Hanam Korean restaurant group table for 4: Appa Jjim seafood pancake

If you're looking for a place in Hanam to eat with family, this seemed like a solid pick. Why? Because it has close to ten thousand reviews on Naver. How good can it be~~ I went to check out Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch.

• Close to Starfield Hanam
• Easy parking and a spacious dining room
• A good spot for family meals or group gatherings

Where is Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch, and what are the hours?

Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch is located on the 1st floor of 60 Wolho-ro, Hanam-si, Gyeonggi-do, open daily from 11:00 to 21:50. Break time is 15:00–15:30, Naver reservations are available, and there's a parking lot too.

It's near Starfield Hanam, so it's also convenient as a meal spot after shopping.

How big is Appa Jjim, and is there group seating and parking?

Walking into Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch, it was bigger than I expected. Lots of tables — and also lots of people!

Head to the very back and there's group seating, which seemed great for staff dinners or gatherings.

Whether you're visiting with family or as a group for a get-together, taste matters but parking matters too, doesn't it? This place has a decently sized dedicated parking area, so it was convenient to drive here.

I didn't notice when we arrived, but on our way out there were 3 parties waiting. Apparently weekends often have a wait, so it seems best to arrive with some buffer time or use a Naver or phone reservation.

What four diners ordered at Appa Jjim, and what it cost

We visited with 4 people and ordered like this:

• Large siraegi braised pollock — ₩65,000
• Crispy seafood pancake — ₩16,000
• Fragrant pot rice (2) — ₩5,000
• Steamed rice (1) — ₩1,000

We originally only planned to order the braised pollock.. but then we saw the photo of the crispy seafood pancake on the wall.. and there were also a lot of reviews saying the crispy seafood pancake was delicious..

So we added the crispy seafood pancake. And it was really the right call 👍👍

Crispy seafood pancake, 16,000 won: between fritter and pancake

The crispy seafood pancake came out first and all 4 of us went "whoa~👍👍👍👍👍" at the same time, everyone grabbing their cameras haha. It was much thicker than expected, crispy on the outside. But it's not quite the usual pancake texture — more like somewhere between deep-fried and pan-fried. Just like its name, the crispy texture was really good.

Inside there's squid and shrimp, plus plenty of vegetables — zucchini, onion, carrot, chives. Every bite had a different mix of ingredients, which I loved 🤍 If you're ordering the braised pollock, I recommend getting this as a side too!

Large siraegi braised pollock: staff remove the big bones

Finally, the main dish. Look at that appetizing color 🤎🤎 Siraegi (dried radish greens), tofu, radish, rice cake — all perfect for dipping into the braised pollock sauce!!

A staff member removed the big bones separately for us. So sweet 😍😍 Bones are usually something to watch out for when eating braised pollock, but with the big ones already taken care of, we just had to pick out the small ones — so much easier.

Apparently Appa Jjim uses 180°C high-temperature elvan-stone steam to make their braised and steamed dishes. The seasoning was well soaked in but not too strong, easy on the stomach — I really liked that!! There were occasional chili pieces, but not spicy, just a little kick! And it's not just about the pollock — there's the fun of picking through siraegi, tofu, radish, and rice cake one by one.

Why radish and siraegi are separate add-ons at Appa Jjim

It must be so good that they have separate add-on options for radish, siraegi, tofu, and rice cake. The siraegi and radish were seriously, seriously good. Next time I'll add extra radish to the braised pollock! It holds the sauce so well, the siraegi is soft, and the radish just melts~~~

It was pleasantly spicy and the sauce was well soaked in, so mixing it lightly with rice was delicious. If you love rice cake, make sure to try it — the chewy rice cake soaked in sauce was surprisingly a real treat.

Fragrant pot rice and the scorched-rice finish

The fragrant pot rice came out as one pot for 2 servings. They say they use suhyangmi rice, known for its subtle sweet aroma and good stickiness, and when we opened the lid, the rice was glossy.

The rice itself was delicious, and even better eaten with the braised pollock sauce. And of course, the finale of pot rice is the scorched rice (nurungji). After the spicy braised pollock, finishing with the nutty scorched rice was just perfect.

Is Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch worth a visit?

Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch is worth checking out when you're craving braised pollock in Hanam. It gets busy enough on weekends to have a wait, so if you're planning a visit, using a reservation seems like a good idea. If you're looking for a place near Starfield Hanam to eat comfortably with family, it's worth a visit.