Korean restaurant in Ansan for potato ongsimi and suyuk: Memilchon

What is Memilchon Ansan like?

Memilchon Ansan (메밀촌) is a makguksu (buckwheat noodle) restaurant on Songho 1-gil in Sangnok-gu, Ansan. Its signature dishes are 100% buckwheat makguksu (in broth, spicy-mixed, or with myeongtae-hoe, seasoned fish), plus buckwheat jeon (pancake), buckwheat jeonbyeong (rolls), potato jeon, potato ongsimi, and suyuk (boiled pork, like bossam). They say it's a real go-to in Songho Village, popular for family meals and gatherings thanks to easy parking and a big dining room.

By Memilchon's own introduction, it's a makguksu place carrying on a 40-year tradition in Ansan, with the motto "we don't compromise on comfort." They name three things that make them special.

• Large millstone milling: no factory flour. They slowly grind buckwheat in the shop with a traditional millstone, which reduces friction heat and keeps the buckwheat aroma alive, they say.
• Same-day boiled Handon suyuk: not vacuum-packed. They boil Korean Handon pork themselves, in several batches a day, they say.
• Gangwon-style traditional ongsimi: a rustic, wholesome taste made the traditional way, they say.

They've also been on TV, including KBS 2TV's Saengsaeng Jeongbo episode 623 (July 25, 2018, buckwheat noodle edition) and OBS's Oneureun Gyeongin Sesang episode 20. Their signature menu items are perilla oil makguksu (freshly ground buckwheat noodles with perilla oil), mild but savory broth and spicy-mixed makguksu, and handmade potato ongsimi and potato jeon. Every menu item is available for takeout. In the shop there were also notices about the Minsaeng Plus and high oil price relief support programs.

We will be a restaurant that one person visits 100 times, rather than one that 100 people visit once.

Where is Memilchon Ansan, and what about parking?

Memilchon Ansan is about 681 m from Exit 2 of Handaeap Station on the Suin-Bundang Line, so it's close to the station too. Parking is free, with space for 5 cars in front, and the restaurant says that at lunchtime (11:00–14:00) you can also park along the big road behind the building.

This time I heard there was a great makguksu and potato ongsimi place in Ansan, so I went to Memilchon~

It's close to Handaeap Station, and this is a photo of the back~ If you come around to the front, you can park in front of the shop. The building is two stories~ The sign lists perilla oil makguksu, water makguksu, buckwheat jeonbyeong, potato sun-ongsimi, potato jeon, suyuk, and bibim makguksu, one after another!

What are the interior and seating like?

Memilchon Ansan has seating on both the 1st and 2nd floors, a clean interior, and a tablet order at every table, which makes ordering easy. At the entrance there are a foot mat, an umbrella stand, and shoe shelves, and when there's a long wait you have to register with a number!

There's a prize draw event too, and I thought it was neat that there's a mill room with the old-style millstone just as it used to be~ I came around 4 p.m. and there were still customers, and plenty of people kept coming in while I ate~

The inside of the shop was clean, and the tablet order at each table made ordering easy~

At the back there are disposable aprons, and there are more tables in front of the back window~ Through the window you can watch cars passing on the road behind~ There's an instant coffee machine, and the restroom was clean and nice too!

2nd-floor seating

If you head toward the restroom you'll see the stairs, and that's the 2nd floor. There's a potted plant halfway up the stairs and lots of sunlight, so it felt warm~ The 2nd floor is quite big too~ so I thought it would be very good for family gatherings, group gatherings, and company dinners~

A famous restaurant that was on Saengsaeng Jeongbo too!

What did I order at Memilchon Ansan?

At Memilchon Ansan I ordered two things, potato ongsimi and a small suyuk, right away on the tablet at the table. Instead of water they gave us buckwheat tea, which was nutty.

Next to the table there are utensils and a napkin holder~ For side dishes, fresh napa cabbage kimchi and young radish kimchi! Chili peppers and garlic, ssamjang, and salted shrimp! And then the suyuk, the potato ongsimi, and white kimchi came out!

The white kimchi looks like it would go well with the suyuk! Red chili peppers are neatly sliced and placed on top~ The kimchi was spicy and really good too~

The young radish kimchi was refreshing too, and perfectly seasoned!

How does the potato ongsimi taste?

Memilchon Ansan's potato ongsimi is a hot soup topped with seaweed flakes, with zucchini, carrot, potato, green onion, and the ongsimi dumplings inside, and the dumplings were moister and chewier than sujebi (hand-torn dough soup). The piping hot potato ongsimi came out~

It's topped with seaweed flakes, and inside there's zucchini, carrot, potato, green onion, and ongsimi~

The broth was warm, savory, and refreshing~

I hadn't had ongsimi in a while and craved some, so I tried it, and rather than feeling like sujebi, it was moister and chewier! Soft too, haha. The texture when you chew it in your mouth is really sticky-chewy and delicious, hahaha

It was so soft that even little kids could eat it, haha. The ongsimi my mom used to make at home all the time!

Eating it with the fresh napa cabbage kimchi and young radish kimchi made me so happy! I finished the bowl in no time! I didn't leave a single ongsimi!

How is the small suyuk?

The small suyuk at Memilchon Ansan is made with Korean-origin meat, tender with no gamey smell, and it comes thinly sliced, which made it great for wrapping with white kimchi and saengchae (seasoned radish strips). The portion was just right too!

I liked that it was sliced thin and easy to eat. The meat was very tender! Eating it on top of the white kimchi together with the saengchae, it was reeeeeally delicious!

The sesame salt on top of the saengchae had a nice crunch in the mouth too! The meat quality was good as well, probably because it's Korean-origin!

Both the white kimchi and the saengchae were so good! It's the kind of taste that makes me want to eat it again! I normally don't eat fat much, but the fat here was really moist and delicious~

Is Memilchon Ansan worth going back to?

Both the potato ongsimi and the suyuk at Memilchon Ansan were so, so delicious! It's a good place to take your parents. Next time I'll try the makguksu and post another review!