Boneless anglerfish stew for two, weeknight dinner at Haemokjeong

I found an all-time favorite restaurant recently. This place is heaven for seafood lovers, and it's the kind of spot everyone loves, from grandparents to little kids.

Hours and location of Haemokjeong Yeonsu Main Branch

Today's spot is Haemokjeong, located in Incheon. It's open from 11:00 AM to 9:50 PM, with a break time from 3:00 to 4:00 PM, so keep that in mind.

There's a big parking lot right at the restaurant, so it's great to drive there. But for anyone planning to drink, public transit access is excellent too — it's just 100m from Exit 1 of Yeonsu Station, so it was really convenient to get to.

Haemokjeong has been featured everywhere from YouTube to various media outlets, and it even won first place for Korea's most preferred seafood-galbi brand — a proven local favorite. It's the kind of flavor that hooks you once you try it and keeps you coming back, the kind you keep thinking about afterward.

Weeknight waiting and the vibe inside

I ended up walking in through the back door. There's a comfortable waiting area set up here in case there's a line.

I came on a weeknight evening and got seated right away, no waiting. A lot of guests were eating when I arrived, but things quieted down once the dinner rush passed. Haemokjeong has everything from special menu items to seafood-galbi stew and seafood stew — great for family outings or group dinners. Today I went with the boneless anglerfish stew, which you can order spicy or regular.

Menu options and current promotions

Besides the boneless anglerfish, there was so much to choose from — galbi stew, beef short rib stew, a set menu with mushroom kalguksu (knife-cut noodles), stir-fried baby octopus, king pork cutlet.

Haemokjeong is also running some promotions — free makgeolli (rice wine), discounted menu items, and even a birthday seaweed soup.

The mustard angel hair banchan that stole the show

The side dishes arrived: potato, chives, baek-kimchi, a sesame-dressing salad, and angel hair noodles (thin seaweed-flour strands) drizzled with mustard sauce. This last one was the real kicker.

This was my first time trying it and it was surprisingly good. I usually see angel hair noodles used as a garnish on fish, but with the sauce added it had this crunchy bite and seasoning that was incredible — it paired so well with the anglerfish stew, I was genuinely surprised.

The soup that comes standard is seaweed soup. Great umami flavor, and it had squid in it, which gave it a fun chewy texture too.

Boneless anglerfish stew: easy to eat, no bones about it

Here's today's star, the boneless anglerfish stew. Even people who usually can't handle anglerfish stew can eat this easily since it's fully prepped — no bones, no hesitation. Honestly, it was so easy to eat that I think I'll only order the boneless version from now on.

It wasn't just boneless anglerfish either — there was roe and milt mixed in too, and the sauce was so sweet-and-spicy delicious that even though I came for a meal, I suddenly wanted a drink. It works whether you're here for a proper meal or as a second stop for drinks.

How much two people ate from one order

The portion of boneless anglerfish stew was way more than I expected. Two of us came without eating dinner beforehand, and by the time we'd eaten about half of it together, we were already completely full.

You don't even need extra sauce — just put a piece of anglerfish on a perilla leaf and you're set. You can add the chive salad on top, or just wrap the anglerfish alone in the leaf; the seasoning was spot on either way.

The angel hair noodles make the soft texture of the anglerfish stew even more fun to eat. And the mustard sauce takes the flavor to another level.

I really love roe stew too, and I wasn't expecting it when I ordered the anglerfish stew, but the roe was mixed right in — so happy about that. If we hadn't driven, I would've ordered a bottle of soju right there and probably finished two, just looking at this.

Along with the roe, there was milt too, so it wasn't just one flavor the whole time — you got to experience a few different textures and tastes, which I loved.

The anglerfish itself was evenly coated in sauce throughout. Honestly, the look of whole anglerfish has always intimidated me and I never ate much of it, but this was my first time enjoying it boneless, and it was prepped so cleanly there wasn't a single bone to deal with.

If it's not spicy enough for you as you go, there's extra chili flakes on the side, just so you know.

Finishing with fried rice, or just plain rice mixed in?

Here's a tip for enjoying Haemokjeong even more — after finishing the stew, I'd recommend the fried rice.

Actually, I had a lot of leftover rice from eating it alongside the stew midway through, so instead of ordering separate fried rice, I just mixed the plain rice into the sauce — and it tasted just as good as proper fried rice, even done myself.

If you skim off a bit of the sauce and have leftover rice, you can just mix the rice straight in without ordering fried rice, and it turns into its own simple dish. Even when I was full, that rice still went down easily to the last bite.

I also got a free Fanta from a review event, and walked out completely stuffed and satisfied. If you're looking for a great restaurant near Yeonsu Station in Incheon, I'd definitely recommend a visit.