You most likely know what a market is. A place where you can buy goods, but have you ever heard of a wet market? Hint: Yes, it is wet.

When I was in Hong Kong, I walked through a few “wet markets”. This type of market is where many locals buy fresh groceries. It is the best especially if you’re planning to have fish or maybe chicken for dinner. You can also find bright and dark green vegetables here! The prices are more affordable than in regular grocery stores. This type of market is quite popular in Asia. There are specific types of markets that sell specialty items as well.

In the city of Busan, near the southern coast of South Korea, is where the most popular fish market in all of their land is located. It is the largest market as they have a wide variety of seafood and vendors. Today, I will take you on a quick lunch trip to the Jagalchi Market (부산 자갈치시장) in Busan, South Korea. With the water being so close to the Busan residents, there are fresh fish caught daily. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the market closed at 10 PM. Nowadays, it might close earlier and operating hours may differ by vendor.

If you can read Korean and navigate through a Korean website, here is the Jagalchi Market’s official website for more information. No worries, I will provide you with the basic information about the market here in English! Keep reading to learn more.

When you get to the Jagalchi Market, you will see all the fresh and live fish. The market might look intimating with so many options and owners trying to leer you in. However, they are just doing their best to have a friendly competition with their fellow fish marketers to gather the most customers they can. The first floor (ground floor) of the market is where you browse for what you want to eat. You can choose to take your purchased seafood home and cook it yourself or sit down and have the restaurant prepare and cook it for you. The second floor is also filled with restaurants where they will cook your choice of seafood. For the adventurous souls out there, you can have raw fish on the second floor. You may be more familiar with the term, “sashimi” which means raw fish in Japanese. In Korean, it is “hoe” (회, with the pronunciation of the “e”). The way that I like to eat the raw fish dish is by dipping it into Korean red chili paste (고추장, gochujang) or sesame oil and then wrapping it in seaweed sheets. Some lettuce on the side is nice as well to cleanse out your palette.

An experience that you have to try when you are in Korea is indeed eating raw octopus! The small tour group that I was with on this trip decided to try this delicacy when we saw it on the menu. When we got the dish, the octopus was still moving. The senses in their limbs slowly die down after they are chopped. Give it a few minutes and they will not move anymore. You can also give it a try and pick one up that is still moving. There are dips you can try it in. Forewarning, it does not have much of a flavor. Most of the flavor comes from the sauce you dip it in. What you’re tasting from this is mostly the slimy yet crunchy and chewy texture. The best dip with this octopus dish would be a side of sesame oil and salt. You can already see there are white sesame seeds on top of the chopped octopus to give it more taste in the GIF below. You also have the choice of soy sauce and gochujang!

What’s great about Korean meals is that there are always side dishes along with the main meal. Some of the popular “banchan” (반찬) that you can get are kimchi radish, kimchi slices, soybean sprouts, braised black beans, and stir-fried anchovies. The rest of our tour group ordered grilled eel and that was our lunch! It was a nice seafood experience that I have never tried in America before.

The area that is nearby is full of shopping and sightseeing. This is where we got more snacks and desserts after lunch. Busan International Film Festival Square (BIFF Square) is an amazing place to hang out, get some shopping done, and grab a snack. It can get pretty crowded since it is another popular place.

The walk from Jagalchi Market to BIFF is about nine minutes. Here is the Naver Map for the directions. It seems like Google Maps does not know the directions for walking these windy alleyways of South Korea. You can always ask a local for directions too! A translator would also be helpful if you don’t speak Korean and the local does not speak English.

The street food at BIFF Square is delicious, but can be a little pricier than in other areas because it is a tourist attraction. The first snack that caught my attention was a beef skewer.

The long stick of beef was freshly cooked on the grill. I got the barbeque flavor and it was juicy and flavorful. They have other seasonings that they glaze on top of each skewer as well, such as a spicy flavor and soy sauce. Other street foods you can find here are tteokbokki (떡볶이), hotteok (호떡), and Korean hot dogs.

There is a lot to see on these streets. Not only can you see food stalls, but right next to them are traditional Korean accessories and little knick-knacks. After browsing through all the stalls, I ended this walk with a torched marshmallow wrapped around a block of vanilla ice cream on a stick! It was my first time seeing something like this. Imagine standing about two meters away and you spot a guy blowing fire at this! There was a line for this dessert too. It is so innovative!

The marshmallow ice cream owner offered two flavors, vanilla and chocolate. The ice cream was still frozen even as I ate to the middle of it. But with all the walking and trying to weave through people, it did melt. Good thing the cardboard plate was provided.

There is so much more to see in this area, but before this post gets too long, I shall stop here. I will tell you more about the places I explore in this touristy area and what I did there in my next post. See you next time!

Let me know, have you ever eaten live octopus before? If not, would you want to try it?

Sincerely,
Amy♡

AMY HANG in BUSAN. Day 3.