Goyang crab restaurant, crab stew: Deodeo Ganjanggejang Muhalliripil

My soy-marinated crab cooldown was officially over. I suddenly had such an intense craving for it that I simply could not bear it, so I searched for a restaurant near home. This place had earned five Blue Ribbons, and it offered unlimited soy-marinated crab, spicy marinated crab, and even crab stew—my absolute favorite, which I usually make at home from a meal kit—so I decided to go after finishing work on Saturday.

Saturday evening: the wait and parking

At 6 p.m. on Saturday, the parking lot was full of cars, as you would expect at weekend peak time. Thankfully, the lot itself was quite spacious, so parking was not difficult. We wrote down our name and party size on the waiting list at the entrance, then waited about 20 minutes. Interestingly, two rabbits were freely hopping around one side of the parking lot, so we had something to watch and did not get bored. It has also been featured on a KBS program, so it definitely draws a crowd around mealtimes.

Ordering an unlimited refill spread

The moment we entered, the distinctly refreshing and spicy aroma of crab stew hit our noses. We ordered the unlimited refill set for two and one bowl of rice. (Imeda cannot eat much rice. Says she gets too full;;;)

As you would expect from somewhere with quick table turnover, the food arrived fast. There were four basic side dishes, hygienic disposable aprons, beautifully colored soy-marinated crab and spicy marinated crab, crab stew with ramen noodles, plus gim (roasted seaweed) and flying fish roe to eat with the crab. A complimentary steamed egg arrived shortly afterward, completing a truly flawless spread.

Clean-tasting soy-marinated crab with no fishiness

The soy-marinated crab had shells filled with tomalley, giving it such a gorgeous look that I immediately wanted to mix rice into it. I added hot rice, mixed it well, and took a bite: there was absolutely no fishiness, and the soy sauce was clean-tasting rather than overly salty, making it easy to enjoy with rice.

The crab bodies were substantial in size and nicely packed with meat. Biting into a whole body was immensely satisfying, and there was plenty of flesh, so it was also easy to squeeze out just the meat and place it on top of rice.

Eating it with gim and flying fish roe brought another layer of flavor and was such fun. The flying fish roe was refillable too, which was great because we could have as much as we wanted.

Spicy marinated crab and steamed egg together

The spicy marinated crab had a pleasantly sweet-and-spicy flavor. Alternating it with the soy-marinated crab created perfect synergy, so I never got tired of it and just kept eating. The warm, soft steamed egg also went down so easily after bites of the zippy marinated crab. Having something mild alongside made it nice to alternate between them.

Crab stew finished with ramen noodles

Another strength here is the crab stew, which is just as excellent as the main attraction. It was generously filled with one large crab, green onion, mushrooms, tofu, bean sprouts, and other ingredients, making the broth wonderfully spicy and refreshing. Every part of the crab was included—the shell, body, and claws—and it was cut into easy-to-eat pieces like the marinated crab. We let the stew boil away, ate some, then added the ramen noodles midway through for a whole new feeling.

Midway through the meal, we refilled the soy-marinated crab once. A staff member brought over a large container and served it onto our existing plate, arranging the crabs neatly and beautifully, which made me feel very well looked after. Even as a refill, the crabs were just as large as the first batch.

Compared with other unlimited marinated crab restaurants I had visited before, the crabs here were generally larger and yielded more meat, so the pleasure of chewing flesh that filled my mouth was much greater. Alternating between the soy-marinated crab, spicy marinated crab, spicy-refreshing crab stew, and soft steamed egg gave the meal excellent balance. I had always thought marinated crab was not particularly filling, but perhaps because the set was so complete, I felt far fuller than expected. Honestly, I thought I could manage two refills, but even one had me feeling as if I might burst. I think it was because we ate almost all of the steamed egg and crab stew without leaving any behind.

A coffee vending machine after the meal

On the way out after the meal, there is a coffee vending machine for a little palate cleanser. If you love marinated crab and crab stew, this is a restaurant worth visiting without hesitation. It had been a while since I had eaten such good-quality crab to my heart’s content, and it made for an incredibly filling, happy weekend dinner.