After a whirlwind arrival in South Korea, I spent the entire evening traversing from one end to the other, and ended up in Busan just before 10pm. Due to the tight schedule and nonstop travelling, I was feeling under-the-weather and in the mood for some comforting food.
The next morning, I met up with a couple of friends who serendipitously happened to be in Busan for the next couple of days, and a suggestion of dwaeji gukbap (돼지국밥) was made.
Bonjeon Dwaeji Gukbap (본전돼지국밥)
Location: Trip Advisor / Mango Plate
Phone: 051-441-2946
Price: ₩
Atmosphere: Homey and crowded
Service: Efficient
One of the famous dishes of Busan, dwaeji gukbap translates literally to pork soup rice. Not often found outside of the port city, it is made by simmering pork bones for hours, and served with boiled pork and steamed rice.
Bonjeon Dwaeji Gukbap was crowded at 10am in the morning; it was a public holiday, and many elderly couples and families were also enjoying a hot bowl of soup for breakfast.
The soup itself is rather bland, and it is encouraged to add some of the many toppings they have available at every table. Salted shrimp, gochujang, gochugaru, and salt were available on every table, letting everyone have the control of seasoning their soup.
Side dishes of napa kimchi, seasoned chives, raw garlic, onions, and small chili peppers were provided as well – and we all fell in love with buchu, the seasoned chives. They were delicious in the soup, but my favourite bite was a spoon of rice dipped in the soup, and then topped with some buchu.
Their menu is quite straightforward, and they offer four variations of their soup: the original dwaeji gukbap, soondae gukbap (with blood sausage), suyook baekbap (with boiled pork), and naejang gukbap (with tripe). They also offer three sizes of their boiled pork to add on to the side.
Overall, this was a very comforting breakfast for a cool autumn morning, and I felt so happy filling my stomach that morning. I would definitely recommend trying dwaeji gukbap if you’re ever in Busan!
orangecane 
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