Yangsan sushi restaurant with cold soba sets: Shirokuma

I was craving delicious sushi, so after looking around, I visited Shirokuma, a sushi restaurant in Yangsan. It had a neat atmosphere and cute little interior decorations, so I thought it would also make a nice date spot in Yangsan. After trying it myself, I was happy with the meal because each piece was quite good.

Parking at Shirokuma in Mulgeum, Yangsan

Shirokuma

At Shirokuma, a popular spot in Mulgeum, Yangsan, there was space for about two cars in front of the restaurant and another two in the parking lot of the building next door. The nearby Hwangsan Village Public Parking Lot is also free after 6 PM, so this was a Yangsan sushi restaurant I could visit without worrying about parking.

Lunch specials and a wide sushi menu

As you would expect from a great sushi spot in Yangsan, photos of many dishes—Special Sushi, Premium Sushi, futomaki (thick sushi roll), fried shrimp, udon, and more—had me hungry from the entrance. They also offer lunch specials from 11:30 AM to 2:30 PM. Order a lunch special and you get udon or soba as well, so I would recommend it as a good-value lunch spot in Yangsan.

Shirokuma also has cold soba sets that are perfect for summer. There is Premium Sushi for 2 + cold soba and Special Sushi for 2 + cold soba, so it seemed like a lovely way to enjoy sushi with refreshing cold soba in the summer. There were plenty of other options too, including a salmon + eggplant set, grilled sushi set, and omakase sushi. Along with set menus, you can choose only the individual sushi pieces you want, so there are lots of choices to suit your taste.

Special Cold Soba Set and salmon plus halibut sushi

After we ordered, salad and jang-guk (clear Japanese-style soup) came out first. It was nice to whet our appetites lightly with the salad and have the soup alongside it before the sushi arrived.

We ordered the Special Cold Soba Set. Soon, a neatly arranged plate of sushi arrived, and the colorful pieces lined up so beautifully that they looked appetizing at a glance. It included many varieties at once—halibut, salmon, milchi fish, tuna belly, soy-marinated shrimp, cuttlefish, egg sushi, eggplant sushi, and beef sushi—so one plate let us try a well-rounded selection of sushi.

Egg sushi and cuttlefish sushi

First, the egg sushi had fluffy, soft egg with a subtle sweetness, making it easy for children to enjoy too. The cuttlefish sushi was pleasantly chewy and springy; the more I chewed it, the more its subtle sweetness and clean flavor came through.

Shirokuma says it uses only large halibut and Norwegian Superior-grade fresh salmon every day. The sushi rice is made with Koshihikari rice, so the grains did not clump together; they were springy yet softened pleasantly in the mouth. Perhaps because of the neta aging technique used to bring out the ingredients’ natural flavor and umami, the fish had a gentle flavor and the sushi as a whole felt nicely balanced.

Eggplant sushi that even an eggplant hater enjoyed

The beef sushi was tender to chew, with a faint smoky aroma that made it clean-tasting and savory. I also tried Shirokuma’s signature eggplant sushi. Honestly, I do not like eggplant, but when I took a bite, it was really delicious. The grilled eggplant on top was soft and moist with a gentle roasted aroma, and the mild, sweet sauce made it so tasty.

We also ordered salmon plus halibut sushi. The thick slice of salmon was soft and moist, with a savory yet clean flavor, while the halibut sushi had a nice chewy, elastic texture. The more I chewed, the more its clean flavor and faint sweetness came through, so it was easy to enjoy.

The signature eggplant sushi was so delicious that, even though we were quite full, we ordered more. The children especially loved it too. Seeing children who do not normally eat much eggplant say it was tasty and eat one piece each made me feel oddly proud.

Cold soba that paired beautifully with sushi

The cold soba that came with it had springy noodles in a chilled broth, making it refreshing and cleansing on the palate. The broth was not overly strong and had a subtle umami flavor, so it was easy to slurp down. Having some cold soba between bites of sushi freshened up my mouth, and it paired so well with the sushi.

If you are craving delicious sushi or looking for a great sushi spot in Yangsan or Mulgeum to visit with children, give Shirokuma a try.