Gangneung restaurant open 8:30am for octopus tripe hot pot: Matdeurin

Breakfast near Ojukheon in Gangneung: why Matdeurin was the first meal

For the first meal of this Gangneung trip, I picked Matdeurin Sundubu Haejangguk & Gamjatang, a place famous among locals. It's near Ojukheon, so I ate here before visiting~ The restaurant opens at 8:30am, which made it perfect for breakfast~ I hadn't even had a drink the night before, but eating the octopus beef tripe hot pot still felt like a proper hangover cure. Want to come along?

Location: 6 Jukheon-gil 85beon-gil, Gangneung-si, Gangwon-do / Hours: Daily 08:30–22:00 / Parking: Free at the private lot out front

Inside Matdeurin: the room, the self-service bar and parking

Matdeurin has a full glass front, so it felt open and bright~ The cozy table section toward the back would work well for a group gathering too~

You can see the private parking lot clearly through the glass front, so anyone anxious about their car parked outside can eat with peace of mind~

The self-service bar was kept nice and clean too~ I saw they had frozen domestic kongbiji (soybean pulp) set out for anyone who wanted to take some home — made me jealous of anyone who lives nearby~ I love kongbiji but didn't grab any, worried it would spoil on the way home. So disappointing~

Matdeurin's menu and how to order from the table kiosk

Both ordering and payment were done right at the table through a kiosk, which was convenient~ The menu was pretty extensive: sundubu dishes, hot pots, haejangguk, kalguksu, octopus and pork cutlet, side dishes, rice/fried rice add-ons, drinks, takeout, and showcase items~

I was surprised to see a whole plate of blood sausage as a side dish~ My husband loves blood sausage and said I should order it, but since we were already getting the large octopus beef tripe hot pot, we decided to try the blood sausage in the pot first before deciding~

A robot delivered the side dishes~ After you take them off the tray, you press a confirm button and it turns around and rolls off — the slight delay in its reaction was pretty cute~

Only the kimchi came via robot, so we grabbed the onion and broccoli ssamjang ourselves from the self-service bar~ The onion was sweet and the broccoli was crisp and nutty — really good~

Large octopus and beef tripe hot pot: eat the octopus first

The owner brought the octopus beef tripe hot pot out herself instead of the robot~ Probably to make sure no one got burned taking it off a tray~ Two octopuses sitting on top of a mound of tripe hot pot~ Definitely a large-size portion — so generous!!!

She told us to cook the octopus only briefly, since it gets tough if overcooked~ While the octopus cooked a little, I grabbed a disposable apron from next to the self-service bar and braced for the red broth~

Once lightly cooked, we cut the octopus into bite-size pieces with scissors and moved it onto separate plates so it wouldn't overcook further~

Dipped it in mustard soy sauce and tried it~ The octopus was springy and chewy, really good~ Remember, octopus toughens if overcooked, so cook it just briefly and move it to a plate right away!!!

A whole block of blood sausage inside the hot pot

As the beef tripe kept simmering, I checked what was inside — and there it was, a whole piece of blood sausage!! We hadn't ordered the separate blood sausage plate, so this felt like an unexpected gift hidden in the pot~ Doesn't it kind of look like a heart, too?

How the broth tastes with perilla seed powder and pepper

Broth is everything in a hot pot, so I tried it first~ Spicy with a deep richness from the offal — enough to make me want to give up on the rest of the trip and pour a soju, even in the morning~

Barely holding it together, I added ground perilla seed and pepper, and the broth got even deeper and thicker — very satisfying~

The glass noodles were generous too~ A hot pot always feels incomplete to me without noodles somehow~ Noodles soaked in all that seasoning — so good!!!

Beef tripe, honeycomb tripe and octopus in one bite, plus the onion boat

Eating the beef tripe, honeycomb tripe, and octopus together, the tripe was tender, the honeycomb tripe was nutty, and the octopus was chewy — the textures and flavors worked really well together~

There was really a generous amount of beef tripe and honeycomb tripe~ Even accounting for the large size, it was a very hearty portion~

Load the beef tripe, honeycomb tripe, and octopus onto a piece of onion like a boat, and the crisp, sweet moisture of the onion makes your mouth feel fresh and clean — definitely try the onion boat!!!

The blood sausage had no off smell and tasted savory~ Soft yet springy texture — really nice~

The tripe was packed with fat inside, so you get an explosion of rich, nutty flavor when you bite in~ As it simmered, the fat rendered out and the broth got richer and richer, which was delicious~ There was so much tripe that I even rolled some up in bok choy — turned out looking like a little bouquet!!!

They use noodles thicker than the usual glass noodles, so the chewiness felt doubled~ Such a satisfying, bouncy texture~

The crunchy enoki mushrooms added extra fun to chew through~ Eating them together with the noodles gives you chewy and crisp at the same time, so try them together~

Scooping up garlic chives along with the tripe added a crisp bite and nice aroma~ The broth got deeper and richer the longer it simmered — art~ My husband said, 'We should've eaten this for dinner instead~' with real regret, but I was more than satisfied having it as a hearty breakfast~

Finishing with fried rice in the leftover hot pot broth

We were already full, but I knew I'd regret it forever if I didn't make fried rice in that broth, so despite my husband's objections I ordered extra rice and stir-fried it over high heat to cook off the moisture, keeping it a bit moist in style~ I even tried shaping it into a heart — can you see it? haha

The tangy diced radish kimchi paired perfectly with the savory fried rice~ The fresh cabbage kimchi added spice on top of the savory rice, making the fried rice taste even nuttier~ My husband, who said he wouldn't eat because he was full, ended up eating it more eagerly than me and admitted he would've regretted skipping it~

I thought I'd already eaten all the offal, but I kept biting into pieces of honeycomb tripe while eating the fried rice — I was shocked~ Seriously generous with the tripe!!! If you're looking for a good restaurant near Ojukheon in Gangneung, or a solid spot for a family gathering or a date, I'd recommend Matdeurin Sundubu Haejangguk & Gamjatang!!!