SKR: Hansung Restaurant (한성식당)

Highly nutritious abalone porridge!

After a fun, but tiring trip to the Manjanggul Cave, one of the world's finest lava tunnels, as well as the Seongsan Ilchulbong on the eastern end of Jeju Island, it was high time for dinner (read: around 9.00pm). At that time, I was already worried that I wouldn't have the chance to taste jeonbukjuk (전복죽), a variety of Korean porridge made with white rice and abalone.

 

Luckily, there was a restaurant not very far from the Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak that would be able to satisfy my belly. Guess what, it serves not only the highly nutritious abalone porridge (which is an excellent source of nutritions for the elderly and pregnant women, BTW), but also okdom gui (옥돔구이), broiled tilefish that is a specialty of the island!

Banchan (반찬)

My two favourite side dishes from the restaurant were the crispy, slightly sweet anchovies and the chewy, slippery kelp which had a nice tang of the sea. The fish with chili sauce was a bit hard to eat because of the bones, while the vegetable items were alright. I was really hungry at that time; when the side dishes were served, I gobbled them in no time. Soon afterwards, one of the servers noticed that I was a glutton, and immediately refilled all of them with at least twice as many portions as the initial ones. Pardon me! :P

Rice Porridge with Abalone (전복죽) ₩12,000 (~S$13.10)

Taste: 9/10

Served warm, the ivory-coloured porridge was hearty and full of goodness. The abalones, having a slightly chewy texture, were fresh without any fishy taste. The porridge wasn't overly thick, made delicious with the interplay between sesame oil, soy sauce and the nutty sesame seeds.

Broiled Tilefish (옥돔구이) ₩15,000 (~S$16.40)

Taste: 8.5/10

It's said that tilefish can only be found along the coast of Jeju Island. The fish was semi-dried upon catching, and then fried upon order. Since it was salty, it was best eaten with the short-grain rice which was perfectly cooked with the right degree of stickiness. The soft texture of the meat was well-contrasted by the crispy outside. Pika's advice: Since it's a specialty of the island, you have to try this fish when you're in Jeju Island. Do share with me what you think about the fish!

Melon's Rating
Taste: 8.5/10
Ambience: 7.5/10
Service: 8/10
Overall: 8/10

The server was friendly, but not as friendly as the ones I met in the previous eateries. Nevertheless, service was pretty efficient. After paying for the dinner, the cashier asked if I'd like him to call a taxi for me. Well, since I wasn't in a hurry, I'd rather take a long bus trip back to the hotel I was staying in, enjoying the evening ride, and life, in general.

한성식당

Near Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak
Jeju Island
South Korea
(Opening hours unknown - Anyone knows?)

*Prices quoted are nett prices.

Have a nice meal,

Cliff(y)