Japanese courses in many places, kept praising it, saying he had never seen this quality and composition at this price.

Egg rice (albap)

How was the service at Ppong Sashimi?

What I liked most at Ppong Sashimi was that the staff kept an eye on our table and served each next dish to match our eating pace, so the course flowed naturally without any waiting. Thanks to that attentiveness, it was a Jungangdong spot where we enjoyed a happy meal.

Ppong Sashimi: overall verdict

Ppong Sashimi had nothing to be disappointed about: good ingredients, a generous course, attentive service and a quiet room atmosphere. Satisfaction for the price was really high at this Jungangdong favorite, and I thought I'd like to come back with my parents next time. If you're looking for a sashimi restaurant in Nampo, Busan, Ppong Sashimi is a good choice for a filling, satisfying meal.