Hodori Sikdang: Bomal Porridge on Biyangdo Island
If you take a walk around Biyangdo (a small island off Jeju), you'll end up with an awkward 30 minutes or so to spare. You might think about holding off and eating back at Hallim Port, but if it's a Sunday, most restaurants near the port are closed, so you have to eat on Biyangdo. Among the few restaurants on the island, Hodori Sikdang is one of the better options.
They serve about six side dishes, making it a decent place for a meal. We ordered the bomaljuk (top shell porridge) and bomal kalguksu (top shell noodle soup). Since everyone arrived on the same boat and finished sightseeing around the same time, people started streaming in right after we sat down. Fortunately, the place is quite spacious, so there was plenty of room to eat.
The bomaljuk had less of that distinct top shell aroma compared to Hallim Kalguksu. But the real issue was that they added so much sesame oil, it felt more like eating sesame oil porridge than top shell porridge. I wish they had let the bomal flavor shine through a bit more.
The bomal kalguksu looked pretty good, as it came with octopus and horned turban shell. However, despite the name, I wasn't really sure if it was actually bomal kalguksu. It left me thinking, "What exactly am I eating?"
The plating was neat, and they took our order very kindly. They offer such good service that it doesn't even feel like a restaurant on a tiny island, but the food was a bit disappointing. For bomal dishes, I recommend taking the boat back to Hallim Port and eating at Hallim Kalguksu instead.