Yaksu sashimi restaurant: early-winter amberjack platter, Ido Hoetjip

Winter is coming, and you all know what that means to eat, right? Amberjack season is here, haha! It's only just started so the fish isn't super fatty yet, but I love amberjack so much that I rushed over to Ido Hoetjip (이도횟집) at Yaksu Station to eat it!

Ido Hoetjip hours and parking

Ido Hoetjip is open every day from 11:30 to 23:00, with a break from 15:00 to 16:00.

You can park for free in front of the restaurant, and if the front is full, they cover 1 hour at the paid parking lot next door.

Getting to Ido Hoetjip from Yaksu Station, and corkage

Ido Hoetjip is a 3-minute walk from Yaksu Station. Maybe because it's so close to the station, it was packed and really easy to get to. It's a two-story building with lots of seats, so it seems like a popular spot for company dinners too. And corkage is free, so feel free to bring whatever drinks you like!!

Inside Ido Hoetjip, reservations, and what to know before year-end gatherings

Even though it's a sashimi restaurant, the inside is really clean, and the tables are very wide to fit all the dishes. We reserved ahead, and a lot of other people seemed to have reserved too, because there were so many seats marked as reserved!

With year-end company dinners and get-togethers coming up, I'd recommend reserving before you go.

The table came with soy sauce and chogochujang (sweet-and-sour chili sauce) that go well with sashimi. Maybe because we had reserved, the basic table setting was neatly prepared, and I was really happy with that, haha.

Ido Hoetjip menu: lunch, course and mixed sashimi

Ido Hoetjip has a lunch menu that's great value, a course menu that's a varied spread at a good price, and if you love sashimi, mixed platters are a tasty choice too. We went with the large amberjack mixed platter.

The basic spread after ordering the amberjack platter

After you order, they bring out the basic setting: a variety of side dishes that go well with sashimi, seaweed soup, and soft steamed egg. It's not just the sashimi itself; so many tasty things come out that it's a really hearty meal.

What comes in Ido Hoetjip's large amberjack mixed platter?

The large amberjack mixed platter included amberjack plus flounder, rockfish, red sea bream and sole, so we got to try a bit of everything. After a short wait, the main platter comes out!! Sometimes a "mixed platter" has only a few kinds, so I really liked that they prepared such a variety. I'd wondered about just ordering amberjack alone, but I was so glad to enjoy the other fish too, haha.

Unlike other mixed platters, because there's amberjack, they also gave us seaweed (gim) and sesame oil dip, haha. You know how amazing that is with amberjack. I got so excited the moment I saw the seaweed and sesame oil dip, hahaha.

How were the flounder and red sea bream?

I was so hungry that I dug into the sashimi right away. To be honest, I don't know exactly which fish is which, but I do know flounder and red sea bream for sure, and they were seriously delicious.

I'm bad with fishy flavors, but there was no fishiness at all, and it was nutty and chewy, so good. The red sea bream especially had an insane savory depth thanks to the skin.

Thick-cut amberjack with seaweed, sesame oil dip and aged kimchi

And now, the big star: the amberjack!! I could almost say I came to Ido Hoetjip just to eat this, I was so looking forward to it, and honestly amberjack is always delicious T_T

They sliced the amberjack thick, so I got a mouthful of its great flavor. It's really nutty yet has that signature non-greasy savoriness, so it's tasty even on its own. Wrap it in seaweed and dip it in the sesame oil and the nuttiness doubles; eat it with the neatly rinsed aged kimchi (mugeunji) and you get great texture, plus the savory amberjack paired with the kimchi's clean freshness.

Mussel soup and corn cheese, even with just the mixed platter

Even though we only ordered the mixed platter, Ido Hoetjip also gave us mussel soup and corn cheese. Thanks to that, we didn't get tired of eating only raw fish and enjoyed a varied, tasty meal.