How to Order Mulhoe in Busan, Regular vs Premium, Pouring the Broth and Finishing With Noodles

Mulhoe does not come out with the broth already poured. It arrives first as shredded sashimi and vegetables such as cucumber, Korean pear, radish and cabbage sitting on top of a vinegared chili paste sauce, and the slushy icy broth comes alongside in a separate jug or bowl. The photo shows exactly that state: red sauce spread across the center of a stainless steel bowl, white-flesh sashimi on top, and shredded pear and cabbage ringing the edge. The reason it is served this way is simple. If the kitchen poured the broth and sent it out, in the few minutes before it reached the table the vegetables would give up water and the ice would melt, thinning the broth. Pouring it at the guest table avoids that loss. So the first thing to do when you get your mulhoe is not to pour the broth but to turn the sauce, sashimi and vegetables over once, from the bottom up, and mix. Thirty seconds is enough, and that is when the chili paste coats the sashimi and vegetables evenly. Pour the broth first without mixing and the sauce sinks to the bottom, only the broth turns red, and the solids taste flat. That is why the Jagalchi veteran with over a decade on the job always adds one line when she sets the mulhoe down: mix it, then pour. Seven out of ten first-timers pour the broth first.

The KRW 7,000 (about USD 5) difference comes not from the size of the bowl but from the fish that goes on top. Mulhoe at KRW 18,000 (about USD 13) is the basic build with white-flesh fish shredded and piled on generously, while premium mulhoe at KRW 25,000 (about USD 18) adds species that are in good condition in the tanks that day, so both the amount and the variety of fish go up. The vegetables, broth and bowl are the same. Put the two side by side and the color of the broth looks similar, but when you lift the solids with chopsticks the thickness and number of kinds of fish you pick up differ. The way to choose is the character of the occasion. For a lunch where one bowl covers the meal, the regular is enough, and when you came for sashimi but it is a hot day and you want to start with something cold, the premium is the fit. Two people ordering one mulhoe and one small assorted sashimi platter at KRW 60,000 (about USD 43), with the mulhoe set in the middle to share, is also a common combination. In that case the premium mulhoe has enough volume for two to scoop from. On the other hand, if you come alone and plan to eat just one bowl, regular mulhoe plus a bowl of rice fills you up better for the price. Say just mulhoe when you order and the regular goes out, so if you want the premium, ask for premium mulhoe by name.

The moment to add them is when you have fished out about half of the solids and broth is still left. Stir noodles in from the start and they soak up the broth and swell, and the slush ice melts that much faster too. For somyeon, add a handful of thin noodles that have been boiled, rinsed in cold water and drained, and stir so they sink into the broth. For rice, rather than tipping in the whole bowl, adding half a bowl keeps the seasoning of the broth from getting thin. Which one you add changes the character of the bowl. Noodles make it a light summer lunch, while rice fills you up enough to last until dinner. If you ordered mulhoe at a drinking table, noodles are the right call. Add rice and you fill up so your chopsticks will not reach the sashimi or grilled fish coming later. Some people add both, but then the broth runs short, so the better order is noodles only, then a little rice if broth is still left. Noodles and rice are ordered separately, so mention them when you order the mulhoe and everything comes out at once. Once they are in, do not let them sit, eat right away so the noodles do not swell.

All three use shredded sashimi and vegetables with vinegared chili paste, but broth and rice split them. Mulhoe at KRW 18,000 gets the icy broth poured over and is eaten with a spoon, the sashimi rice bowl at KRW 15,000 (about USD 11) puts the sashimi and vegetables over rice to stir and eat, and the spicy sashimi salad, hoe-muchim, comes on a plate with neither broth nor rice and is picked up with chopsticks. That is why the temperature and how full you get differ. Mulhoe is cold with plenty of liquid so it holds up on hot days, the rice bowl includes rice so it is a definite meal, and the salad sits near room temperature so the savory depth of the fish stays intact and it works as a drinking dish. There are three ways to choose. A sweaty afternoon means mulhoe, a lunch meal means the rice bowl, and an evening with drinks means the salad. As you can see in the photo, mulhoe before the broth goes in is almost impossible to tell apart from the salad. The two dishes really did branch from the same root: pour icy broth over it and it becomes mulhoe, put it on a plate as is and it becomes the salad. That is why, when two people come, ordering one mulhoe and one salad and tasting the same ingredients twice at two temperatures is the most common combination at Jagalchi.

You can. Mulhoe is not a seasonal special but a regular menu item you can order all year round. That said, when orders pile up is clear. At lunch in July and August half the tables are mulhoe, and once October comes orders shift over to the hot small rockfish spicy stew at KRW 50,000 (about USD 36). Guests who order mulhoe after the weather cools usually have their own reason. A late morning when last night of drinking has left the stomach unsettled, a day when spicy broth feels like too much, a day in a warm room when you do not want anything hot. At times like these, mulhoe works as a cold broth that is also spicy and tangy, the kind that opens up the stomach. If you are ordering it in winter, keep just one thing in mind. The icy broth lowers how warm you feel, so putting one warm dish on the table alongside, such as the spicy stew or the grilled fish set meal at KRW 15,000 (about USD 11), balances the table. For a winter lunch where you come alone and eat only mulhoe, finishing by stirring in a bowl of rice works better. If the family came together and older members are along, splitting it into one cold dish and one warm dish is the safe build.

At the Jagalchi Haean-ro restaurant, mulhoe is KRW 18,000 (about USD 13) and premium mulhoe KRW 25,000 (about USD 18), with noodles and rice ordered separately. Order it in one go, one mulhoe and one noodles, and they come out together on one table. If you come alone and plan to finish with one bowl, a first floor seat is comfortable, and if four or more are ordering it with an assorted sashimi platter, the long tables on the second floor fit. With 190 seats across the first and second floors, company dinner groups are welcome. The location is 220m from Exit 2 of Jagalchi Station on Busan Metro Line 1 toward Jagalchi Haean-ro, a 3-minute walk. It is three stops from Busan Station on Line 1, so you can be seated within 20 minutes of stepping off the KTX, and a taxi is 10 minutes and KRW 6,000 to 8,000 (about USD 4 to 6) from Busan Station or 20 minutes and KRW 12,000 to 15,000 (about USD 9 to 11) from Seomyeon. By bus, routes 8, 30, 71, 113 and 1003 stop at the Jagalchi Market bus stop. Lunch from 11:30 to 13:00 and dinner from 18:30 to 20:00 are the peaks, so come before or after them and you sit without waiting. In the summer lunch peak especially, mulhoe orders pile up and it takes a few minutes longer than usual, so sitting down before noon is better. Groups of four or more can call +82-10-8998-4803 ahead and a table will be held. After the meal, the Jagalchi Market main hall is a 3-minute walk and BIFF Square 5 minutes, easy to link into a stroll.