Pohang Jukdo Market crab restaurants compared, bakdal set: Gallilli

Jukdo Market is one of the places you can't skip on a trip to Pohang. On this visit, I stopped by the market, full of fresh seafood, and had snow crab. If you're wondering how much crab costs in Jukdo Market and where to eat it, here's my first-hand review!

Gallilli Daegae Hoe Sikdang location and opening hours

Gallilli Daegae Hoe Sikdang (갈릴리대게회식당) is on Jukdosijang-gil in Buk-gu, Pohang, and it's open every day from 09:30 to 22:30. You can also reserve through Naver.

Why choose Gallilli Daegae Hoe Sikdang among Jukdo Market crab restaurants?

I chose Gallilli because the restaurant was spacious and clean, and above all because it had the most customers. If it's your first time at Jukdo Market, it's bigger than you'd expect, with a huge number of shops. There were so many crab restaurants that it was hard to decide where to go, but this time we picked Gallilli.

Do crab set prices differ between Jukdo Market restaurants?

Set menu prices and contents at Jukdo Market crab restaurants were almost the same; the difference was in the starter dishes (sukkidashi, the small side dishes served first). Looking around the market, the per-kg price may vary a little if you order crab on its own, but set menu prices were mostly similar.

After eating at Gallilli, we visited another crab restaurant the next day. The set menu was nearly the same, but the starter dishes were a little different.

Gallilli's set menus can be chosen for 2 to 4 people, and a sign in front of the restaurant explained in detail what each set includes. However, we were told that because it's currently the crab off-season, they don't sell Yeongdeok crab or domestic bakdal crab. That was true not only at Gallilli but at the other Jukdo Market crab restaurants too.

Side dishes at Gallilli Daegae Hoe Sikdang

When you order at Gallilli, the first thing to arrive is abalone porridge to settle your stomach. Let me introduce the starters first~

A little later, the starters were set out on the table one by one. Starting with mulhoe (cold raw fish soup), which you can't skip in Pohang, there was soy-marinated crab, tempura, corn, bread, and seasoned flounder, a generous spread. And more comes out on top of that~

Complimentary soy-marinated crab filled with roe

Gallilli's soy-marinated crab (ganjang gejang) comes as a standard dish, and I was amazed that it had roe in it. The standard soy crab usually has no roe, but this one had real orange roe. It was nicely seasoned and salty, with plenty of meat too.

The mulhoe was sweet and tangy, great to have before the crab.

Extras like abalone, horn turban snail, and sea squirt came out too,

and then a clam soup with baby squid in it.

With dishes arriving one at a time, at some point the table was completely packed with food. It was nice to taste so many kinds of seafood while waiting for the crab.

Mixed sashimi in the set: red sea bream and flounder

If you order a set menu at Gallilli, mixed sashimi comes as standard. Instead of the usual flatfish (gwangeo) or rockfish, we got sea bream and flounder, and in the middle was a fish with a name I'd never heard of,

but every piece was chewy and fresh, and I enjoyed it.

Bakdal Crab Set for 2: how meaty was the snow crab?

The Bakdal Crab Set for 2 came with 1 crab and 2 shrimp, and after about 20 minutes of eating sashimi and starters, the main dish, the crab, finally arrived.

I looked at the crab first, since I'd been looking forward to it most, and the meat yield was really good.

Every leg was packed with meat. It wasn't a crab with a thick shell and no meat; there was plenty to eat, and I was satisfied.

Crab innards in the shell and crab shell rice

The bakdal crab shell had lots of innards and even roe, and it was really rich and nutty.

At the end, I mixed rice into the crab shell, and it was really delicious.

Spicy fish stew to finish the crab set

At the end of the Bakdal Crab Set, the spicy fish stew (maeun-tang) included in the set came out too.

It had a lot of fish meat, the broth was refreshing, and the stew alone was filling enough.

Why Gallilli Daegae Hoe Sikdang is a Jukdo Market crab restaurant to recommend

If you're looking for crab in Jukdo Market, I'd recommend Gallilli. The crab meat yield was good, and from the starters to the mixed sashimi, crab shell rice, and spicy stew, the whole spread was generous and satisfying. The inside is spacious and has a second floor too, so many customers were groups or families.