Haeundae Milmyeon
[Non-halal] We had the best Milmyeon at Haeundae Milmyeon 해운대 밀면 in Busan.
As mentioned in our previous Busan posts, there are four dishes that you need to eat in this south-east city: dwaeji-gukbap, eomuk, seafood and milmyeon.
For the first two, we recommend Um Yong Baek and Goraesa Eomuk – see our posts below.
As for milmyeon, the best one we’ve tried is found at Haeundae Milmyeon.
Haeundae Milmyeon 해운대 밀면 in Busan
As the name implies, Haeundae Milmyeon 해운대 밀면 is located in the Haeundae district in Busan.
Haeundae is known for its beach area which houses popular festivals such as the Busan International Film Festival, and Sand Festival.
In fact, there was a concert being held on the beach when we were, with Doyoung of NCT headlining the event (see our reel below).
Haeundae is also the home of the popular Sky Capsule train ride – which was the highlight of our trip – and is the way to the famous Haedong Yonggungsa Temple. We also recommend checking out Coralani Cafe with an amazing view of the sea.
This particular milmyeon restaurant is located quite close to the beach-front area as well as the traditional food market where you can try local street food and fresh seafood (we recommend the hotteok and eomuk – see Busan reel above).
What is milmyeon?
Milmyeon is a local Busan cold noodle dish that takes inspiration from the Northern Korean noodle dish naengmyeon.
While naengmyeon is made using buckwheat flour, the noodles for milmyeon are made from wheat as the former was scarce during the Korean war.
The basic recipe includes noodles made from wheat flour and potato/sweet potato starch, and meat broth enriched with vegetables and herbs.
Milmyeon comes in two varieties, mul milmyeon (물밀면 aka water milmyeon) where noodles are served in an icy-cold broth and topped with pickled garnishes. Bibim milmyeon is dry and is served with a spicy, gochujang-based paste.
You can find both varieties here.
Best milmyeon we’ve tried
We arrived here for dinner at 7pm and promptly made our order.
The menu here is simple and consists of Mul Milmyeon and Bibim Milmyeon (for KRW8,000 or USD6 per bowl). While waiting for our bowls to arrive, make sure to enjoy the complimentary hot broth served from the dispenser.
Aside from that, you can also order the Mandu (KRW6,000 or USD4).
Compared to other cold noodles we’ve tried, this one stood for us as there was a distinct deep beef bone broth flavour. While the broth was served icy cold – we were really surprised that the bone broth flavour was discernible.
This is because the broth is made from Korean beef mixed with vegetable broth to yield an earthy flavour with enough umami.
The garnish comes in the form of sour radish, cabbage and cucumber and also cured fish. The red sauce gives a bit of heat.
The noodles were no slouch as well as it had a good bite with a distinct nutty flavour.
Bibim Milmyeon and Mandu
The Bibim Milmyeon was quite decent as well as it was generously bathed in a rich gochuhang-based sauce.
The gravy was a bit nutty, tangy and spicy with a savoury hit from cured raw fish. But we do prefer the Mul Milmyeon.
The Mandu may not be the best we’ve tried but it was quite a good supplement to the two cold dishes.
Summary
We’ve tried a few milmyeon spots in Busan during the trip – and this one stood head above the rest. RECOMMENDED.
Haeundae Milmyeon 해운대 밀면
Address: 21 Jungdong 2-ro 10beon-gil, Haeundae-gu, Busan, South Korea
Hours: 10.40am-8.30pm Daily
Phone: +82 51-743-0392
Follow us on Instagram
Follow us on Instagram for the latest food adventures and recipes.
