“Gakjaegi” is the Jeju word for horse mackerel. So many people said that if you go to Jeju Island you absolutely have to try gakjaegi-guk, so I worked it into the second day’s plan. Dolharubang Restaurant is one of the two places on Jeju famous for gakjaegi-guk (the other being Apbaengdi Sikdang). It opens at 10 in the morning, but apparently even if you turn up just a little late the queue is already long, and the place closes up around 3 in the afternoon. We hurried off as soon as we had finished looking around Dongmun Market, and since it was so close by we arrived at about 9:50. It may open at 10, but the line was already long and they had opened the doors early. So we quickly grabbed a seat.
The menu
Simple. Gakjaegi-guk, the house specialty made with horse mackerel and napa cabbage in a doenjang broth, is 7,000 won.
Extra menu
They also had mel-guk, made with anchovies, so we ordered one gakjaegi-guk and one mel-guk. I was tempted by the grilled mackerel too, but it looked like too much food for two people, so I gave up on it.
The standard banchan
Mackerel on the right, salted anchovies on the left. Salted squid at the top…
Kimchi and dadaegi are set out as well.
They say that if you stir dadaegi into your gakjaegi-guk or mel-guk it turns spicy, but the broth was so good just as it was that I had no need for dadaegi.
Braised anchovies
We suddenly hit it off with the customers at the next table, and got to taste a dish that only comes out for large parties. You do not get lucky like that very often! They may call it a freebie, but it is good enough to sell as a dish in its own right.
Napa cabbage for wraps
They say cabbage is at its best in early spring, and sure enough the May cabbage was not quite that tender. Still delicious, of course.
The chef
He boiled the gakjaegi-guk furiously over a roaring flame. I would like to tell him how impressive it was.
Grilled mackerel
Another freebie that only goes out to large parties, but I got a little taste. The grilled mackerel is nicely fatty and seriously good. At an ordinary restaurant this one dish alone would be enough of a hit.
Mel-guk
Mel-guk turned out to be a clear soup with anchovies in it. The broth is really clean and refreshing. There did not seem to be much in it, and yet out comes a broth this clean, the kind that would sort out a hangover. It was so transparent that in a way it looked like a Japanese clear soup. The depth of flavor drawn out of it really moved me.
Gakjaegi-guk
Horse mackerel with napa cabbage, seasoned with doenjang. This one too felt a little like Japanese miso soup. The comforting doenjang broth was superb and the cabbage was good, but above all it was the horse mackerel that tasted sweet. The mel-guk had a great broth but the anchovies themselves were only so-so, whereas in the gakjaegi-guk the horse mackerel does not just flavor the broth, it is delicious in itself. I would hand gakjaegi-guk the win on points, 3-2.
Radish
They gave it to us to wrap in the cabbage, but it was so good on its own that we polished it off in no time. I think it may be an unforgettable food memory from Jeju Island. There is the hassle of having to show up at the right time, but it is a place I would definitely like to come back to.