Paju Korean restaurant with 8 banchan for two: Eomma-ui Ttuksim

Eomma-ui Ttuksim

These days, tasty isn't the only thing that matters to me — I really love a restaurant that doesn't try too hard with strong flavors and just leaves you feeling like you had a proper meal. Especially when I'm eating with my parents or having a family meal out, I tend to look for a Korean restaurant that serves a full spread with banchan and soup rather than a place where you just order one dish. This time I found exactly that kind of place in Paju. It's called Eomma-ui Ttuksim.

Where is Eomma-ui Ttuksim in Paju, and is there parking?

• Address: 경기도 파주시 송학1길 158-13 김영빌딩 101 (158-13 Songhak 1-gil, Kim Young Building 101, Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea)
• Parking available

What is the restaurant like inside?

Doesn't the name itself feel like a home-cooked meal your mom would make, haha. Visiting in person, the name and the vibe of the food really matched. It felt neat yet warm, and most of all, once the table was set, there was way more food than I expected, so I was in a good mood from the start. I ended up having a proper meal with the Ttuksim set that day.

Walking inside, the overall atmosphere was cozy. It wasn't flashy or busy — it felt comfortable to sit and eat, which I really liked. If you're looking for a spot in Paju for a family meal, this kind of atmosphere seems like a solid choice.

It especially felt like an easy place to bring your parents for a Korean set meal. These days, instead of always chasing intense-flavored 'famous' food, I find myself looking for warm, home-style dishes like this, and Eomma-ui Ttuksim was exactly that kind of place.

Eomma-ui Ttuksim menu and prices

Ttuksim Table for two: pork bulgogi and braised pollock together

We ordered the Ttuksim Table for two that day. What I liked about this menu was that you get to enjoy both pork bulgogi and braised pollock (kodari) at once. If you had to pick just one, you'd always be torn, right, haha — but here you get both together, which was great.

On top of that, you also get to choose between doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) and cheonggukjang (fermented soybean stew)! That's a really substantial lineup, isn't it. We went back and forth and ended up picking cheonggukjang. When eating Korean food, having a hot soup really makes the meal feel complete.

Cheonggukjang arrives first at Eomma-ui Ttuksim

After ordering, the cheonggukjang came out first. It arrived bubbling away in a stone pot, and it already looked delicious just from the visuals. Since it was hot, I waited a bit before trying a spoonful — and it was genuinely delicious, haha. The distinct, nutty flavor of cheonggukjang came through nicely and paired so well with rice. It wasn't overly salty or spicy — more deep and savory — so my spoon kept going back for more. The main dishes hadn't even arrived yet, and I already felt like I could finish a bowl of rice on the cheonggukjang alone, haha.

Eight banchan that fill a bowl of rice on their own

Then the banchan (side dishes) started coming out one by one. Broccoli, seasoned zucchini, seasoned eggplant, acorn jelly, seasoned bean sprouts, kimchi pancake, seasoned cucumber — they were placed one after another, and the table filled up in no time.

On top of that, lettuce wraps arrived too, making the spread feel really substantial. At some Korean set meal restaurants, even if there are lots of banchan, you sometimes only end up reaching for a couple of them.

But here, I actually tried every single one. I especially love acorn jelly, so I made sure to eat every bit of it, haha. The seasoned bean sprouts were light and clean, and the cucumber was crunchy, which paired well with the main dishes.

With kimchi pancake in the mix too, the banchan alone felt like they could polish off a bowl of rice! I think this abundance of home-style side dishes is really the charm of Eomma-ui Ttuksim.

How big are the main dishes?

Finally, the main dishes we'd been waiting for arrived: pork bulgogi and braised pollock! Since these are included as part of a set menu, I originally assumed the portions would be small. But once we actually got them, the amount was bigger than I expected.

Neither felt like a small side dish — both had the presence of a proper main dish! So even though it was just the two of us, with all the banchan added in, the whole spread felt quite generous. Getting to eat bulgogi, braised pollock, and cheonggukjang all together meant this meal lacked nothing.

Soy-based pork bulgogi everyone at the table liked

We started with the pork bulgogi. The seasoning was soy-based and mildly salty, so it was a familiar flavor that pretty much anyone would enjoy. Not too spicy or intense — just the right seasoning to go well with rice! Piling a piece of meat on top of rice — this combo never fails, haha.

It was also delicious wrapped in lettuce with the bulgogi and some garlic or extras added in.

I also liked that the bulgogi itself wasn't over-seasoned, so its flavor didn't clash with the various other banchan.

If you're looking for a Korean set meal restaurant in Paju to visit with your parents, this kind of mild, easygoing bulgogi flavor seems like it would be especially well received.

Braised pollock (kodari): mild, not spicy, with thick flakes

And the dish I ended up liking even more than expected was the braised pollock (kodari jorim). When you hear 'braised pollock,' you usually think of a spicy seasoning, but this one was milder than I expected. So even people who don't handle spicy food well should be able to eat it without much worry.

Above all, the fish flesh was really thick. Picking off the meat with chopsticks and dipping it lightly in the sauce, the flakes came away nice and thick, which made it fun to eat. The seasoning was also well-suited to eating with rice, so I naturally kept reaching for more. That was the moment I felt glad we'd ordered both bulgogi and braised pollock at once.

While working through the main dishes, I also mixed in bites of the banchan here and there. The acorn jelly in particular was clean and delicious when eaten with its seasoning. After a strongly flavored dish like the bulgogi, one bite of acorn jelly felt like a palate reset! Adding in bean sprouts, cucumber, and broccoli here and there made the whole spread feel even more abundant. This is exactly why eating a Korean set meal is fun — trying a little bit of many things together.

A set meal that stayed good to the last bite

And of course, hot cheonggukjang paired perfectly with the Korean meal. A spoonful of rice, a scoop of cheonggukjang, a piece of bulgogi on top, then rice mixed with the pollock sauce — eating it this way, the rice just kept disappearing, haha. The cheonggukjang was delicious from start to finish and went well with the mains. I also personally liked being able to choose between doenjang jjigae and cheonggukjang.

Three reasons to visit Eomma-ui Ttuksim in Paju

Based on trying it myself, here are three points I'd recommend.

• Menu composition: with the Ttuksim set, you get pork bulgogi and braised pollock at once, plus cheonggukjang, so you can try a variety of dishes.
• Banchan: the side dish lineup was genuinely varied — broccoli, seasoned zucchini, seasoned eggplant, acorn jelly, seasoned bean sprouts, kimchi pancake, seasoned cucumber, and lettuce wraps.
• Comforting flavor: if you prefer neat, comforting Korean food that pairs well with rice over spicy, intense dishes, this place should suit you well.

This visit to a Paju restaurant stuck with me as a place I'd want to return to whenever I'm craving a comforting, filling meal rather than intense flavors. If you're looking for a good Korean set meal restaurant in Paju, give Eomma-ui Ttuksim a try. Especially if you want to enjoy braised pollock and bulgogi together, I'd recommend the Ttuksim set, haha.