Rice bowl & soba spot in Jeonpo, Busan: 2 bowls + soba, Peisen-dong

A rice bowl spot near Jeonpo Café Street, found after a wait: Peisen-dong

Peisen-dong is a popular spot near Jeonpo Café Street where you can get rice bowls and soba, and it usually comes with a wait. Recently Mini and I went to a salt bread pop-up store in Seomyeon and ended up waiting much longer than expected... I was close to starving but still wanted something good, so I searched around and found Peisen-dong. Here's how it went.

What are Peisen-dong's opening hours and break time?

Peisen-dong hours 11:30–20:00 / break time 15:00–17:00 / last order 30 minutes before each

How long is the wait at Peisen-dong?

Peisen-dong is known as one of the Jeonpo Café Street restaurants that usually has a line, so I was a little nervous. But we arrived a bit after lunchtime, the line wasn't long, and we got in without waiting much. It was my first time at the Jeonpo branch, and while searching I found there's a Gwangan branch too. Looking at the photos, I remembered going to the Gwangan one before, so I trusted the flavor would be reliable.

That's Mini waiting in front of Peisen-dong, haha. There's a big menu banner outside the shop, so it's easy to decide what to eat while you wait.

Peisen-dong atmosphere and service

The restaurant was full when we first sat down, so I could barely take any photos of the interior.

After some people left I took a few more. Overall it felt clean and calm, a place where you can focus on your meal.

Peisen-dong serves a plum drink as a welcome drink, and there are hair ties right next to it, so you can eat comfortably without your hair falling in your face.

What comes in the Peisen-dong set?

The Peisen-dong set includes two rice bowls (donburi), one noodle dish and a drink. While waiting we were wondering, "Should we order two rice bowls and one noodle dish?" and it turned out there was a set for exactly that. It even includes a drink, which is a total bargain, so we ordered the set.

We chose karaage-don, kimchi gyudon and cold soba, and added a glass of draft beer too.

Here's our hearty Peisen-dong spread!! Looking at it, I think I took a pretty good photo, haha. Okay, let's try them one by one.

Karaage-don: crispy fried chicken over rice

Peisen-dong's karaage-don (fried chicken rice bowl) comes piled high with chicken karaage, with rice, cabbage and sauce underneath. It looked like the most generous one, so I tried it first.

When you move the karaage piled on top onto the plate that comes with it, you find rice, cabbage and sauce underneath. This is the dish Mini and I have memories with, haha.

I lightly mixed the rice, cabbage and sauce, then topped it with the chicken karaage. The crispy karaage and the rice go so well together, it was so good. Looking at the photos while writing this post, I want to eat it again.

Cold soba: clean yet deep flavor

Peisen-dong's cold soba (chilled buckwheat noodles) comes with wasabi, and it had a clean but deep flavor. I kept eating it in between bites of rice.

Cold soba is good no matter what, but Peisen-dong's felt even cleaner and deeper, which I loved. It comes with wasabi, and eating it together is great. I think I ate almost all of it myself.

Kimchi gyudon: beef, stir-fried kimchi and egg yolk

Peisen-dong's kimchi gyudon (beef rice bowl) has tender beef and stir-fried kimchi topped with scallions and an egg yolk. The colors are pretty, and the flavors and textures felt varied.

First I broke the yolk and mixed it lightly with the meat,

then I put rice, meat, kimchi and toppings on one spoon. Personally I liked eating it like this, unmixed, more than stirring everything together, because the flavors and textures feel more varied.

Peisen-dong looks after you all the way out the door

Near the exit at Peisen-dong, there's mouthwash, candy and toothpicks. The display of mouthwash and candy on the way out was so cute that I took a photo, haha. It felt like a little wooden sign saying "Help yourself!" haha. I don't eat candy, so I just took one mouthwash each. Between the hair ties on the table and the mouthwash, candy and toothpicks on the way out, it felt like they take care of you from the start of the meal to the very end.

Why I want to go back to Peisen-dong in Jeonpo

That day Mini and I were worn out and super hungry from the salt bread wait, so we went looking for somewhere quick and simple. Peisen-dong is normally a place with a line, but we didn't wait long, and it was tastier than expected, so we left completely full. The menu seems good for eating alone and wouldn't get boring even if you ate it often, so it's a Jeonpo restaurant I'd want to visit again next time I'm nearby!