Busanjin sushi restaurant for special nigiri: Kumano Sushi

Kumano Sushi near Jeonpo Station

I visited a sushi restaurant near Jeonpo Station. Kumano Sushi is easy to spot just a little way into the alley beside Lee Jae-mo Pizza!

Kumano Sushi had a neat, clean exterior, and it was easy to find because it is close to Jeonpo Station!

• A 4-minute walk from Exit 7 of Jeonpo Station
• Parking: paid street public parking behind Gyeongnam Technical High School, ₩1,800 for 60 minutes

When I looked it up before visiting, I found that they are open only four hours a day, which made me even more excited, haha. And the chef is an adjunct professor in the Culinary Arts Department at Busan Health University and a 20-year veteran, so that really boosted my confidence, you know?

Hours: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, 12:00–16:00

It would be best to check the day and time carefully before you visit.

A clean interior with five tables

The dining room was not large, but it was clean! There were five tables, including just one table for four.

It was a restaurant with a simply neat atmosphere, without anything overdone. Being able to watch the owner make the sushi right in front of you made it feel even more trustworthy.

Kumano Sushi menu and our order

• Kumano Special Sushi (12 pieces) ₩25,000 / Kumano Sushi (11 pieces) ₩20,000 / Salmon Sushi (10 pieces) ₩18,000 / Special Maguro Sushi ₩35,000
• Special Kaisen-don ₩35,000 / Kaisen-don ₩25,000 / Mackerel pressed sushi ₩25,000 / Maguro-don ₩35,000 / Sake-don ₩20,000
• Onsen tamago ₩2,000 / Udon ₩3,000

We ordered the Kumano Special Sushi, salmon sushi, and udon. They can make the sushi without wasabi if you ask.

Each table has rakkyo (pickled shallots), pickled ginger, and house-made soy sauce.

They brought out miso soup first. Unlike at other sushi places, it had a little more kick, but it was clean-tasting and appetite-whetting—totally my style.

Kumano Special Sushi and salmon sushi

Kumano Sushi says it uses seasonal fish personally selected at the dawn market every day, carefully fine-tuning everything from fish aging and shari (seasoned sushi rice) temperature to the knife work, with no more than a 1 mm margin of error.

The presentation was seriously so lovely, ahh. The salmon looked incredibly fresh, and I loved that the slices of fish were nice and big. The special sushi in particular was packed with abalone, shrimp, and many different kinds of fish.

The sauce on the salmon sushi contains truffle. Yet Ye-kong, who is not usually much of a truffle person, still enjoyed it so, so much. It was that kind of universally appealing flavor.

Isn't the special sushi presentation absolutely amazing?

The white fish was thick and pleasantly chewy, and I thought the amount of rice was just right. The tuna literally melted away... where did it go, tuna? I tend to think sushi gets much pricier once you move beyond conveyor-belt sushi or sushi buffets, like omakase, but Kumano seems to offer delicious sushi at a more reasonable price.

The abalone was fresh too, with a lovely chewy texture.

The eel needs no explanation, and the shrimp sushi was topped with ankimo (monkfish liver). Its wonderfully rich, dense flavor made the shrimp sushi feel completely luxurious. So good.

Udon ordered with the sushi

We also added udon, and its quality was so good for the price. There were plenty of noodles, and the broth was perfectly clean and satisfying. Sushi and udon are a combination that needs no explanation. If you think the sushi might not be enough, ordering one udon alongside it would make for a really filling meal.

Between the freshness of the ingredients and the thoughtfully composed meal, we finished on a happy, satisfied note. If you are looking for reliably good, neatly presented sushi or a date spot in Jeonpo-dong, I highly recommend Kumano Sushi!