Source: https://heyseorak.com/spots/seodam-rice-noodle
Last-Updated: 2026-07-01

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# Seodam Ssalguksu (서담 쌀국수)

> Say the romanized name when ordering. Staff will understand even if your pronunciation isn't perfect.

Category: korean | Type: eat | Area: downtown | Price range: moderate
Address: 1F, 45 Seonsaro 5-gil, Sokcho, Gangwon
Phone: 0507-1471-2449
Hours: Mon 11:00–20:30 (break 15:00–17:00, LO 20:00), Tue 11:00–15:00 (LO 14:30), Wed–Sat 11:00–20:30 (break 15:00–17:00, LO 20:00), Sun 11:00–19:30 (break 15:00–17:00, LO 19:00) (May close early when ingredients sell out. Tuesdays are half-day.)
English menu available: Yes

## Trust and freshness
- Verification: interview / 2026-06-16
- Menu freshness: updated 2026-07-01T23:17:58.211+00:00

A rice noodle shop hidden in a quiet Sokcho neighborhood, where a self-taught chef simmers herbal broth from scratch every morning. The signature dish — a whole red crab floating in aromatic noodle soup — sells out at 20 bowls a day. No tourist-zone hype, just the kind of place locals bring their families back to.

Pro tip: Arrive early for the hongge (red crab) ssalguksu — only 20 bowls are made daily and they sell out fast. Tuesday is a half-day (closes at 3 PM). The owner will happily show you how to crack the whole crab if you ask.

## Story

### How it started
Before she ever touched a ladle, she spent fifteen years selling clothes — working her way up to assistant manager at Galleria Department Store, greeting customers in four languages without flinching. Then came motherhood, a quiet few years at home, and a three-year stint cooking meals for kids at a daycare center. One day a friend invited her to try a rice noodle shop. She slurped the broth and thought: everyone in Korea would eat this. On May 9, 2025, she opened Seodam in a residential alley behind the Megabox parking lot in Joyang-dong — a neighborhood chosen not for foot traffic, but because a kind friend offered reasonable rent and a little faith.

### Philosophy
She eats her own noodles every single day — one bowl, one meal. When the broth stops exciting her, she knows her customers feel it too, so she adjusts the herbal blend until the spark returns. The recipe isn't soy-sauce-based like most Korean noodle shops; it's built on a proprietary mix of traditional medicinal herbs, tuned through months of micro-adjustments until she found the exact ratio she was after. She uses fresh rice noodles that stay firm instead of turning mushy, because texture matters as much as flavor. Two things she will never compromise on: the salt level and the depth of that broth.

### Signature
Twenty bowls. That's all she makes each day. A whole Sokcho red crab sits in each one, sourced from a fisherman who happens to be her husband's childhood friend. The pot only holds thirty servings of broth, and the scarcity is deliberate — she'd rather sell out by noon than water down what makes it special. If you don't know how to crack a whole crab, she'll come to your table and show you herself. Locals tend to skip the crab version (they can buy it cheap at the market), so this is the dish that visitors drive hours for.

### Finding the place
This isn't a tourist-zone restaurant. It sits in a quiet residential alley off Seonsaro 5-gil, behind the Megabox parking lot. Take bus 3, 7, or 9 to the Sokcho Expo stop — it's a 4-minute walk from there. Cheongchoho Lake and Expo Park are just 6–8 minutes on foot.

### Seasonal notes
A summer-only menu is coming: honggesal bibim-guksu — cold mixed noodles tossed with red crab meat. When summer hits, the daily crab noodle limit doubles to 40 bowls to keep up with peak-season demand.

### For international visitors
Fifteen years of greeting international shoppers at a department store means the owner doesn't panic when a tourist walks in. She communicates with body language, a translation app, and an easy warmth. One memory she keeps coming back to: a foreign family with a baby who ordered the complimentary baby noodles, watched their child devour it, and then cleaned up every grain of rice before they left. She says she knew right then that good food speaks every language.

> 정성 — if I had to say it in one word, it's jeongseong. Sincerity. Devotion. The kind you taste.

