Thick salmon sushi set after a 20-min weekday wait: Sushi Doku The

2nd floor of Songdo's Onesta Mall, a sushi spot even locals wait for

There's a famous sushi place in Songdo's Onesta Mall. I've lived in Songdo for almost 10 years now, and honestly, Songdo is kind of a food desert... but Sushi Doku The Songdo is the one place even locals wait for. If you don't get there right at opening you'll have to wait, but it's still the place I always end up at when I'm craving sushi.

Sushi Doku The Songdo / Daily 11:00–21:00 / 2nd floor, Onesta Mall

Weekend outing parking tip

Here's a tip for a weekend outing: Songhyeona, Triple Street, Onesta, and Homeplus are all right next to each other, so it's easier to park at Onesta, eat at a Songdo restaurant, then wander around and explore. After eating you get 2 hours registered, then I usually register extra time at the 1st floor pharmacy or Gong Cha, or the basement Aladin bookstore~!

A wait even on weekdays? Arrived at 11:10am, seated in 20 minutes

Sushi Doku The Songdo opens at 11am. Even though I went on a weekday, I still had to wait when I got there around 11:10. I got seated after about 20 minutes. It was a date with my husband after a while, just the two of us, so I was excited to eat well and enjoy the atmosphere.

The premium sushi set course we always order

Every time we come, we always get the premium sushi set course. This place gives a big discount on takeout, too. Sometimes after we eat we'll pack some to take to my husband's parents as well. I haven't tried the sashimi yet, but it looked perfect with a drink. The atmosphere here is especially great, haha.

Sushi Doku The Songdo has genuinely thick cuts of raw fish, which I love. And the set isn't just padded out with lots of items — every single piece is high quality. It comes out all at once as a set course, but if it were served piece by piece it'd feel like an omakase, haha.

Look at how thick the rice is in this Songdo sushi set ~~~~ For ₩50,000 for two people, it's basically eating a full sashimi meal, so if you think about value for money, this is actually the place to go in Songdo. We're already on our Nth visit, haha.

Karaage, fried shrimp, and steamed egg with ginkgo nuts

My husband especially loves the karaage (Japanese fried chicken) and fried shrimp, and I steal his steamed egg every time, haha. It's a Japanese-style chawanmushi with ginkgo nuts and shrimp in it — the ginkgo nuts give it such a luxurious flavor...

Brushing on soy sauce with a silicone brush

One thing that stood out about Sushi Doku The Songdo is that you can brush soy sauce directly onto the sushi with a brush provided at the table. It's a silicone brush too, so it's super hygienic, haha. Normally you'd dab it on with ginger, but this way is way more convenient and cleaner.

Brushing it on like this is so easy~ Not a single detail is missing here! Even the plain white fish tastes and feels different in texture.

My #1 pick: the salmon sushi

It's not just a lot of rice with toppings — the fish on top is quite generous in size, and there are combinations I don't usually get to try, so it never gets boring. Even so, my #1 pick is the salmon sushi. Sushi Doku's salmon is on a whole different level!!!!!! You know how sometimes as a woman your 'salmon energy' runs low and you need to periodically recharge with salmon? One piece of Sushi Doku's salmon fully recharges you.

Leave a receipt review, get otoro sushi

If you leave a receipt review, they give you a ₩5,900 piece of otoro sushi — one per review. Talk about value for money..! I really think restaurants that are generous like this tend to have good food overall too, haha.

It melts richly in your mouth — make sure you write your review right at the end, before you finish eating. It makes every other sushi feel underwhelming afterward, haha. I'm going to make lots of money someday and eat a whole plate of just otoro, hehe.

Why it's worth waiting for, again and again

True to its reputation as a date spot, they even have floss and mouthwash ready. I get why people rush to open or wait in line at this Songdo restaurant every time I go... Whenever I'm craving sashimi or sushi, I end up thinking, let's just wait a bit and go to Sushi Doku The Songdo. It's definitely the tastiest place in Songdo, haha.