Guwol-dong fish restaurant: raw shrimp and fried shrimp heads, Veteran

This is my Nth visit to Veteran General Fish Market, a favorite sashimi spot in Guwol-dong. Shrimp season is coming up, so I went early to eat raw shrimp! I've tried sashimi all over Guwol-dong, but I keep circling back and settling here.

Where Veteran General Fish Market Incheon Guwol Branch is, plus parking and booking

Veteran General Fish Market Incheon Guwol Branch 📍22 Inha-ro 507beon-gil, Namdong-gu, Incheon, South Korea ⏰ 11:00 - 03:00 🅿️ Parking available

I recommend booking through Naver Reservation — you get 5 pieces of buffalo wings free with it! Most group visitors seemed to reserve ahead.

Parking is available in the basement parking lot of the building.

The fish tanks were kept really clean too.

Inside Veteran General Fish Market: seating and room for groups

As soon as I walked in, I could tell the owner really cares about service. Every staff member was super kind. There were plenty of seats inside too, so no need to worry about waiting. The tables were spaced out well, making it great for group meetups, work dinners, or family gatherings.

There's even a group table for up to 8 people!

The terrace is great for setting the mood on a nice day or when it's raining. Still a bit hot to sit outside though...

There are also separate men's and women's restrooms just for the restaurant.

The self-bar: ramyeon noodles, sujebi and a make-your-own kimchi pancake

If you need more of the basic side dishes, just use the self-bar. They even offer dumpling soup and ramyeon noodles for free at the self-bar.

You can also make your own kimchi pancake at the self-serve station.

And on top of that, phone chargers at every table — what is this level of thoughtfulness?!

Shrimp and gizzard shad season menus, and what we ordered

Since shrimp and gizzard shad (jeoneo) are in season right now, they're being sold as seasonal items! There's even a combo where you can have both shrimp sashimi and gizzard shad sashimi — nice touch.

As you can see, the menu is incredibly varied. Whatever you're craving, they've got it. They even have non-alcoholic beer!

📝 What we ordered Sea bream + flounder (for 2): ₩42,000 Raw shrimp sashimi (small): ₩35,000 Fish stew

The set menu comes with sushi, fried items, and fish stew added on. We wanted to focus more on sashimi than sushi or fried food, so we ordered the à la carte version and added fish stew separately.

The side dish spread, with salted pollock roe as the highlight

The basic spread comes with seaweed soup, spicy mixed raw fish, and saury. A saury instead of mackerel, interesting haha.

The side dishes are aged kimchi, salted pollock roe, seaweed, and makjang (spicy fermented sauce)! The salted pollock roe here is the real kicker. If you need more seaweed, it's not in the self-bar so just ask staff for more.

You mix the spicy raw fish with chogochujang (vinegared chili sauce), and they'll even add a self-serve kimchi pancake. Honestly the sides alone are a whole meal...

Sea bream and flounder for two, 42,000 won: thickness and texture

The freshness of the sea bream and flounder sashimi is no joke. They said they only use live fish hand-picked at the market every dawn, and you can definitely tell.

The slices were cut thick, just the right thickness, so the texture really came through. The sea bream especially had a chewy bite that was incredible.

Three ways to eat the sashimi

Cheongyang chili is in the self-bar. My favorite combo is seaweed + aged kimchi + makjang + cheongyang chili.

But the seaweed + salted pollock roe + soy sauce combo that's unique to Veteran General Fish Market is a fresh twist I'd also recommend. Even eaten plain, the pollock roe wasn't too salty — the seasoning was just right.

The star of the meal: raw shrimp platter (small), 35,000 won

Today's star, raw shrimp sashimi!! Look how plump these shrimp are. Already a pass in my book.

The raw shrimp pairs well with both chogochujang and soy sauce! It didn't disappoint. Zero fishiness, just so delicious, ugh. Because they're so fresh with no fishy taste, they actually went even better with soy sauce. Honestly the raw shrimp itself is so good that it's delicious no matter how you eat it. Regretting not ordering the medium size...

You know fried shrimp heads are mandatory with raw shrimp, right? Haha

My boyfriend picked all the meat out of the fried shrimp heads for me. If this isn't love, what is...

Finishing with fish stew and ramyeon noodles

We were already full, but since the ramyeon noodles are free, we couldn't not order fish stew~ Kimchi is at the self-bar.

Seriously, put cheongyang chili in the fish stew. It totally changes the depth of the broth.

Cleared the ramyeon noodles to the very last bite.

Is Veteran General Fish Market in Guwol-dong worth it?

• Veteran General Fish Market, a favorite sashimi restaurant in Guwol-dong
• Free ramyeon noodles and dumpling soup
• Self-serve kimchi pancake available
• Recommend the salted pollock roe + seaweed + soy sauce combo unique to Veteran General Fish Market
• If you prefer sashimi over sushi and fried items, add fish stew to the à la carte order
• Raw shrimp sashimi comes with buldak mayo sauce