Pocheon Korean restaurant with seafood chicken soup: Haepumgye

It had been a while, so the four of us went out for a nourishing meal with a close older friend's couple~ It also happened to be our wedding anniversary, and maybe because the weather had suddenly turned chilly, my throat felt scratchy and I was craving something properly hot and restorative. So we headed to Haepumgye (해품계), a great spot for nourishing food in Songu-ri, Pocheon!

Haepumgye location and signature dishes

It is on the first floor of Building A, 164 Solmoru-ro, Soheul-eup, Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi-do, and is open from 11:00 to 21:30. Parking is available, and there is a kids' zone too.

• Haepum Haesintang ₩70,000
• Haepum Samgyetang ₩17,000

I was feeling all shivery, so we made a reservation before visiting~ The dining room was so spacious and clean.

Take a look at the menu~

A spacious, clean restaurant with a kids' room

When we made the reservation, we ordered the Haepum Haesintang in advance. They even have a kids' room here!

The kids' room was clean, and there was even CCTV so parents could watch their children playing. I thought anyone coming with kids would feel really satisfied and at ease. But today it was just us carefree couples, so no little princesses 😎

Here is the basic banchan (side dish) spread. You can refill the side dishes freely at the self-service bar!

Haepum Haesintang loaded with octopus, small octopus, and clams

And then, finally, the Haepum Haesintang appeared!!!

The visual alone is absolutely overwhelming. It has octopus, small octopus, shrimp, mushrooms, all kinds of vegetables, and a whole chicken; and underneath, there are an unbelievable number of clams. Manila clams, basket clams, and scallops are all in there, so it already looked like the broth would be amazing from the start!

They also brought vegetables and fish cakes separately, and told us to eat the seafood first, then add them later like shabu-shabu. I mean, is there anything left for them at this point???? 😂

The staff even cut up the small octopus and octopus for us, but seriously, was that octopus size even real? Hahaha. The older friend who came with us said he would try eating the octopus whole without cutting it, and asked me to take a photo lololol

The octopus itself was not tough at all—it was springy, and the more you chewed, the more sweetness you could taste!

The small octopus was tender too, and the shrimp were nice and plump, so it was fun fishing out each piece to eat. There were also loads of white wood ear mushrooms, which I love, so double thumbs-up ❤️

Haesintang broth that deepens as it simmers

More than anything, I loved how the broth grew richer as we ate. At first it was like a clean, refreshing seafood stock, but as the clams and seafood kept cooking, the savory flavor gradually built up. With chicken in there too, the broth became fuller and richer toward the end! The natural savoriness from the clams + chicken + vegetables was seriously spot-on.

It was refreshing and deep without any fishiness, so I kept ladling up the broth hahaha. And this soy sauce was a total all-purpose star!

It was delicious with seafood, delicious with vegetables—dip this and that in it and the savory flavor really comes alive.

From vegetable shabu-shabu to kalguksu and porridge

After diligently fishing out the seafood, it was time to add in all the separately served vegetables. Shabu-shabu time begins~ We were gradually getting full, but the broth was so good that we just kept eating hahaha.

Once we added the fish-cake skewers too, this was practically a little hot-pot party. And of course, we had to eat the chicken!

It had cooked so thoroughly that the meat slid right off the bone. Just look at the size of that drumstick 👀 The meat was tender rather than dry, so we ate a piece of chicken after seafood, then had another spoonful of broth~ This combination worked far better than I expected.

And surprisingly, one thing we all found incredibly delicious was the kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi)!

Why was the kkakdugi so good? It was crisp and refreshing, so we refilled just the kkakdugi twice. We were thinking we were getting way too full, but... it did not end there.

The broth was so good that we added kalguksu (knife-cut noodles) too. Once the noodles went into the broth that had been steeping with seafood, chicken, and vegetables, it felt like the flavor got another level richer!

The noodles had soaked up the broth perfectly, so this was not just kalguksu cooked in haesintang broth—it was a true specialty. And of course, we finished with juk (rice porridge) ❤️

Once we finished with rice porridge in the remaining rich broth, we honestly felt like we were going to burst, but we could not put our spoons down hahaha. The four of us were all so, so happy with the meal. I cannot count how many times all four of us said, “This place is delicious,” hahaha. The broth was especially wonderful.

It begins with a refreshing, clean seafood flavor, then becomes deeper and richer as the clams, seafood, chicken, and vegetables keep releasing their flavor! After the final kalguksu and porridge, I understood exactly why people come here for a restorative meal.

After eating our fill, we even had a cool cup of maesil-cha (plum tea) on the way out~ Absolutely perfect ❤️ The weather is getting chillier, so if you are craving hot, rich broth, go give yourself a nourishing meal here. If you love seafood and steaming-hot soup, I seriously, seriously recommend it! All four of us left very satisfied 😋