Mokpo North Port hoe restaurant with kids: sea bream set at Jeonghwane

While looking up where to eat raw fish in Mokpo, I ended up at Jeonghwane 🐟 This is also known as trot singer Park Ji-hyun's favorite restaurant, which made me even more curious. I went and tried the generous full set plus sea bream. Today I'll give you the honest rundown — what I ate, how it tasted, and what the set looked like.

Where is Jeonghwane in Mokpo? Hours and parking

Jeonghwane is at 641-21 Gohadae-ro, Mokpo-si, on the 1st floor, units 18–19 of the Mokpo Raw Fish Plaza. It's open daily 10:00–20:30, with dining available until 22:00.

• Address: 1st floor, units 18–19, Mokpo Raw Fish Plaza, 641-21 Gohadae-ro, Mokpo-si
• Hours: Daily 10:00–20:30 / dining until 22:00
• Parking: Available at the Raw Fish Plaza building
• Pets allowed / reservations possible

Jeonghwane inside and out at the Mokpo Raw Fish Plaza

Jeonghwane sits inside the Mokpo Raw Fish Plaza. If you're heading to Mokpo, this is the spot everyone visits for raw fish — right by the North Port, easy to find, and parking is convenient.

I walked in on the ground floor looking for the unit number, and it was right in front of me. Jeonghwane spans units 18 and 19, so it's on the bigger side. Just looking at it, all the seafood looked fresh and hefty.

This place is also famous as the restaurant of Park Ji-hyun from Mr. Trot 2. Search it on Naver and it pops right up — that's how well-known this Mokpo raw fish spot is. The moment I saw the autograph, I knew I'd come to the right place.

Jeonghwane has appeared on TV multiple times — at this point, doesn't that basically guarantee you can trust the food here? 🫢

There were three types of table sets — full set, simple set, and seafood set — with add-ons available too.

Choosing the fish at Jeonghwane: sea bream over croaker or flounder

Jeonghwane posts the day's prices, with a variety of fish species and even the origin listed.

I'd been agonizing over what to eat before even arriving. I went back and forth between croaker and flounder before landing on sea bream — and wow, look at the size of it! They pulled it straight out and it was so fresh.

After paying, we picked up our number placard and headed up to the 3rd floor to eat.

3rd-floor dining hall seating and the 4,000 won table fee

After buying the fish at Jeonghwane, you take your placard up to the 3rd floor dining hall of the Raw Fish Plaza. The table setting fee is ₩4,000 per person. It was an early Sunday evening, so no wait yet, and I read through the usage guide before going in.

It was bigger than expected, with plenty of seating including group tables. Since we had kids with us, I mentioned it when reserving and they had a baby chair ready for us.

Spicy fish soup prices vary by size, and they sell everything from extra noodles to drinks. Water is self-serve, but just ask for anything else and they'll bring it out — worth knowing.

What comes with Jeonghwane's full sea bream spread?

The food came out quickly once we sat down. It arrived on a tray loaded with a variety of dishes, with our restaurant name and unit number marked so it was easy to identify.

Isn't this full set spread absolutely wild...!!!! Seafood, salad, grilled fish, skate three-way combo (samhap) — so much came out that my jaw dropped.

The complimentary clam soup was also great — just the right amount, and fresh and delicious.

We savored each dish one by one. Maybe because it was so fresh, there wasn't a hint of fishy smell — everything danced in the mouth, it was that good.

How does the sea bream hoe at Jeonghwane taste?

Finally, the raw fish we'd been waiting and waiting for arrived. Seriously, what is this visual 💚 It looked so gorgeous my mouth was watering and I wanted to dig in right away.

I quickly ate a piece plain first, then tried it wrapped with perilla leaf, then with lettuce — all sorts of ways. But since the fish was so fresh, eating it plain was honestly the best!

Eating with kids: order the clear jiri hot pot, no pepper

After the raw fish, finishing with a spicy fish soup is the standard move. We debated spicy or clear, and went with clear (jiri) — and since we were serving the kids too, we scooped theirs from the peppercorn-free side. The kids ate well, and so did we — cleaned the whole pot.

Verdict on Jeonghwane for anyone let down by Mokpo hoe before

I've been to various spots for hoe in Mokpo over time, and honestly, a few times the fish was mediocre and the portions small, so I was a little worried going in. But Jeonghwane was genuinely different. From the moment we arrived, the staff greeted us kindly, explained everything, and pulled the fish out live — you could just see how fresh every single one was.

The thickness of the slices was satisfying, and the full set was, frankly, perfection. The seafood was all fresh, there was fruit and rice cake for dessert, and fried food/fish/salad that even the kids could enjoy — the adults ate well and the kids ate well too. If you're traveling to Mokpo or craving raw fish, I highly recommend Jeonghwane, a genuine Mokpo local favorite.