Hagfish grill for Jungbok near Choryang Station, Busan: Gyeongbuksan

This is my review of Gyeongbuksan Kkomjangeo (경북산꼼장어), a top-tier hagfish spot in Busan.

For Jungbok, one of the hottest days of summer, I went for hagfish (kkomjangeo) as stamina food. A friend who is Busan born and raised recommended Gyeongbuksan, so here's my visit! If you're in Busan and want to eat hagfish, this is the place I'd recommend!!

Where is Gyeongbuksan Kkomjangeo, and what are the hours and parking?

Gyeongbuksan is at 25 Choryang-ro, Dong-gu, Busan, a 3-minute walk from Choryang Station. It's open 13:00 to 00:30, with last order at 23:30.

If you drive, use the nearby Sintaeyang Parking Lot and they'll give you 2,000 won in cash toward it!

Gyeongbuksan is a traditional, original hagfish restaurant that has been handed down for three generations.

The place is about 60 years old, but the fish tanks are very well kept, and it's also managed separately by pest control company CESCO, so it feels clean. They pre-grill the hagfish outside, and there are two entrances, left and right. We were guided to the right one!

Inside Gyeongbuksan Kkomjangeo: dining areas and seating

Inside, Gyeongbuksan is split into left and right rooms with several 4-person tables. I went at 4pm, an awkward time even on a weekday, and the right side was still full.

Lots of famous people have reportedly eaten here too. It's a totally original Busan hagfish place.

Gyeongbuksan Kkomjangeo menu and what to order for two

The menu is hagfish only, in four sizes: small, medium, large and extra large. From medium up, you can order salt-grilled and sauce-grilled half and half. For two people, this is what we ordered.

• Medium hagfish (half salt, half sauce)
• Fried rice
• Beer

What side dishes come with the hagfish?

They bring side dishes first: small plates, bean sprout soup, and sea snails with oil dipping sauce, quail eggs, silkworm pupae (beondegi), carrot sticks, wrap vegetables, onion, garlic and chili peppers.

Simple but hearty, drinking-snack style! I don't usually drink much, but with the heat and the hagfish,, how could I resist a beer. Side dishes can be refilled at the self-service corner inside, and since there were cumin, salt and pepper there too, I grabbed some to bring to the table.

Medium hagfish, half salt and half sauce: how did it taste?

This is Gyeongbuksan's salt and sauce grilled hagfish. As soon as you order, they prep and pre-grill the hagfish outside.

The hagfish is then grilled right over briquette charcoal, and the fish are still moving, such a fresh sight that the look alone tells you it's a great place.

Salt-grilled hagfish

First, the salt-grilled hagfish. It's really plump, and it's stir-fried together with garlic, garlic stems and onion, so the savory flavor is great.

Dipping it in sesame oil is good, but personally I liked it best wrapped in lettuce and perilla leaf with garlic!!

It also goes surprisingly well with cumin, so my hand kept reaching for it. Savory flavor explosion!

Sauce-grilled hagfish

They recommended eating the sauce-grilled hagfish after about two thirds of the salt-grilled, so I tried it a bit later. This one is plump and chewy too, and wrapped in leaves it's honestly,,, the best. The sauce has a moderate spiciness and a moderate savory depth.

Taking a bite of the sauce-grilled hagfish and then a sip of cool bean sprout soup is a treat of its own. The sauce is good, but the hagfish itself is so tasty that you just keep reaching for more. If you ask for it spicy, they'll make it spicier, so if you want heat, be sure to request it!

Is the fried rice at Gyeongbuksan Kkomjangeo a must-order?

To finish, I ordered one portion of fried rice, and the owner said he'd scooped a lot of rice haha (thank you haha)

The already delicious sauce plus seaweed flakes and corn makes it even better, and the stir-fried rice, I love it.. It's good wrapped in seaweed, and it also goes perfectly with perilla leaf plus seaweed, a dessert-style finisher.

With a kind owner and delicious hagfish, we really enjoyed our meal :)

Verdict: Gyeongbuksan Kkomjangeo as a Jungbok stamina meal in Busan

From the first bite, Gyeongbuksan's plump hagfish made me think of beer. Salt-grilled or sauce-grilled, both were really good, and the fried rice was the best too!! It genuinely felt like a body-boosting meal, so I recommend Gyeongbuksan as a Busan hagfish restaurant :)