Eulwangri seafood kalguksu restaurant in Incheon: Haesanggung3a set

Hi, this is Renew.

Near the end of summer, I took the kids to Seonnyeobawi Beach. It was the last day the beach was officially open, but the weather was still summery and the water was cool and refreshing. But when you go see the ocean, don't you feel like you absolutely have to eat a bowl of seafood kalguksu (noodle soup) before heading home?

My family headed out to Eulwangri on the weekend and stopped by Haesanggung, which I'd found while looking up the best seafood kalguksu spot in Eulwangri. It was my husband, our two boys, and me — four of us total.

Where is Haesanggung? Parking and a 3-minute drive from Eulwangri Beach

Haesanggung is about a 3-minute drive from Eulwangri Beach. Seonnyeobawi, Wangsan Beach, and Masian Beach are all within 5 minutes too, so it's easy to stop by after a day at the sea. Inspire and Club72 are close by as well, so a lot of golfers looking for a Club72 restaurant end up here too. There's a wide dedicated parking lot in front of and beside the restaurant, so it's convenient to drive there with kids.

There's a large parking area right next to the restaurant, but it can get busy since so many people are waiting. You need to register for the waitlist right at the door as soon as you arrive. This is a genuinely popular place that requires quick decisions.

On weekends there are a lot of customers, so you enter your phone number on the tablet outside the store and wait your turn. If you're a group of 5 or more, calling ahead to reserve is apparently faster.

Indoor seats and the outdoor terrace, where dogs are welcome too

Haesanggung has both outdoor seating and indoor seating. The summer sun was still strong, so we went inside. The outdoor area has a nice view, so we're planning to eat outside next time we come in fall.

It's a well-known place that's appeared on TV a lot and won an award for local specialty food in Jung-gu, so people naturally come find it on their own.

Dogs are welcome here too. Families with dogs can eat comfortably. Indoors, you can bring your dog in if you have a carrier or cage, and the outdoor terrace is fine even for large dogs, so it's apparently well known among people looking for a dog-friendly restaurant in Yeongjong.

What a family of four ordered: the Haesanggung3a set plus extra kalguksu

Check the menu first. I should mention right away that the portions here are huge, so ordering by headcount alone might feel like too much. We got the Haesanggung3a set plus extra kalguksu. If you leave a review, you also get somyeon (thin wheat noodles) for free — it's genuinely delicious, so don't miss that event.

The basic side dishes are house-made kimchi, seasoned bean sprouts, cabbage salad, and soy sauce for dipping the pancake. The kimchi was perfectly fermented to go with kalguksu. You can help yourself to refills at the self-serve bar, and aprons and wet wipes are provided too.

The pancake with a whole octopus on top

The first thing to arrive was the whole octopus pancake. True to its name, an entire octopus sits on top, with shrimp tucked into the tips of every tentacle — the visual alone makes your eyes go wide the moment it lands on the table. The outside was crispy and the inside moist; I dipped it in soy sauce, then tried it in the octopus stir-fry sauce, and that combination was genuinely delicious!

The visuals are no joke, right? I thought it would arrive already sliced, but no — one whole octopus, just like that!!! There was fun in cutting it apart ourselves, and our kids, hungry from swimming in the sea, gave it two thumbs up — a genuinely great flavor.

How spicy is the stir-fried octopus, and how to mix the turmeric rice

Haesanggung's octopus stir-fry is apparently made without artificial capsaicin, stir-fried in a sauce of aged red pepper powder, garlic, and other ingredients. Maybe that's why it wasn't a sharp, tongue-stabbing spicy but a deliciously spicy flavor with a subtle smoky note. The octopus pieces were big and plump too, with great chewiness. If you can't handle spicy food well, you can ask them to adjust the spice level when ordering.

The turmeric rice that comes alongside arrives as a big bowl of yellow rice. Here's a little tip: this restaurant's method is to mix the bean sprouts into the rice, not into the octopus stir-fry. If you put them into the stir-fry, they release water and change the flavor of the sauce. Add the bean sprouts to the turmeric rice, pile the octopus stir-fry on top, mix it all together, and a whole bowl disappears in no time.

See how plump the octopus is? It's on the spicier side, but eaten with the rice and bean sprouts, it just keeps going down easily. The fresh octopus flavor stays memorable.

Seafood kalguksu: the mild dish the kids finished

Haesanggung's seafood kalguksu arrives generously in a big bowl. It's loaded with scallops, clams, mussels, and shrimp, so the broth was refreshing and clean. With a hint of pepper in the broth and chewy noodles, I understood why this place had gotten a reputation as the best seafood kalguksu restaurant in Eulwangri. It wasn't spicy, so the kids ate it well too. For young children's portions, you can ask them to leave out the pepper.

It was so huge that I compared it to my hand. The people at the next table were nearly finished but kept saying, half amazed, how full they were and how huge the portion was. We were thinking, oh, can we actually finish all this? If you love generous, hearty portions, you'll be thoroughly satisfied here.

There was also a huge amount of seafood — my husband always shells the clams for me whenever we eat together, and there were so many this time it took him a good while.

We heard the seafood pancake tastes great dipped in the octopus sauce, so we deliberately saved some pancake for that. If you like bold, spicy flavors, you'll enjoy this.

Even our elementary schooler who's proud of handling spice ate happily at Haesanggung, the best restaurant in Eulwangri. He said he wants to come back again.

Don't skip the receipt review event and the free somyeon

We added the somyeon (thin noodles) we got from the receipt review event. Mixing the noodles into the leftover octopus stir-fry sauce turned into basically another whole meal. You can choose between somyeon and a drink, but honestly, for me it's somyeon without a second thought! The portion was generous too, plenty for four of us to share.

This one's quietly a real perk, so don't miss it.

Side dishes you can help yourself to

After a hearty bowl of seafood kalguksu on top of a day at Seonnyeobawi Beach, we ate really well. A lot of golfers stop by after rounds at nearby golf courses too.

The garden and ride-on cars for resting after the meal

If it feels like too soon to get straight back in the car after eating, it's nice to rest a while in Haesanggung's outdoor space. There are good seats for sitting with a cup of coffee, and the garden is nicely kept. In front of the terrace, there are ride-on toy cars for kids, so the adults can enjoy coffee while the kids play happily.

If you're heading to Yeongjong Island to see the sea with your kids and looking for somewhere to eat seafood kalguksu, give Haesanggung a try. Adults who love spice can enjoy the octopus stir-fry, kids can go for the kalguksu and pancake — a place where everyone can be satisfied together. Next time, we're planning to try the abalone octopus set.

Haesanggung hours, address and essentials

• 411 Masiran-ro, Yeongjong-gu, Incheon, South Korea (198 Eulwang-dong)
• Wed–Mon 10:00–21:00 (last order 20:00), closed every Tuesday
• Dedicated parking lot, dogs welcome (carrier required indoors)