Daegu tuna bar for drinks with Dad: bluefin navel, Choiyeoncham

I was looking for a good place to have a drink with my dad for the first time in a while, and I found a sashimi place with amazing value. So today I'm writing about Choiyeoncham Janggi (최연참 장기점), a tuna spot in Janggi-dong!

Hours and parking at Choiyeoncham Janggi

Choiyeoncham Janggi is open every day from 14:00 to 02:00 the next day, and last order is at 01:00. There's no parking ❌

It's a new sashimi place in the Janggi-dong food alley selling tuna and salmon at great prices! Apparently Choiyeoncham is short for "lowest-price salmon and tuna" 😊

Takeout tuna set, limited to 50 a day

They also sell a takeout set of bigeye tuna, swordfish and bluefin back cut for just ₩19,800, limited to 50 sets a day!! Grab one and you can totally have an omakase-style night at home 😳

What's the atmosphere inside?

Inside there are several tables and a counter seating area (dacchi-seok), and the mood is great for a casual drink with tuna sashimi. At the front you can actually watch the fish being sliced :)

They say they serve fresh bluefin tuna of over 250kg at reasonable prices. The left wall explains each tuna cut and its features, and there were more cuts than I expected, so I studied it carefully before ordering 🤭

Table setting fee, side dishes and how to order

The table setting fee is ₩1,000 per person. In return you get side dishes like salad, pickled tomatoes, seaweed, white kimchi, pickled radish, pickled scallions and ginger, plus vinegared rice for making sushi!

On the left you'll find wet wipes, cups, soy sauce and sesame oil, and you order by kiosk! If you join the Naver review event, you get 4 pieces of shrimp/egg sushi or one can of soft drink, so be sure to take part.

300g for the first order, then 100g at a time

Your first order must be at least 300g, and after that you can add 100g at a time!

Not just tuna but salmon and even the yellowtail they just started serving can be ordered by 100g, so it's really nice for trying lots of cuts!

The tuna and yellowtail we ordered with Dad, and prices

• Yellowtail sashimi 100g ₩15,800
• Bluefin navel ₩21,800
• Bluefin belly ₩19,800
• Bluefin back cut ₩9,800
• Extra vinegared rice ₩5,000
• Ramyeon ₩3,500

Dry ice smoke came billowing out along with the pale pink tuna cuts ❤️ Doesn't the special atmosphere make the plating look fancy?

From the top: yellowtail, tuna belly, the red cut in the middle is tuna back cut, and the fan-shaped one is tuna navel! It comes with radish sprouts and wasabi too :)

Bluefin navel, my favorite cut for its texture

Tuna navel is a rare premium cut that only comes in small amounts, and the chewy texture and rich, oily flavor are so appealing! The more you chew, the crunchier it gets. Yep, still my favorite cut 🤍

Put some white kimchi on the sashimi and the clean, nutty flavor feels even stronger!!

Yellowtail dipped in mungtigi sauce

See how thick the yellowtail is!! Full of fat, and since it's yellowtail season it looks even tastier :)

When you order yellowtail at Choiyeoncham Janggi, they give you mungtigi sauce (a savory dipping sauce). Dipped in it, the nutty sesame oil aroma, subtle garlic and salty seasoning blend with the rich yellowtail for amazing depth of flavor. Totally recommend!

Wrapped in seaweed with radish sprouts and wasabi, it's also wonderfully nutty, so it makes the best drinking snack!

Tuna sushi made with the included vinegared rice

After enjoying the sashimi for a while, I put tuna on the vinegared rice that came with the meal, and wow, instant high-end tuna sushi ✨

Tuna belly is an ultra-rich, oily top-grade cut that melts in your mouth like butter 🩷 The back cut is lean red meat, clean-tasting with a slight tang and a nice chew ❤️ As sushi it felt more filling and snack-like! It was so good I ordered extra vinegared rice, hehe

Dad is a huge tuna fan, and the tuna was so good that the drinks just kept going down for both of us 👍

A bowl of ramyeon to finish the drinking session

Halfway through drinking I wanted something soupy, so I ordered ramyeon (₩3,500). It came with spicy broth and firm, chewy noodles.

When you're feeling a bit full of oil, the spicy hot broth settles your stomach and makes you feel like you could eat tuna forever!

Choiyeoncham Janggi: my take after visiting

Premium tuna at a great value, with small 100g orders, so it works well as a meal or as drinking snacks! Fresh, full of fat and melting in your mouth, it's a true tuna destination!! If you want good tuna in Janggi-dong, Daegu, definitely visit Choiyeoncham Janggi.