What is the Yeosu Nangman Pocha Night Market?
The Perfect Pocha Night Market
The Yeosu Nangman Pocha is everything that you could hope for from a Korean pocha night market. The signature red tents are lit up every night from 6 PM until 1 AM. That means the tents are filled with patrons enjoying everything from sushi and fried tempura to octopus and pork stir-fry well into the night.
It was already 8 PM by the time we crossed the bridge to the mainland. Finding parking wasn’t easy, but there’s plenty around the area if you’re willing to walk. And the pocha night market is well worth the walk, I promise you. Yeosu is a bit of a sleepy town, which means you can hear the music from the pocha from blocks away and see the lights from across the port. We visited on a Friday in October (off-season), but 90% of the seats were filled by the time we arrived.
There were families, college students, couples and every other combination you could think of. Thankfully, the space is wide open so even with a lot of people, it never got too crowded. We spent our first moments walking up and down the boardwalk. Peering into the tents and deciding which menu had a good combination of dishes for us to try. Not to mention, we needed a spot that would be okay with Uyu in our laps.
Big on Portions, Big on Taste
We finally settled on tent and ordered octopus stir fry and seafood ramen with octopus. Each tent has a minimum order, usually requiring at least one main dish before you can order any side dishes. All the restaurants were busy which meant service took a minute to get started, but once it got started we got a huge plate of stir-fry along with a dauntingly large bowl of ramen. Stir-fry varies from region to region, with some being spicier or using different peppers. Yeosu’s stir-fry was on the sweeter side with enough gochujang to offset the spiciness with a pleasant savory emphasis. And the ramen? Good enough, but the octopus made it AMAZING. Certainly worth paying a bit more for a hefty octopus the size of my fist.
Expect to be spending at least 25,000 KRW for each main dish while the side dishes run between 10,000 – 20,000 KRW.
Where is the Yeosu Nangman Pocha?
The Nangman Pocha is located just under the Geobukseon-daero Bridge in Yeosu. It’s easy to find and there’s plenty of parking.
- Address:
- 전남 여수시 종화동 292-1 (Naver Map)
- 102 Hamel-ro, Yeosu-si, Jeollanam-do (Google Map)
Is the Yeosu Nangman Pocha Worth Visiting?
We did a bit of research before our trip and the Nangman Pocha came up on every list. That either meant tourist trap or foodie holy grail. The reality is somewhere in between (as travel usually is). The food here is delicious with rock octopus (the aforementioned fist-sized variety) and squid on almost every menu. But, thanks to its popularity as a tourist destination, most of the dishes are meant for parties of 2 or more and priced accordingly. If you’re traveling in a couple, we’d recommend saving some room for a heavy meal with a light lunch.
Compared to Busan, Yeosu is a bit further off the beaten path. We didn’t run into many folks who spoke English and we relied completely on Korean to get around and order. If you’re not as skilled in Korean, you’ll be relying a bit more on Google Translate to order.
Tips for Visiting the Yeosu Nangman Pocha
The serving portions are large, so ordering as a solo traveler is going to be difficult. Even with the two of us, we were barely able to finish our meal consisting of one main dish and one side. If you’re going to visit, you need to bring your appetite.
The pocha starts at 6 PM, but it really starts getting busy around 8 PM. If possible, avoid the busy times and try to arrive around 9 PM or 10 PM. For weekends, it’ll be better to arrive earlier around 7 PM.
Make sure you browse the tent menus before settling down. There are a lot of dishes on offer here, but most are pretty similar. You’re looking for vibe and presentation more than anything else. Do yourself a favor and walk around the market once, taking a look at what everyone else has ordered.
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