Jongno aged sashimi pub on a packed Friday night: Parang Haenyeojip

Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch: an aged sashimi pub in Jongno with an open-air feel

Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch (파랑해녀집 종로본점) is an aged sashimi pub on Ujeongguk-ro 2-gil in Jongno, and its signature is the doors left wide open, giving it an outdoor-terrace vibe. The weather is great for sitting outside these days! But the evenings are still a bit chilly, right? So for those nights, I went to a Jongno sashimi pub that only feels like an outdoor terrace (?) haha

With the doors open, a breeze comes in and you can watch the street outside, which made it even better. Next time I want that prime seat T_T You have to go right now, this time of year.

Can you walk into Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch on a Friday night without a reservation?

When I went to Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch on a Friday night, it was completely full. Book ahead on Catchtable or Naver :) The wall inside shows the sea, so it really is a blue haenyeo (female diver) house, just like the name! It's a hot Jongno sashimi spot, so of course it was packed on a Friday night haha

It seems lots of celebrities come here too. There were signatures from the cast of Amazing Saturday, including Yoo Jae-suk, Haha, Ji Ye-eun and Ji Seok-jin..! 🫢

Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch menu: what to order

At Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch, I highly recommend the aged sashimi platter, which comes with 3–4 seasonal fish :) It comes in three sizes, so you can order for your group, and the quality is good, which is why I recommend it. If you want a bit of everything, the seafood platter is good too. It has aged sashimi, gimbap (seaweed rice roll), seafood and steamed dishes, so you can eat according to your taste.

And the sides here are amazing;; Fried shrimp, cheese-grilled pen shell, potato chips, futomaki (thick sushi roll), perilla oil makguksu (cold buckwheat noodles), seafood kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and seafood ramen. There are dishes you don't usually see at a seafood place, and since I needed something to fill me up after work, I also ordered half a futomaki roll.

The basic side dishes are seaweed, hijiki and seaweed soup. Nibble on them with gochujang vinegar sauce until the food arrives~

Medium mixed aged sashimi platter: is it enough for three?

The three of us ordered the medium mixed aged sashimi platter at Parang Haenyeojip. The fish was in good condition and the portion was more generous than I expected. I don't know much about sashimi, so apart from the salmon I couldn't tell you what the fish were 🥹 (but I could definitely tell it was delicious)

How to eat aged sashimi with gim (seaweed) and sushi rice

Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch brings dried seaweed sheets and perilla leaves by default, and we ordered the sushi rice separately! I was a little giddy thinking about putting sashimi on that chewy rice.. 💗

Please eat it as seaweed + rice + aged sashimi. Oh! And don't forget to add the doenjang (fermented soybean paste) ssam on top~

My beloved ssamjang sauce 🫶🏻 These days I like it better than gochujang vinegar sauce. There's also a cabbage salad with gochujang vinegar sauce, and wrapping it in a perilla leaf together is so good 🤤

Best aged sashimi on the platter: white fish and salmon

The firm, springy white fish and the always-delicious salmon 🧡 Everything was good, but these two were my top picks! Put just a little wasabi on them and it's insanely good.

I'm a sashimi lover, and I'm craving it again just writing this post 🤤 My boyfriend said it's an aged sashimi place he goes to often, so we went together, and it didn't disappoint 👍🏻 I guess the golden rule is that a place recommended by people who love drinking never fails haha

Half futomaki roll at Parang Haenyeojip: a good side with drinks?

Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch sells futomaki by the half roll, so you can try it without committing. A pub that sells futomaki is rare (so precious), and honestly, if it weren't for the price I would have bought a whole roll T_T Still, I was glad they sell a half roll;; I was surprised that the quality was so good, hard to believe it comes from a pub.

I love cucumber so it was fine for me, but the cucumber flavor is a bit strong, so cucumber haters, watch out!

Finishing with mussel-packed seafood ramen

After the aged sashimi at Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch, finish with the seafood ramen. Skipping it at the end is a crime 🔥 I was shocked by how it looked when it arrived: ramen piled with mussels, like the kind I'd only seen at Chinese restaurants ✨ It was a bit spicy, which made it even better. Please have ramen after your sashimi :)