Raw shrimp sashimi, 14 pieces, at a Jongno seafood restaurant: Parang

A lot of you must be looking for fresh seafood spots in Jongno — today I'm writing up my visit to Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch. It's built up a reputation as a Jongak Station seafood restaurant and Jongno haenyeo (female diver) house, and I kept telling myself I'd go, and finally did.

Finding it from Jongak Station

It's in an easily accessible spot around Jongak Station, so it was convenient to stop by after work or for a meetup.

It's on the first floor, and the sign is bold and easy to spot!!

Walking in, the haenyeo (female diver)-concept interior really raised my expectations for freshness, haha. It felt like a marine concept, haha. Rather than a typical Jongno izakaya vibe, it felt like a proper seafood specialty place, so it worked well both for a group dinner and for a casual drink.

The menu and what we ordered

Let me show you the menu!!

I ordered raw shrimp sashimi with stone octopus, and haenyeo bossam (boiled pork wrap) with hangover clam kalguksu.

Busan Galmaegi soju, and how it pairs with seafood

For drinks, I tried Busan Galmaegi.

I usually drink Jinro, but I wanted to try something new to fit the restaurant's concept. Have you seen soju with hovenia (oriental raisin tree) extract added? Busan Galmaegi has domestic hovenia added — I didn't know that when I ordered it, haha. But once I ordered it, whoa, the hovenia really came through. The taste was clean with less of that typical soju aroma, so it paired really well with the seafood dishes. Since the aroma was mild, it went down smoothly, which matched well with fresh seafood dishes like the raw shrimp sashimi and octopus bossam.

Seaweed and seaweed soup come out as basic side dishes!! Isn't the basic side seaweed soup, simmered for a long time, really delicious?!

Raw shrimp sashimi, 14 pieces plus grilled shrimp head butter

The first dish to arrive was the raw shrimp sashimi. The shrimp were plump and glossy — you could tell how fresh they were at a glance.

Dipping one in chojang (vinegared chili sauce) and taking a bite, a sweet, savory flavor spread through my mouth. There was no fishy smell at all, clean, and the natural flavor of the ingredient came through so well it would have been delicious even without any sauce. I recommend dipping in chojang, and I also recommend dipping just the front tip in soy sauce!!

You get about 14 shrimp total. That day, since I wanted raw shrimp sashimi, I searched every place selling raw shrimp from Euljiro to Jongak, and this place has the best value by far. The price per shrimp is the best too!!!!

And it's fresh! Usually you eat seafood before soju so the alcohol can cut through any fishy taste, but the shrimp was so fresh that wasn't necessary. Actually, eating the shrimp after drinking was even better because the aftertaste turned sweet. Sweet soju, sweet shrimp, haha, I'm so happy.

And the grilled shrimp head butter that came with the shrimp... haha, I loved it!! Quality worth recommending as a Jongno raw shrimp sashimi spot!!!!

How tender is the haenyeo octopus bossam

The second dish I ordered, haenyeo octopus bossam, stood out visually right away as the restaurant's signature dish.

It's a combination of tender boiled pork and chewy octopus. Octopus can easily turn very tough if not cooked right, but this had no toughness at all, and it comes with baek-kimchi (white kimchi) that made it easy to eat.

Wrapped with vegetables into a lettuce wrap, it went down clean without any heaviness!! It was a really great soju side dish too. Honestly everything here goes with soju, haha. What side dish doesn't pair well, ugh. There's blue Hallasan and sky Hallasan too — at this place, drink soju.

Finishing with seafood kalguksu

After the soju, time for soup!!! The last thing I ordered, seafood kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup), is a hangover-cure menu! Rather than a side dish, mussels were loaded in generously like a proper main dish, so the broth was really refreshing and rich.

That deep savory flavor unique to seafood broth was the perfect finish to cleanse the palate. Very satisfying as the carb course after filling up on sashimi and bossam!!

Overall thoughts on Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch, a Jongak Station seafood restaurant

It was great being able to do both the first and second round in one place!! It's group-friendly too, so it was good for visiting with coworkers!! If you're looking for a great seafood spot near Jongak, I strongly recommend Parang Haenyeojip Jongno Branch as a meetup place. Bang bang!!