Bupyeong seafood jjim restaurant, regular-spice weekend lunch: Donghae

There's a reason the older crowd keeps coming back.

For weekend lunch, my husband and I went to Haemulmyeongga Donghae Haemultang (해물명가 동해해물탕), famous as a top Bupyeong seafood jjim (spicy braised seafood) spot.

Location and free valet parking at Haemulmyeongga Donghae Haemultang

Haemulmyeongga Donghae Haemultang is at 108 Bupyeongmunhwa-ro, on Bupyeong's seafood stew street near the Bupyeong Market intersection, so it wasn't hard to find. But there's a shop with a similar sign right next to it, so double-check the name before you go in haha.

📍Haemulmyeongga Donghae Haemultang 108 Bupyeongmunhwa-ro, Bupyeong-gu, Incheon

🅿️ Free valet parking available Best of all was the free valet parking! Parking in Bupyeong is always a worry, but I just told the man in front of the shop about our car and he parked it for us 👍 Finding such easy parking in Bupyeong felt almost like a new world hahaha. It's also about a 10-minute walk from Bupyeong Station Exit 7, so it's convenient by public transport too.

A spacious, comfortable hall that works for gatherings

From the entrance you can feel that classic old-restaurant atmosphere. It felt less like a flashy new place and more like a restaurant that has held its spot for a long time.

Inside it was much bigger than I expected, and the tables were spaced out, so we could eat comfortably.

There was no wait when we arrived around 12:00 on the weekend, but customers kept coming in, from families to groups. Even though it was lunch, every table had soju on it, and I was dying to have a drink with the seafood jjim haha

We had to head to Songdo afterward, so sadly it was cola for us.. T_T While we ate at the window seat, older customers kept getting out of cars and walking in. A place that older people keep visiting makes you trust it's a real Bupyeong favorite. I'm not the only one who feels that, right? 😃

Haemulmyeongga Donghae Haemultang specializes in seafood jjim, monkfish jjim and seafood stew, which you can order by size, and you can add extras to taste haha.

What we ordered, the prices, and fresh-off-the-pan jeon that was seriously good 🥘

What we ordered: ✔️ Small seafood jjim, ₩45,000 ✔️ Seaweed-flake rice (gimgarubap), ₩3,000 (x2) I didn't request a spice level, so we got regular, but apparently you can adjust it to your taste.

The food came out without a long wait, so we didn't have to suffer while hungry. The side dishes included clam soup, corn salad, dongchimi (watery radish kimchi) and oi-sobagi (stuffed cucumber kimchi), and freshly made jeon (Korean pancake) came out too.

It was hot and crispy and seriously delicious... I wanted another, but I held back for the seafood jjim haha. A great appetizer that really got our appetites going 😋

Small-size seafood jjim: seafood showed up before the bean sprouts

Soon the small seafood jjim arrived, and the portion was so generous I wondered if it was really the small size. A staff member checked our order and cut the octopus and squid into bite-size pieces for us, which was handy.

The variety was great too: octopus, squid, blue crab and shrimp, plus milt, roe and turban shell.

Honestly, at many places a seafood or monkfish jjim is just a mountain of bean sprouts, but this was clearly different. I didn't have to dig the sprouts out; seafood kept appearing every time I stirred, and even my husband was amazed, saying, "Wow, it really never ends" hahaha

Regular spice that even a low-spice-tolerance eater enjoyed

The seafood was chewy rather than tough, and the spicy sauce had soaked in evenly. For me, a low-spice-tolerance eater, regular spice left just a slight kick at the end, and the savory depth kept me reaching for more.

I think a slightly milder level would be plenty tasty next time! My husband finds the milt (goni) I love creepy and wouldn't eat it, so it was all mine 😀 I got to finish it all without worrying about anyone haha. Total win 🙌

The unexpected ending of two seaweed rice balls

We put on disposable gloves and mixed the seaweed-flake rice into rice balls.

They went well with the jjim sauce, but ordering two made us so full that we couldn't get to the fried rice T_T

From the next table, it looked like the staff stir-fry the rice for you, so I'm definitely trying the fried rice next time.

A Bupyeong spot I want to revisit with my parents

The biggest letdown with seafood jjim is when it's mostly bean sprouts, but here there was the fun of picking out seafood right to the end 😊

With generous seafood and great seasoning, this Bupyeong seafood jjim made for a really satisfying meal for the first time in a while. The staff were all friendly, and trimming the octopus and squid for us made it easy to eat.

It suits family meals, dinners with parents, company dinners and group gatherings. Takeout is available too, so it should work for anyone who wants to enjoy it at home.

Next time I'd like to bring my mom and try the monkfish jjim (agujjim). There really is a reason the older customers keep coming!

If you're looking for tasty Bupyeong seafood jjim and a Bupyeong restaurant with easy parking, Haemulmyeongga Donghae Haemultang is a place I'd happily revisit :)