West Suwon grilled fish restaurant, free gochujang bulgogi: Godeungeo

Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda Suwon Branch

Grilling fish properly at home can feel like more trouble than it's worth. But one perfectly browned bite of fish is enough to empty a bowl of rice in no time. This time I stopped by Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda, one of the standout spots for grilled fish in West Suwon, and had my fill of the grilled mackerel I'd been waiting to try, the gochujang bulgogi, and a spread of Korean self-serve banchan (side dishes).

How long is the wait at Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda Suwon Branch, and where do you park?

It's best to use CatchTable's remote queuing system before heading to Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda — there's a wait here regardless of weekday or weekend.

The steady stream of customers on this visit suggested the place has been popular ever since it opened. We waited about 25 minutes before being seated.

The parking lot is spacious and the restaurant itself feels comfortable, and with Starfield, Ilwol Arboretum, and Hwaseong Fortress nearby, it's easy to pair a visit with other plans.

The menu seems especially well-suited to older diners, and plenty of local seniors from the neighborhood seemed to be regulars.

What's on the free Korean self-serve banchan bar?

One reason this place is loved as a West Suwon go-to is the sheer variety of side dishes on offer — rivaling any dedicated Korean restaurant.

A table full of handmade banchan, made fresh in-house every day, plus an all-you-can-eat self-serve bar, adds up to excellent value.

Even before the main dish arrived, everyone was already digging in — every single side dish was well made and delicious.

Given the reasonable prices, it's even better that the self-serve bar isn't charged separately — it's free. You could fill up on the banchan alone.

Labor-intensive side dishes like doraji-muchim (seasoned bellflower root) and cucumber kimchi — the kind that are a hassle to make at home — are all part of the spread.

Grilled fish restaurants are popping up everywhere these days, but this generous banchan spread is something you only really get at Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda, and it makes me want to come back.

They clearly know how to cater to older diners — sungnyung (scorched rice tea) and miyeokguk (seaweed soup), both easy on the stomach, are part of the setup too, so you can look after your health at the same time.

Wood-fired grilled mackerel and the complimentary gochujang bulgogi

There's a range of fish available — arabesque greenling, Spanish mackerel, cutlassfish, croaker — but the signature here is unmistakably the fresh grilled mackerel.

It goes straight into the wood-fired oven inside the restaurant as soon as you order — I don't think I've ever seen an oven this size before.

The skin, glistening with oil, comes out crisp, while the flesh underneath is golden and tender.

I don't usually go for fish skin, but here it was actually the part I wanted more of — it went especially well with the rice.

The mild, savory flesh was best dipped in wasabi-soy sauce, and despite being fish, it was juicy through and through.

Even a single fish comes with a thick portion of flesh, so ordering one per person is plenty to fill you up.

On top of that, the complimentary gochujang bulgogi (spicy pork) makes it impossible not to leave full. It's rare to find a place that gives out free meat like this.

Grilled fish alone can get a little repetitive, but with the spicy gochujang bulgogi thrown in, there's never a dull bite.

Braised mackerel jorim for two, with radish and aged kimchi

We like splitting several dishes, so we ordered the jorim (braised mackerel) last — and after tasting the gochujang bulgogi, I figured this place must be pretty skilled with seasoning too.

One bite in, and I already wanted to mix it into rice — the sauce was rich enough that a single bowl of rice felt like it wasn't going to be enough.

Just like the grilled version, the mackerel in the jorim was generously sized with plenty of flesh. It can be ordered for 2 or more people.

With the sauce soaked all the way through, not just the fish but the radish and aged kimchi cooked alongside it were delicious too — a West Suwon go-to dish for whenever you've lost your appetite.

Tearing off strips of the aged kimchi and piling them onto rice brought back memories of the kimchi-jjim my mom used to make when I was little.

Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda Suwon Branch, summed up

This is a great spot in West Suwon for grilled fish paired with a proper Korean meal. The freshly wood-fired mackerel is excellent, and the banchan and self-serve bar are generous enough that bringing your parents along is no burden at all. Since there's a wait, booking ahead through CatchTable is recommended.

What was best about the meal

• Mackerel grilled fresh to order in the wood-fired oven
• Free Korean self-serve banchan bar
• Complimentary gochujang bulgogi
• Plenty of free parking
• A menu lineup that works well for bringing parents along

Location and opening hours in Gwonseon-gu, Suwon

• Godeungeo Myeongpumi Doeda Suwon Branch · 1F, 1731 Seobu-ro, Gwonseon-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Hours: 10:40 - 22:00
• Large dedicated parking lot