Around Nonhyeon-dong, or rather Sinsa-dong, there is a place called Jindong Hoetjip (a raw-fish restaurant). It has been famous among foodies for ages, and at one point it got so well known that copycat shops popped up nearby, which is why they went as far as changing the name to Jindong Hoetjip Dun. I had never gotten around to it until now, and this day was my first visit. Not sure whether to call it an honour or what..

Simple banchan

There is no need to agonise over the menu here. Order the assorted hoe (sashimi platter) and the rest just comes out on its own. You can of course order dishes individually, but the platter is simply too good a value.

Assorted hoe for three

There were four of us, but they said we would be better off ordering only three portions, so that is what we did. At a glance it does not look like much, but once we started eating, there seemed to be no end to it. Compared to the sparsely arranged sashimi at a typical Japanese restaurant, it was hard to gauge the amount. By the time we had finished, I really understood how outstanding the value here is.

Miyeokguk (seaweed soup)

It feels a bit off to call them tsukidashi, but all sorts of dishes come out. Maybe because foodies come here so often, nothing really fell flat either. Looking around, the room is divided into partitioned booths, and the customers were considerably older. Right in the middle of Gangnam, and near Sinsa at that, who would have thought there was a place with this kind of concept..

Sekkoshi (thin-sliced bone-in raw fish)

This too looked roughly chopped, but both the quantity and the quality were impressive.

Braised fish

So many things that go well with soju kept coming out.

Jeon (Korean pancake)

Not just seafood, dishes like this came out too. I was starting to get tired of seafood by then, so I picked up a few pieces.

Fried fish

In the end we left with a bit of the sashimi untouched. Because we had a second round waiting for us..

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