Hwanghae Sikdang Jeju Review: Best Braised Cutlassfish

Hwanghae Restaurant

The Absolute Best Spot for Braised Hairtail (Galchi-jorim)

Hours & Holidays

10:00 AM - 6:40 PM

Last Order: 6:00 PM

Closed every Thursday

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Exterior

When you think of Jeju Island, braised hairtail is an absolute must!

I found a place that strikes the perfect balance

of flavor, portion size, and price.

As soon as I picked up my rental car, I rushed straight here.

Even though they open at 10:00 AM,

I arrived at 9:30 AM just to wait in line.

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It's just 5 minutes from the airport

and 3 minutes from Iho Beach,

making it so conveniently close

that you can easily grab an early meal here.

Parking Lot

The parking lot is quite spacious, just like this.

Interior

As soon as you walk in,

you'll see tons of celebrity

autographs on the wall.

They use wild fish caught directly by line fishing!

Maybe that's why it stays on my mind,

and why Hwanghae Restaurant tasted so incredibly fresh.

There are about 30 seats,

and the place is quite spacious.

We arrived before 10:00 AM

and managed to be first in line,

but they take orders all at once by a show of hands,

bring out the side dishes,

so it's not strictly served in the exact order of arrival.

Still, the main dishes like the braised hairtail

come out incredibly fast and all at once!

Menu & Prices

We ordered 2 portions of Braised Hairtail (~$9 each)

and 2 portions of Braised Mackerel (~$9 each).

That's what we decided to try!

Even though I used to live in Jeju,

this was actually my first time trying braised hairtail.

Usually, if you go with a group to eat braised hairtail,

it easily costs over ~$64.

But for the 4 of us, getting 2 mackerel and 2 hairtail portions

came out to only ~$36 in total!

Rice is separate at ~$1 a bowl,

so the final bill for the four of us was just ~$38.

Talk about incredible value for money!

They don't serve a ton of side dishes, but...

the main star, the Braised Hairtail,

which I honestly didn't have massive expectations for,

has a perfect, subtle kick of spice.

You can absolutely tell they use fresh, never-frozen hairtail!

It's incredibly tender and doesn't have a hint of fishiness.

It is absolutely delicious!

Braised Mackerel

Braised Hairtail

It's spicy, sweet,

incredibly fresh,

and served in a warm, welcoming local diner atmosphere.

This is the Braised Mackerel (Godeungeo-jorim)!

I'm usually not the biggest fan of braised mackerel,

but mixing this amazing sauce into hot white rice was a dream.

A true "rice thief" (a dish so good, you can't stop eating rice)!

It's simple, but it's a real-deal local spot.

Highly, highly recommend this absolute gem of a restaurant!

To cleanse my palate,

I grabbed a sweet mango jelly.

This is freshly squeezed juice made from Jeju's famous citrus fruits: Cheonhyehyang, Hallabong, and Green Tangerine!

It tasted so rich and delicious that I just had to buy one.

They're also running a Naver receipt review event!

You can get 2 packs of dried tangerine snacks just for reviewing.

I feel like I'll need to visit this place every single time I come to Jeju.

Location & Address

7682, Iljuseo-ro, Jeju-si, Jeju-do

​Hwanghae Sikdang

A Truly Authentic Local Gem

Opening Hours & Closed Days

10:00 AM - 6:40 PM

Last Order: 6:00 PM

Closed every Thursday

​

​

​

​

​

​

Exterior

When you think of Jeju Island, braised hairtail fish (galchi-jorim) is an absolute must!

I finally found a place that perfectly balances flavor, portion size, and price.

I drove straight here right after picking up my rental car.

They open at 10:00 AM,

but I arrived at 9:30 AM just to wait in line!

​

It's just 10 minutes from the airport

and 5 minutes from Iho Tewoo Beach,

making it incredibly convenient

to grab an early meal right after landing.

Parking Lot

The parking lot is quite spacious, as you can see.

Interior

As soon as you walk in,

you'll see a wall covered with

celebrity autographs!

They use fish that are caught directly by line fishing.

Maybe that's why the flavors are so memorable and outstanding—

Hwanghae Sikdang really is something special.

There are about 30 seats available,

and the space feels quite roomy.

We arrived before 10:00 AM

and were the first in line.

They take everyone's orders almost at once when they open,

and the side dishes come out.

Even though they don't serve everything in exact arrival order,

the main dishes like the braised hairtail fish

do come out very quickly for everyone all at once.

​Menu & Prices

Braised Cutlassfish was ~$9 per serving (minimum 2 servings), but the price went up by ~$1, so it is now ~$10.

Braised Mackerel is ~$9 per serving (minimum 2 servings).

We decided to order both!

Even though I used to live in Jeju,

this was actually my first time trying braised cutlassfish!

Usually, if you go with a group to eat braised cutlassfish,

it easily costs over ~$64...

But the four of us ordered 2 portions of mackerel and 2 of cutlassfish,

which came out to only ~$36.

Since rice is separate at ~$1 per bowl,

the total bill for the four of us was just ~$38!

Talk about incredible value for money!

While the side dishes are simple,

the main braised cutlassfish

totally blew me away. I didn't have huge expectations,

but it had this perfect hint of spiciness,

and you could really tell they use fresh, never-frozen fish!

It was incredibly tender and had absolutely no fishy smell.

It was absolutely delicious!

The braised mackerel

and braised cutlassfish—

they are spicy, sweet,

taste incredibly fresh,

and the restaurant has a warm, cozy local diner vibe.

Here is the braised mackerel.

I'm not usually a huge fan of braised mackerel,

but mixing this sauce with rice was absolute heaven.

A total rice thief!

It's not a fancy place, but it's an authentic local gem.

Highly recommend this spot if you want real local flavors!

To cleanse my palate,

I also grabbed a mango jelly to finish off.

This is a freshly squeezed juice made with Cheonhyehyang, Hallabong, and green tangerine.

It tasted so rich and delicious that I just had to buy one!

They're also running a Naver receipt review event.

If you participate, they give you two tangerine juice pouches!

I feel like I'll definitely be coming back here every time I visit Jeju.

Location & Address

7682 Iljuseo-ro, Jeju-si, Jeju-do