Best Grilled Fish in Ilsan: Hong Gildong Saengseon-gui Review

Most Korean grilled-fish places do it the same way: a piece of fresh fish, salt, grill, serve. 홍길동 생선구이 (Hong Gildong Saengseon-gui) does it differently — they dry the fish first until it’s slightly jerky-firm, then finish it over open flame.

The result has a chew and a concentrated flavor that wet-fresh-fish grilling can’t reach. It’s the kind of small-town home-cooking spot that Korean families plan a half-day around. I drove out here in May 2026 on a KINTEX convention day, and I’m planning the next visit already.

The spot is in Ilsan, near KINTEX (a major Korean convention center in northwestern Goyang). If you’re ever out this way for an event or a day trip, this is the meal to schedule into the day.

The Spot — Ilsan, A Short Drive From KINTEX

The building is unassuming: a small two-story house with a yellow awning, a hand-drawn Hong Gildong cartoon mascot on the sign (Hong Gildong is a folk-hero outlaw figure — Korea’s equivalent of Robin Hood), and a list of fish prices in red text on a banner.

Inside, it’s a tidy mom-and-pop dining room with shared tables and an open kitchen behind the counter. A handwritten sign hangs above: 주문과 동시에 조리합니다 — “we start cooking the moment you order.” Another sign says 맛있게 드시고 건강하세요 — “eat well, stay healthy.” Both are the kind of small touches that signal what this place is.

📍 홍길동 생선구이 on Google Maps

The Menu — Almost All Grilled Fish, ~₩11,000 ($7.5 USD) Each

The menu is printed on a wall banner. Most single-serving fish plates run ₩11,000 ($7.5 USD) — including samchi-gui (Spanish mackerel), godeungeo-gui (mackerel), imyeonsu-gui (Atka mackerel), gajami-gui (flatfish), kkolchi-gui (boxfish). The mixed-fish platter is ₩38,000 ($26 USD); the special yeong-yang gulbi (premium gulbi) is ₩15,000 ($10 USD). Group dishes (for 2+ people) include galchi-jorim (braised hairtail), godeungeo-jorim, jogi-maeuntang, and dongtae-maeuntang — all ₩11,000 ($7.5 USD)-₩15,000 ($10 USD).

What you order: one fish plate per person + a stew + rice. Below is what we got.

Samchi-Gui (삼치구이) — ₩11,000 ($7.5 USD)

The headline. Samchi (Korean Spanish mackerel) butterflied open, the inside flesh facing up, slightly dried, and finished over flame until the skin gets char marks. The dryness step is what changes everything — the flesh has the chew of grilled saba but more concentrated, and the natural oil doesn’t leak out the way it does with wet fresh fish.

Tear off a piece, lift it with chopsticks, and proceed to the most important step below.

The Local Move — Soy Sauce + Wasabi

This is the dish. Every table gets a small bowl with soy sauce (간장) and a generous dab of wasabi (와사비) on the side. Pre-mix the wasabi into the soy sauce — use as much as your nose can take — and dip every bite of fish in it before you eat.

Why it works: the dried-then-grilled fish has a denser, almost sashimi-firm interior. The soy adds salt and umami; the wasabi cuts the natural fish oil and adds that nasal-clearing brightness that pairs with all oily white fish. Skip this step and the meal is just a good grilled fish. Use the soy-wasabi and it becomes the reason you drove out to Ilsan. Don’t miss this.

Gajami-Gui (가자미구이) — ₩11,000 ($7.5 USD)

Korean flatfish (gajami) cut and grilled with the same dry-then-flame technique. The flesh is whiter, sweeter, and flakier than the samchi — the kind of fish you can pick apart cleanly down to the bone. Goes with the same soy-wasabi treatment. If you’re ordering two fish, pair samchi (oily, dark-meat) with gajami (white, flaky) for the contrast.

The Banchan — Small But Real

Five small banchan arrive with the meal: baechu kimchi, creamy potato salad with red onion, spicy pickled radish (musaengchae), seaweed stems in a light soy dressing, and kongnamul-style sprouts tossed with chili. Every one of these is actually well-made — not the standard phoned-in cafeteria banchan. The pickled-radish is the standout side: sweet, mildly spicy, and the perfect texture-counter to the chewy fish.

Rice + Eolkeun Sundubu (얼큰순두부)

Standard stainless-bowl steamed white rice — short-grain Korean, soft, fluffy. Use it to anchor the soy-wasabi/fish bites.

And then the eolkeun sundubu (spicy soft tofu stew). This is the surprise of the meal. Hong Gildong’s sundubu is unapologetically MSG-leaning in the best way — that deep, punchy, savory-spicy broth that makes you understand why Korean grandmothers don’t apologize for using it. The soft tofu is genuinely silky, the broth is intense, and a spoonful into a mouth still tasting of grilled fish is a small religious experience.

Don’t skip ordering one to share between two people.

Practical Notes for Visitors

• Cards? Yes, accepted.
• Parking? Limited — the building is on a small side street. Arrive early or be ready to circle.
• Foreign-friendliness? Honestly, low. Korean-only menu, Korean-only conversation. Decide what you want to order before arriving: samchi-gui, gajami-gui, sundubu, and rice is a safe combo for two people.
• Best paired with: a KINTEX convention day, or a Ilsan trip with kids. The Seoorung tombs and Jumak Boribap are also in northwest Goyang if you want to make it a day trip out of town.

The Verdict

Hong Gildong Saengseon-gui is a small, slightly hard-to-find, family-run restaurant that does one thing very well — grilling slightly-dried fish — and surrounds it with banchan and a stew that are far above what you’d expect from a mom-and-pop place. The value at ₩11,000 ($7.5 USD) per fish plate is excellent. The location works against it for travelers (Ilsan isn’t central Seoul) but if you have an Ilsan reason — KINTEX, Seoorung, family visit — this is the meal to schedule.