Raw shrimp sashimi and soju at Susanjang, a Dongtan seafood pub

A record of a visit to Susanjang at Dongtan North Plaza, where the raw shrimp sashimi was sweet and so was the drinking.

It's shrimp season these days, and I was craving raw shrimp sashimi so badly! There are days when you just want fresh seafood with a proper glass of soju, and this was exactly that kind of day :) So the place I visited was Susanjang Dongtan Branch!

Where is Susanjang Dongtan Branch, and what are its hours?

Susanjang Dongtan Branch is at Dongtan North Plaza, 18 Dongtanjiseong-ro, 105-106, Dongtan-gu, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do. Hours are 11:00–23:50 with a break time from 15:00–17:00.

• 11:00 – 23:50
• Break time 15:00 – 17:00
• Lunch special available Mon–Sat

What's on the menu at Susanjang Dongtan Branch

• Assorted seafood special platter
• Raw shrimp sashimi, salt-grilled version
• Sweet shrimp combo (kkotsaeu samhap)
• Halibut + salt gimbap
• Aged kimchi rolls, and more

The complimentary grilled flounder starter

At Susanjang Dongtan Branch, when you order, they give you grilled flounder — and it's genuinely savory and delicious :)

For anyone in Dongtan who loves seafood, this place is fresh and has a great atmosphere — the kind of place you'd love to come to! True to the name Susanjang (seafood market), the vibe is really built for enjoying sashimi and seafood, so I came in with some expectations that day :) And to cut to the conclusion... I ate really, really well.

The menu I ordered that day was raw shrimp sashimi plus the Jangheung butter scallop-brisket combo! That combination was genuinely better than I expected. It's not just seafood the whole time — meat comes into the mix too, so there was never a dull moment while eating.

Raw shrimp sashimi in shrimp season: how was the texture?

🦐 First up, the raw shrimp sashimi!

Since I visited specifically wanting raw shrimp sashimi, I ordered it the moment I saw it on the menu. Raw shrimp sashimi really is the kind of dish that raises your expectations the second it arrives. The plump, springy shrimp flesh looked fresh just by sight, and on the first bite I could properly feel that signature bouncy, chewy texture :)

You'd think raw shrimp would just taste like shrimp, but that sauce..!!! It's chojang (vinegared chili paste), a bit spicy, and it pairs perfectly with the shrimp. It's springy in your mouth with a subtle sweetness rising up, and when the spicy kick from the sauce hits, followed by a shot of soju... ah, that's when I got why people drink soju with seafood :) It wasn't for no reason that the first glass went down so smoothly.

How to order the butter-grilled shrimp heads

And if you set the heads aside, you can order butter-grilled shrimp heads!

They cut them up and give them to you~

And here it comes, ta-da!

This is genuinely, genuinely savory and delicious. You have to order it, haha.

Eating the raw shrimp sashimi was satisfying because the texture I'd hoped for was exactly there. Plump + chewy + subtly sweet!! All three coming through at once? Anyone who loves shrimp will probably relate.

Jangheung butter scallop-and-brisket combo vs. the raw shrimp sashimi

🥩 And the Jangheung butter scallop-brisket combo, which was better than I expected!

This was the dish that stuck with me that day! Scallops with beef brisket, huh... a combo like that would be hard to make bad from the start, but when I actually tried it, it worked together far better than I imagined. The clean, tender flavor of the scallop paired with the rich, savory flavor of the brisket gave it a completely different charm from the raw shrimp sashimi.

No matter how much you like sashimi, if you eat nothing but sashimi, there's a point where you crave something a bit different — and this dish switches things up perfectly at just the right moment! Wrapping the scallop and brisket together with mustard leaf kimchi (gatkimchi), the savory, rich flavor and tender texture came through together, making it a really solid drinking snack.

The shiitake mushroom especially was quite the kicker, haha. Pick up a piece, take a shot of soju, pick up another piece, thinking 'oh, this is good' — that kind of dish that keeps your hand reaching for it. If raw shrimp sashimi is on the fresh, clean side of flavor, think of this as the savory, rich side.

So ordering both dishes together turned out to be a really good call.

A night when the seafood called for more soju

🍶 It really was a day when the food called for the drinks. A bite of raw shrimp sashimi, a glass of soju. A bite of the combo, another glass. Before I knew it, both the food and the soju just kept going, hahaha.

Personally, I think that's the best moment when you're at a great restaurant.

"Wow, I'm glad I came here."

That's the thought that naturally comes to mind. Susanjang Dongtan Branch was exactly that. You don't need anything fancy or special — just sitting down in front of delicious seafood with a glass of soju and good conversation is enough to lift your mood. I got hit right in my taste that day, too. I'd recommend this combination!

Final verdict on Susanjang Dongtan Branch

I ate really, really well at Susanjang Dongtan Branch that day. It wasn't just 'the food here is decent' — it was the kind of place where my chopsticks kept reaching for more the whole time. At a great restaurant, you end up taking more photos than usual, and one bite always makes you want another. That day was exactly like that :)

If you love raw shrimp sashimi, if you love savory dishes, and above all, if you love pairing seafood with a glass of soju, this is worth remembering as a spot to check out in Dongtan. I left that day feeling really satisfied, thinking, 'Next time I want raw shrimp sashimi, I need to come back here.'