Insa-dong buckwheat noodle house: perilla oil makguksu at Goshine

With the weather cooling off a bit lately, it's the perfect time for a weekend outing around Insa-dong or Anguk. I went to check out Insa-dong and was looking for somewhere to have lunch when I heard about a place with a pretty hanok (traditional Korean house) atmosphere that makes makguksu (cold buckwheat noodles) with its own hand-pulled buckwheat noodles — so I visited Goshine Donghae Makguksu's Jongno branch.

Apparently this is the first directly-operated branch in Seoul of Donghae Makguksu, which has been running for two generations in front of Gangmun Beach in Gangneung.

It's not just makguksu — the menu ranges from bossam (boiled pork) to dolsot bibimbap (stone pot rice) to an unusual buckwheat gimbap that swaps in buckwheat noodles for rice, so it seemed like a good option whenever you want Korean food in Insa-dong.

Where is Goshine Donghae Makguksu Jongno branch, and when is it open?

• 📍 1F, 3 Insadong12-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
• 🚇 About 250–260m from Anguk Station Exit 6
• ⏰ Hours 11:00 – 21:30
• ⏰ Break time 16:00 – 17:00
• ⏰ Last order 21:00
• 🚗 No dedicated parking lot

Inside the hanok: dining rooms and private seating

Walking into Goshine Donghae Makguksu Jongno branch, the space is bigger than you'd expect! High ceilings, exposed rafters and wooden pillars keep the traditional hanok feel alive, while everything is kept neat and well maintained overall.

There are old-fashioned props scattered around too, so it was fun to look around. There's also a separate room space, almost like a detached annex, which seemed like a good spot for a family meal with parents or a gathering with several people. Insa-dong tends to draw a lot of foreign tourists, and I think this kind of atmosphere would go over well if you brought a foreign friend along too.

What comes in the two-person set, plus the salad buckwheat gimbap

That day we had the two-person set — perilla oil makguksu, flying fish roe dolsot bibimbap and bossam — and also added the salad buckwheat gimbap we'd been curious about.

• Two-person set (perilla oil makguksu, flying fish roe dolsot bibimbap + bossam set)
• Salad buckwheat gimbap

Basic banchan (side dishes) are available from the self-serve bar.

Perilla oil makguksu: how the house-made buckwheat noodles taste

Perilla oil makguksu

The nutty perilla oil aroma hits you the moment it arrives, and it's a completely different kind of appeal from a heavily-seasoned makguksu. Mixing the noodles through evenly, the distinctive nutty flavor of the perilla oil really suited the buckwheat noodles.

They say the noodles here are made fresh to order in-house, and the buckwheat noodles weren't too chewy — they had a soft, easily-breaking texture, which made the flavor of the noodles themselves stand out even more in a simple dish like perilla oil makguksu.

The seasoning wasn't too strong either, so I tried it plain at first, then added a bit of banchan along the way — it stayed enjoyable without getting tiring all the way through.

It's also tasty to pour in the broth that comes with it and eat it like mobail (cold buckwheat noodle soup)!!

Flying fish roe dolsot bibimbap paired with the makguksu

Flying fish roe dolsot bibimbap

Instead of ordering two bowls of makguksu, I think choosing the flying fish roe dolsot bibimbap for one of the dishes was a good call. The piping-hot stone pot comes generously loaded with rice and various ingredients topped with flying fish roe, and you just mix it all together.

If the perilla oil makguksu is on the light, nutty side, the dolsot bibimbap is warm and filling — the combination of the two worked really well.

The flying fish roe kept popping between bites and added texture, making it more fun to eat than an average bibimbap.

I even scraped up the slightly crisped rice stuck to the bottom of the stone pot and ate it all up haha.

Salad buckwheat gimbap: gimbap rolled with noodles instead of rice

Salad buckwheat gimbap

Buckwheat gimbap doesn't use rice like a normal gimbap (seaweed rice roll) — it's rolled with buckwheat noodles instead of rice.

Looking at the cross-section, colorful vegetables were packed tightly between the buckwheat noodles, so it looked pretty even before tasting it.

The vegetables gave a crunchy bite against the soft texture of the buckwheat noodles, making it feel refreshing, just like eating a salad, as the name suggests — and it felt noticeably lighter than gimbap made with rice.

I heard the avocado buckwheat gimbap at Goshine Donghae Makguksu is famous too, so I'd like to try that on a future visit.

Kkamakjang bossam, better with scallion salad on top

Bossam

And the bossam that comes with the set! I heard Goshine Donghae Makguksu's bossam is boiled pork belly made with traditional Gangwon-do kkamakjang (a dark fermented sauce) and 11 ingredients, called kkamakjang bossam.

Since it's a makguksu place, I honestly thought the bossam would just be a side addition, but it was better than I expected.

The meat wasn't dry — it was soft with just the right chew, and there was hardly any gamy smell. It's clean and nutty on its own, but it tasted even better topped with the scallion salad that came alongside it.

A bite of nutty perilla oil makguksu followed by a piece of bossam was a great combo too! Ordering the two-person set meant we got noodles, rice and meat all at once, which felt much more filling than just ordering one dish.

Is Goshine Donghae Makguksu in Insa-dong worth it?

I went to Goshine Donghae Makguksu's Jongno branch in Insa-dong wanting makguksu, and from the pretty space that keeps the hanok character intact to the Gangwon-do-style buckwheat dishes, it felt like a place that suits the neighborhood of Insa-dong quite well.

If you're looking for a good Korean restaurant or makguksu spot in Insa-dong, give Goshine Donghae Makguksu Jongno branch a try — you can enjoy the unusual buckwheat gimbap along with it!