Daedeok restaurant lunch with mackerel: Hwadeogeuro Gan Godeungeo

On days when I’m craving grilled fish, I don’t think there’s anything quite like warm, freshly grilled mackerel. This time, I was having lunch around Sintanjin, so I visited Hwadeogeuro Gan Godeungeo Sintanjin Branch.

Hwadeogeuro Gan Godeungeo Sintanjin Branch

The name alone made it feel like a restaurant specializing in grilled mackerel, so I was curious about how it would taste. We ordered two oven-grilled mackerel set meals that day.

I came expecting a proper meal of grilled mackerel and rice, but the self-serve counter was more useful than I expected, which made the meal even more fun.

Golden-brown oven-grilled mackerel

When our oven-grilled mackerel set meals arrived, I was reminded that grilled fish really is best eaten straight away. The generously sized, golden-brown mackerel looked perfect alongside a bowl of rice.

I picked out a thick piece of mackerel flesh and placed it over the rice. The lightly salty fish and warm rice went so well together that I hardly needed many other side dishes.

Grilled fish can be surprisingly troublesome to make at home because of the smell and cleanup. That’s why it was so nice and convenient to eat freshly grilled fish warm at a restaurant.

Help yourself to side dishes at the self-serve counter

One thing I especially liked that day was the self-serve counter. Rather than sticking only to the side dishes that came with the meal, I could pick up the ones I wanted myself.

When you’re eating grilled fish, sometimes you want to add this and that with your rice. Being able to take only as much as I needed made it easy to eat comfortably.

There were especially several kinds of namul, so I took a little of each. A piece of mackerel, a bit of namul, and rice together made the meal feel much more abundant.

Making bibimbap with namul

Since there was namul at the self-serve counter, it felt like a shame to eat it only as side dishes. So I added different kinds to my rice and made my own bibimbap (mixed rice). Switching to bibimbap midway through the grilled fish meal gave me another way to enjoy the same lunch.

It was simple: just add the namul you like and mix it into the rice. Grilled mackerel with rice was delicious, but changing things up with namul bibimbap had a different appeal.

An even heartier meal with rice

Grilled fish is not a flashy dish, but well-cooked fish with rice and side dishes makes for a truly filling meal.

That day, I had oven-grilled mackerel with rice and added more side dishes from the self-serve counter, finishing the meal completely full. If you like grilled fish, this seemed like a good way to have it.

Convenient grilled fish that is hard to make at home

Even if you love grilled fish, it’s not easy to make often at home. The smell lingers after cooking, and then you have to clean the pan and the area around it.

That’s probably why eating grilled fish out feels more comfortable to me. You can have warm mackerel right away, along with rice and side dishes, making it a great option on days when you miss a home-style meal.

Especially on days when I want a clean, filling meal rather than something strongly flavored, I don’t think there’s a safer choice than grilled fish.

When you’re craving grilled fish in Sintanjin

Hwadeogeuro Gan Godeungeo Sintanjin Branch was a good place to visit when I wanted a filling meal centered on oven-grilled mackerel, rice, and side dishes.

We ordered two oven-grilled mackerel set meals, and what stayed with me was being able to get side dishes at the self-serve counter and even make bibimbap with the prepared namul.

You know those days when, instead of strongly flavored food, you crave warm rice with grilled fish and namul side dishes? If you’re looking for grilled mackerel in Sintanjin then, Hwadeogeuro Gan Godeungeo Sintanjin Branch could be a good option.

If you enjoy grilled fish, try a warm and filling meal with rice.