Seogwipo seafood restaurant for crispy tilefish: Jejurowoon

Braised hairtail near Seopjikoji

One dish you simply cannot leave out of a Jeju trip is galchi-jorim (braised hairtail), right? We stayed near Seopjikoji for two nights on this Jeju trip and went around looking for good nearby places to eat. This time, we visited Jejurowoon Cheonghaewon, which is well known for braised hairtail near Seongsan Ilchulbong.

Jejurowoon Cheonghaewon Seongsan Ilchulbong Branch: location and parking

Jejurowoon Cheonghaewon Seongsan Ilchulbong Branch (제주로운청해원 성산일출봉점) is on the first floor at 101 Sinyang-ro, Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo, Jeju. It is open from 08:00 to 21:30.

This Seongsan Ilchulbong braised-hairtail restaurant is close to both Seopjikoji and Seongsan Ilchulbong, so it is in a great spot to add to an itinerary if you are visiting both. There is a parking lot behind the restaurant. If it is full, you can also park in the white-lined spaces in front of the restaurant.

The yellow sign with a hairtail illustration really catches your eye, so it was easy to find. Inside, the restaurant was clean, spacious, and charmingly decorated. The lighting was especially pretty and made for a lovely atmosphere.

Set menus from A to D

Jejurowoon Cheonghaewon sells its signature dishes in four set menus.

• A Set: braised hairtail + grilled tilefish + seafood hot pot — ₩24,000
• B Set: braised mackerel with kimchi + grilled tilefish + seafood hot pot — ₩21,000
• C Set: grilled tilefish + seafood hot pot + sticky-pot rice — ₩16,000
• D Set: stir-fried black pork + seafood hot pot + sticky-pot rice — ₩18,000

You can choose from these A through D set menus. They also sell sea urchin roe seaweed soup and premium abalone porridge for children, which would be nice to order à la carte when visiting with kids.

Braised hairtail finished at the table

The braised hairtail arrives partly cooked, so all you have to do is let it simmer at the table. The hairtail pieces were wonderfully large, making the meat easy to pick off the bone, and the seasoning was pleasantly spicy without being too salty. It was really delicious.

The radish pieces were large too, and they had simmered beautifully, soaking up the seasoning for a lovely gentle sweetness. The hairtail was wild-caught, so it was even more savory and fresh.

Pick the hairtail meat from the bones, eat it with the seasoned radish, and it is the ultimate rice thief. There was plenty of hairtail, too, so the portion was generous and the value was excellent.

Even our children, who do not handle spicy food well, found the hairtail so tender and tasty that they quickly finished the braised hairtail and a whole bowl of rice.

From soy-marinated crab to soup dishes

The ganjang gejang (soy-marinated raw crab) served as a side dish was delicious without being overly salty. There were lots of other side dishes as well, making for a very generous spread.

This is the seafood hot pot that comes with the A Set. We ordered for three people, and the staff said we could choose between seafood hot pot and sea urchin roe seaweed soup. So we ordered two servings of seafood hot pot and one serving of sea urchin roe seaweed soup. The seafood hot pot was packed with seafood, and its refreshing broth had a real taste of the sea. It had a deep doenjang (fermented soybean paste) base and was not spicy, so the children enjoyed it too.

Sea urchin roe seaweed soup is a seaweed soup with sea urchin roe that you can only taste in Jeju. The light, refreshing broth carried a hint of the sea and was delicious.

Crispy outside, moist inside: grilled tilefish

I have eaten tilefish often in Jeju, but it was so good that I honestly thought tilefish might be the firmest and most delicious fish I have ever had.

They coat the tilefish in batter before grilling it for a crisp texture, so we got to enjoy tilefish that was crispy on the outside and moist inside. The flesh was savory and nicely salty, making it perfect with rice. Everything, from the braised hairtail to the side dishes, was delicious, so this was a very satisfying Jeju braised-hairtail restaurant that I definitely want to visit again on my next Jeju trip.