Ginseng sundae, no Friday wait: Paldam Sundae, a Gimpo gukbap spot

Paldam Sundae, the most famous sundae-guk (blood sausage soup) place in Gimpo... has everyone heard of it!? It's the handmade sundae-guk spot that got famous after appearing on chef Lee Won-il's show "Don't Exaggerate, Just Run It." I finally went to check it out haha

Paldam Sundae Gimpo Main Branch: location, hours and prices

Seokmo-ri hot spot 'Paldam Sundae' 📍Location 5 Ungok-ro, 1st floor, Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do 🕚Hours Mon–Sun 10:00–15:00 (last order 14:30) / closed Thursdays / changed to lunch service only 🅿️Parking Lot next to the restaurant, but spots may be full, ugh 📖Menu Clear sundae-guk ₩10,000 · Spicy sundae-guk ₩11,000 (omakase set add-on +₩5,000)

Friday lunch at Paldam Sundae: was there a wait?

I visited Paldam Sundae on a Friday at lunchtime and got in right away with no wait haha. I checked CatchTable and apparently there's quite a wait on weekends??? By the way, remote waiting is available too, so if you're visiting on a weekend, I'd recommend checking the wait situation and using remote waiting.

The place had about 10 tables of 4 and maybe 2 counter seats 👍

Sundae omakase for ₩5,000 more: three kinds on this day

This place is known for making its sundae (blood sausage) by hand, so if you add just ₩5,000 to your sundae-guk, you can try a variety of types!!

They make sundae that reflects the local flavor like this, and the omakase sundae available on the day I visited were cheongyang chili sundae, blood sundae, and ginseng sundae!! Unfortunately there was no nut sundae that day, sadly (or maybe it was just sold out...? ㅠㅠ)

On top of that, the head meat that goes into the sundae-guk uses only domestic female pork, but the price isn't much different from other sundae-guk places at all — that's such a big plus...❤️

And if you take part in the Naver receipt review event, you get a Speedo scratch-off lottery ticket — and I won!! Of course it was only ₩1,000... haha. Places that give you a lottery ticket instead of a drink are more fun, LOL

Free extra rice and a self-serve organ meat bar at Paldam Sundae

As soon as you sit down at Paldam Sundae, they give you kimchi, kkakdugi (diced radish kimchi), and rice as standard, and you can also grab extra cheongyang chili, onion, and garlic haha. The amazing part is that extra rice is free. If I hadn't been dieting, I would've eaten two bowls — such a shame.

And the even more amazing part is that you can help yourself to liver, lungs, tripe, and heart with no extra charge, as much as you want! Boss, at this rate you're running a charity..... It was nice being able to just take exactly as much as I could eat🥹

I diligently brought some back and ate it all haha. And the most important thing in a gukbap (soup with rice) is definitely the kimchi! The kimchi here is delicious too🤤

Clear vs. spicy sundae-guk: what's the difference?

The clear sundae-guk (₩10,000) lives up to its name — it's really clear and cleaner-tasting than at other places! If you dislike greasy food because of the head meat, you can swap to just sundae, and I liked how the right amount of fat suited that.

There's also chili paste, ground perilla seeds, salted shrimp, pepper, and salt at every table, so it's great for mixing your own combination!! If you can't handle spicy food well, adding chili paste to the clear sundae-guk to adjust the heat seems like a good option.

And then there's the spicy sundae-guk, touched by chef Lee Won-il's hand! If you're wondering how it's different from just adding chili paste to the clear version — well, spicy chili peppers are added while it's boiling, giving it an extra spicy kick.. that seems to be the key point🤤 Personally, spicy was much more my style.

And the head meat here isn't just fatty — it has lean meat mixed in too, which I liked even more, and I was a fan of having glass noodles instead of thin wheat noodles 🥹

Cheongyang chili, blood and ginseng sundae: how each one tastes

And now the omakase set you get for ₩5,000 more! It comes with 2 pieces each of the day's sundae plus 3 pieces of head meat suyuk (boiled meat), so it's great for two people to share one order, or for each person to add one 🥹

I wondered if the cheongyang chili sundae would be really spicy, but it wasn't as spicy as I expected, and thanks to the cheongyang chili it had a cleaner aftertaste than the other sundae.

The blood sundae is the typical sundae-guk-style sundae, so it's easy to eat without any hesitation.

And the one I was most curious about — ginseng sundae...! I used to live on Ganghwa Island, so it felt kind of nostalgic, but I was worried since I don't really like ginseng — and sure enough, it had a really strong ginseng aroma. Kind of like the smell you get walking into the Ganghwa ginseng town..? That taste hit my mouth 😯 I feel like older folks would really like this one.

They even had candy to cleanse your palate afterward, which was a nice touch haha.

Is Paldam Sundae in Gimpo worth the trip?

If you live in Gimpo, this is definitely one of the sundae-guk restaurants you should visit at least once!! I've been eating gukbap all over lately, and this one ranks in my top 3🤤 Highly recommend!!