Mokpo bossam restaurant with free kalguksu: Arirang Bossam

I went to Mokpo and found my bossam (boiled pork wraps) restaurant for life. Gabrisal (pork jowl) bossam was something I was trying for the first time ever..✨ Turns out I only thought I didn’t like bossam because all the bossam I’d had before was bad!

Bossam lunch near Mokpo Comprehensive Bus Terminal

I came because it’s within walking distance of Mokpo Comprehensive Bus Terminal. It’s by the sea, but for some reason I wasn’t really craving sashimi..✨ I was going to have a light (?) lunch before heading off. Honestly, I don’t expect much from chains, but after trying it—sooo good, everyone.

The restaurant atmosphere and lunchtime

The restaurant was fairly spacious and clean. We arrived around 1:30, thinking, There should be seats, right?! But it was nearly full. If we’d come around noon, I think we would have had to wait. Lucky..🍀 Most people were dining as families. It really felt like there were lots of locals..!!

Free kalguksu or platter noodles with bossam

The bossam itself already looked generous, but when you order bossam, you get either kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) or platter noodles for free. I can’t even fathom Jeolla-do generosity..

While eating, I spotted cold bossam salad and chogye guksu too, so choosing took some thought.. Chogye guksu usually uses chicken breast, but this place uses chicken thigh!! Someone please have it for me..o(><；)oo

Half-and-half bossam and kalguksu order

We chose the small half-and-half bossam and the complimentary kalguksu! Honestly, I don’t eat bossam much because I’m a fresh-kimchi hater, but I came here because they said they also serve napa cabbage! I like bossam, but I can’t eat kimchi, you see.. This is my first time seeing a place serve cabbage, and I’m touched..🤍

Whenever I travel in Jeolla-do, the thing that is always delicious = the side dishes. There are so many kinds that you never get tired of them.

No, everyone, there was tteokbokki at the self-serve bar.. It’s truly unbelievable. But I couldn’t eat any. I was already way too full from the main meal hahaha... It seemed like all the families were having some. It looked like the kind of snack-shop tteokbokki kids would love!

I only scooped out a little corn mayo. I truly love restaurants that have this.

A few minutes later, the small half-and-half bossam (42,000) arrived. It was my first time having gabrisal bossam, and that glossy, glistening look was insane. Since it was my first gabrisal bossam, this was bossam visuals I’d never seen before! My friend said it was her first time too. You can tell just by looking how tender it is... I can feel it, I can feel it...

When you order the half-and-half bossam, it comes with kimchi, shredded dried radish, and cabbage like this. My friend said the kimchi was delicious!

Can you feel how tender and juicy it is just from the photo? If not, my condolences.. It’s so pretty—the Jang Wonyoung of bossam itself.

Do you all prefer the meatier parts of bossam, or the fattier parts? I like the fattier bits because they’re tender, but even the lean portions here were soft and delicious. My friend and I kept marveling..🤍

There was a warm stone underneath the meat, so we could eat it warm all the way to the end.

The combination I ate most was cabbage + ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste)! Because cabbage, ssamjang, and salted shrimp are about all I can eat. I don’t even eat shredded dried radish, okay?! But my friend was eating it so enthusiastically that I put just a tiny bit... on mine and tried it—and what the heck haha, it was insanely good. So this is the flavor everyone has been enjoying.. I’d wasted 27 years of my life..

Choose when to have the complimentary kalguksu

You can choose whether to order the kalguksu together with the bossam or have it afterward. You can feel the thoughtful care even in details like this.. We chose to have them together. But it felt like the table legs were about to snap.

How can this possibly be complimentary..? It’s truly unbelievable. There was enough to fill you up on the kalguksu alone. The pot.. was huge.

They give you an adorable five-minute sand timer, and you can eat once all the sand has fallen. Personally, I like my noodles a little soft, so I cooked them longer! It’s complimentary, but it was packed with blue crab and clams—I think three people could eat it..

The clams just keep coming and coming. They were fresh, not gritty, and delicious! They had been purged so well, too. I used to be crazy about clam kalguksu, so I diligently picked them all out and ate them.

Tteokbokki self-serve bar and misutgaru slush dessert

I was already shocked by the self-serve tteokbokki, then the dessert corner shocked me a second time.. There were puffed rice snacks and misutgaru (multigrain powder) slush. Owner, your taste is incredible..(p)

You can take the puffed rice snacks with you when you leave, and I only had the misutgaru slush before heading out. The misutgaru slush was absolutely amazing..🤍

My friend and I came intending to eat simply, then left with huge bellies.. Please make sure to try the tender gabrisal bossam! I recommend it as a great Mokpo restaurant.