Two-person 35,000 won course dinner at Misikga Imokase, Gwangju

I'd always been curious about this place since it's always crowded whenever I pass by — we went at 4:30pm and it was already busy, and by 5pm the main building was completely full.

Misikga Imokase Sangmu Main Branch is basically the local go-to dinner spot in Sangmu, loved by all ages.

Alright, let's get into the review~!

Hours, parking, and group room sizes

• ⏰ Daily 10:00 - 21:00 (break time 16:00 - 17:00 / last order 20:00)
• 🅿️ No dedicated parking lot (I parked at Lotte Mart Maxx and did some shopping while I was at it)

They have a variety of group rooms set up, which makes it a really convenient place for gatherings.

<< New Building >> Can seat 8-team and 16-team groups

<< Main Building >> Can seat 10-team and 12-team groups

<< Annex >> Can seat 20-person and 28-person groups

So how much does Imokase cost?

For a visit of 2 people, it's ₩35,000 per person. For 3 or more, it's ₩30,000 per person.

Soju and drinks are self-serve, just help yourself.

As soon as we sat down, our spoons and chopsticks came out sterilized in hot water — that gave me a real sense of trust in the place.

The menu lineup that day

• Makhoe (mixed raw fish salad), yukhoe (beef tartare)
• Grilled yellow croaker, braised pomfret
• Potatoes, japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), kimchi jeon (kimchi pancake), acorn jelly salad
• Pollack soup, samhap (skate-pork-kimchi combo), octopus with pork belly
• Fried egg, fried rice, ramyeon
• Bossam (boiled pork wraps), fruit + Changeok-tteok pumpkin injeolmi
• Bingsu (shaved ice dessert), Saewookkang shrimp crackers

Starting the table with makhoe

The first thing to arrive was makhoe, a great appetizer to whet the appetite.

Fresh and tangy, with the bean flour sprinkled on top adding a nice savory depth.

Wrapping it in perilla leaf added a nice fragrance and made it even tastier — a really good start✨✨

Grilled yellow croaker and yukhoe

The moment I saw the croaker I thought of rice, but the seasoning wasn't too salty, so it was fine to eat without rice too.

Maybe because it had been a while, but the yukhoe was so good.

Chewy, with a lovely nutty richness from the sesame oil.

Dipping potato in the braised pomfret sauce

Braised pomfret isn't something I see much outside of home cooking, so seeing it here felt so nostalgic... I dipped potato instead of rice into the sauce, and it was surprisingly good (honestly not a combo you'd expect to work, but it does).

These are the side dishes you'd be disappointed not to see at a Korean restaurant, and all three came out together — such a happy moment.

How fermented was the skate samhap?

The samhap arrived with a wildly intense visual🔥

My boyfriend can't eat skate, so all the skate was mine😋

Skate samhap isn't good if it's not fermented enough, but this was fermented just right for a proper kick.

I tried to pace myself while eating, but this was around when I started to feel full.

But once we finished, they took our plates away and came back with fried rice🫢 As Koreans, though, how could we resist fried rice as a follow-up dessert?!

In the middle they also brought out yukjeon (pan-fried beef patty), which I'd recommend eating together with the yukhoe, scallions, and octopus-pork belly combo!

The food really kept coming with no break — this last dish seemed meant to help settle the stomach. We didn't drink, but sipping the ramyeon broth helped everything go down.

Dessert: Changeok-tteok pumpkin injeolmi and bingsu

And now, the long-awaited dessert~!

They even brought out the trendy Changeok-tteok pumpkin injeolmi (rice cake) that's hard to find right now — I was just impressed they could keep up the supply. Full as we were, we couldn't resist and ate it anyway haha.

Bingsu came out too, and we ate it together with the pumpkin injeolmi. I really thought that was the last dish, but then the owner brought out shrimp crackers.

Is it fine to go without drinking?

The whole time we ate, both customers and food kept coming without a break at Misikga. We enjoyed ourselves even without drinking, but I imagine there's no better restaurant for those who do drink. And unlike other drinking spots, it had a home-cooked feel that made it really warm and cozy — I think that atmosphere is part of why it's so packed.