## Dietary Summary
- Total menu items: 11
- Vegan options: 1
- Halal-friendly options: 1
- Common allergens: shellfish, gluten

## Menu

### Complimentary (무료 제공)

- **Go-su** (고수 무제한 무료제공) — Free
  Cilantro is NOT included in the noodles by default. Ask for it if you'd like some — it's free and unlimited.
  Ingredients: cilantro | Dietary: Vegan, Halal-friendly | Serving: Not added by default — just ask the staff.
- **Myeon / Gong-gi-bap / Yuk-su / Suk-ju** (면, 공기밥, 육수, 숙주 무료제공) — Free
  Free unlimited refills from the self-serve bar. Side dishes (banchan) are also complimentary.
  Ingredients: rice noodles, rice, broth, bean sprouts | Serving: Self-serve bar — help yourself to as much as you want.

### Rice Noodle Soup (쌀국수)

- **Hong-ge Han-ma-ri Ssal-guk-su** (홍게 한마리 쌀국수) — ₩16,000 ⭐ Signature
  A whole red crab in herbal rice noodle broth — the dish that sells out every day. Only 20 bowls, first come first served. The owner will come to your table and show you how to crack it open.
  Ingredients: rice noodles, herbal broth, whole red crab | Allergens: shellfish | Serving: Limited to 20 bowls/day (40 in summer). Ask the owner to show you how to eat the whole crab.
- **Cha-dol-yang-ji Ssal-guk-su** (차돌양지쌀국수) — ₩12,000
  Thin-sliced brisket over fresh rice noodles in a clear, deep herbal broth. The bowl that most regulars order — clean flavors, generous meat, no fuss.
  Ingredients: rice noodles, beef broth, beef brisket
- **Seu-ji Ssal-guk-su** (스지쌀국수) — ₩14,000
  The locals' choice — loaded with melt-soft beef tendon, brisket, and tripe in the same herbal broth. Rich, collagen-heavy, deeply satisfying.
  Ingredients: rice noodles, beef broth, beef tendon, brisket, tripe
- **Cha-dol-yang-ji Eol-keun Ssal-guk-su** (얼큰 차돌양지쌀국수) — ₩13,000
  Same brisket noodle soup with a spicy kick — the broth turns red but stays refreshing. Popular with visitors who want a little heat without losing the herbal depth.
  Ingredients: rice noodles, spicy beef broth, beef brisket, gochugaru | Spicy: medium
- **Seu-ji, A-rong-sa-tae Jeon-gol** (스지, 아롱사태 전골) — ₩39,000
  A bubbling hot pot loaded with beef tendon and slow-braised shank. Only 10 per day, reservation required — no walk-ins. The kind of dish Sokcho locals keep to themselves.
  Ingredients: beef tendon, beef shank, vegetables, broth | Serving: Limited to 10/day. Reservation required — 100% pre-order only.

### Rice Soup (국밥)

- **Seo-dam Guk-bap** (서담국밥) — ₩12,000
  A rice-soup version of Seodam's warm herbal broth, for diners who want rice instead of noodles.
  Ingredients: rice, herbal broth, beef
- **Eol-keun Seo-dam Guk-bap** (얼큰 서담국밥) — ₩13,000
  The spicy rice-soup version of Seodam's broth, with a warming red kick.
  Ingredients: rice, spicy beef broth, gochugaru | Spicy: medium

### Sides (사이드)

- **A-rong-sa-tae Su-yuk** (아롱사태 수육) — ₩19,000
  Slow-braised beef shank sliced thick — tender enough to pull apart, savory enough to keep reaching for one more piece. Great alongside any noodle bowl.
  Ingredients: beef shank
- **Seo-dam Mo-deum Twi-gim** (서담 모듬튀김) — ₩9,000
  Crispy assorted tempura — the perfect sidekick to a bowl of noodles. Battered and fried until golden, best eaten hot between slurps.
  Ingredients: assorted vegetables, seafood, tempura batter | Allergens: gluten