What to Eat in Dongnae Station 동래역

I might be biased but the area around Dongnae Station is my favourite place to eat in Busan. WHY? Because it has a good variety of tasty restaurants and places to sit down and have a drink. It is the area where I used to live and work, so that is probably why I am slightly biased. The best restaurants and drinking spots are around MegaMart which can be found by exiting at Exit #2 or Exit #4 of Dongnae Station 동래역 (Orange Line) and walking East towards MegaMart.

Octopus, Intestine & Shrimp Stew 낙곱새 at 원조 조방낙지 (Busan Specialty)

My favourite restaurant in Busan is undoubtedly 원조 조방낙지 and there is one reason I come here, to eat Nakgobsae 낙곱새 which is essentially Octopus, Intestine & Shrimp Stew. This is one of, if not the most famous restaurant for eating 낙곱새 and with good reason, it tastes amazing.

낙곱새 has the right balance of sweet and spicy and when mixed with white rice is otherworldly. It just so happens I used to work literally opposite this place which meant I ended up eating this maybe a bit more than I should have. As usual in Korea, meals are best shared with others and I would probably order this with 1 bowl of rice each. The cost is ₩9,000 each for 낙곱새 (at least 2 people must order this). If you come alone you can order either one of Shrimp, Intestine or Octopus.

This is the type of dish that could never end. The sauce from this dish is really something special so when it is mixed with rice it seems like you could eat forever. As with a lot of dishes in Korea, DON’T FORGET TO ADD RICE AT THE END 볶음밥!

Ginseng Chicken Soup 삼계탕 at 배종관동래삼계탕

The location of this restaurant is somewhat hidden and is very close (5 minutes walk) to my other recommendation, 원조 조방낙지. The easiest way to get there is to get off at Dongnae Station 동래역 (Orange Line) exit #2 and head east towards MegaMart. Keep walking straight towards the Dongnae Local Office 동래구청, through the carpark and you are pretty much there. See the Map at the start of this post for more details or click HERE.

Ginseng Chicken Soup 삼계탕 is one of my favourite Korean foods and strangely enough is very popular during summer (not winter) although personally when it is cold I love hot chicken soup and this one definitely hits the spot. For Ginseng Chicken Soup 삼계탕 it costs ₩15,000 and I would recommend ordering 1 each.

Don’t forget to dip your chicken in the salt provided and also to try the Ginseng Alcohol 인삼주 which is part of the experience (warning, it’s pretty strong!)