Late-night hotel mulhoe takeout in Gyeongpodae, Gangneung: Samsami-ne

One of the absolute joys of a Gangneung trip has to be tasting fresh seafood that still smells like the sea. After trying this place as takeout on a previous trip and falling completely for the quality and generous portions, I came back to Samsami-ne, a Gangneung mulhoe (spicy raw fish soup) favorite, on this trip too. It happened to be near the Gyeongpodae Beach area where we were staying, so it was easy to visit comfortably even late in the evening.

Where is Samsami-ne Gyeongpodae Main Branch, and where do you park?

Samsami-ne Gyeongpodae Main Branch sits prominently on the main street of Gyeongpodae Beach at 451 Changhae-ro, B-dong 28-ho, Gangneung-si, Gangwon-do. Hours are 11:30 to 23:00, and it's closed every Wednesday.

Since it's on the main street, it's easy to find even on your first visit. Those driving a rental or personal car can comfortably use the spacious Gyeongpodae Beach public parking lot right nearby, so we were able to park without the usual tourist-spot parking stress.

The interior is spacious overall with comfortable spacing between tables, kept nice and tidy. Sitting by the window especially lets you enjoy an open view of the blue sea while you eat, which really elevates the vacation mood.

What comes in the 70,000 won set for two?

The menu ranges from single-serving meals for solo travelers to hearty special sets for a family of four, so it looked like everyone would be satisfied whether visiting with family, a partner, or friends. My boyfriend and I ordered the value assorted sashimi + mulhoe set for two as takeout to eat comfortably at our accommodation as dinner and a late-night snack. The portion for two is enough to leave you completely stuffed, so unless you're a big eater, there's no need to worry about running short.

How well did the Samsami-ne takeout travel to the hotel?

The packaging was so meticulous it was actually a touching moment when I unwrapped it. With this much content, broth can easily leak or the shapes get messed up, but thanks to the sturdy, flat support placed at the bottom of the heavy plastic bag, everything arrived without any shifting or mess — as clean as when it left the restaurant, all the way into our hotel room.

Opening each container lid one by one with anticipation revealed a table full of the value assorted sashimi, mulhoe with a light icy slush, cute round balls of sushi rice, and tangy-sweet vegetable salad among other basic banchan (side dishes) — enough to fill the whole table. It was a generous spread that made the ₩70,000 price hard to believe.

What side dishes come with the takeout set?

The basic side dishes served alongside the main dishes were also very neatly arranged. Crisp, well-fermented washed mukeunji (aged kimchi), pungent garlic, spicy cheongyang chili peppers, and even ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste) and fresh wasabi to add flavor — all the essentials you'd expect at a sashimi restaurant were provided neatly divided into compartments. The washed mukeunji especially, with its refreshing taste, did a great job of cleansing the palate when eaten alongside the rich, fatty sashimi.

The vegetable salad might seem like a small thing, but the seasoning makes you curious about the secret behind it. It's tangy-sweet with something extra going on. True to a Gangneung mulhoe favorite, they clearly know how to work this kind of seasoning like an art.

How much red sea bream yubiki is in the assorted sashimi?

Once we unwrapped everything on the table, what immediately caught my eye was the assorted sashimi plate, its glossy surface catching the light.

Usually when a tourist-area restaurant offers a value set, it's often filled out mostly with cheaper fish just to bulk up the portion. But Samsami-ne Gyeongpodae Main Branch's set had a surprisingly high proportion of red sea bream yubiki, classified as a premium fish — a first impression that already earned a passing grade before we even picked up our chopsticks.

This red sea bream yubiki, completed with the chef's own know-how built up steadily over a remarkable 25 years, apparently uses an advanced technique where only the skin is briefly cooked in boiling water and then quickly cooled.

What makes Samsami-ne's mulhoe sauce win over a chogochujang skeptic?

And now for the highlight — the mulhoe that opened up a whole new world of taste for me, something I absolutely can't leave out. I especially want to recommend this dish to anyone diligently searching for a Gangneung mulhoe favorite. Honestly, I have to confess I'm not usually a fan of the strong flavor of chogochujang that you dip raw fish into. Naturally, mulhoe as a food category was basically off my radar entirely. In the past, even when I visited places famous nationwide for mulhoe like Jeju or Pohang, I tried it out of curiosity several times, but each time it was either too sweet or too sour and never suited my taste, leaving me disappointed. I had quietly decided mulhoe just wasn't my thing — but at Samsami-ne Gyeongpodae Main Branch, I found my life-best mulhoe, as if it were fate.

The broth wasn't just the simple, sharp chogochujang flavor you commonly find elsewhere. It's packed with a special house seasoning developed over years of the restaurant's own research, giving it deep, rich flavor without being heavy, and a clean finish. It's not overly sour or spicy — just a pleasantly tangy-sweet seasoning that lingers nicely on the tongue and stirs up your appetite so much you can't put your spoon down.

Scoop up a big bite with the plentiful, chewy sashimi in the broth, soft thin noodles, and crunchy vegetables, and slurp it all down in one go — you get an exhilarating feeling like the cool sea is rushing into your mouth whole. The signature red sea bream yubiki is excellent too, but I fell completely for this seasoning, proving that coming back here wasn't wasted at all.

Mukeunji (aged kimchi) wraps and DIY red sea bream sushi

Back to the main sashimi, I tried enjoying it in a few different ways. I made a wrap with a piece of mukeunji, a slice of yubiki, garlic, and ssamjang. The chewy, savory flavor unique to red sea bream, the pleasantly chewy texture from the skin, and the refreshing mukeunji come together in perfect harmony. This premium sashimi, which maximizes the umami of the red sea bream skin, made it clear why people from all over the country keep coming back, unable to forget this texture.

It was also a lot of fun making my own DIY red sea bream sushi by placing wasabi and sashimi on top of the included sushi rice. For a reasonable ₩70,000, getting this quality of red sea bream yubiki, mulhoe that completely shattered my long-held prejudice, and a solid basic spread, all generous enough to leave two people completely stuffed — this is a truly excellent Gangneung sashimi restaurant with outstanding value. If you want to fully enjoy proper quality seafood in Gangneung without any regrets, especially if you're like me and have never quite experienced mulhoe that actually clicks with your taste, stop by Samsami-ne Gyeongpodae Main Branch, a Gangneung mulhoe favorite.