Firsthand stories from Korea, in ten languages

Discover local places and Korean products through reviews from people who’ve actually been there and tried them.

Restaurants, cafés and salons across Korea — every story by a blogger who actually went, linked to Google Maps.

Roomy table spacing at an Okjeong, Yangju BBQ restaurant: Mat Chandeul

Mat Chandeul Wang Sogeum Gui Yangju Branch is a Korean BBQ restaurant at 74 Okjeong-dong-ro 7da-gil, Units 108–111, in Okjeong-dong, Yangju, Gyeonggi. On a dinner visit, the writer ordered the signature menu and staff handled the grilling order and told the table when each piece was ready, so the group could keep talking, and the tables were spaced far enough apart not to feel cramped. Mat Chandeul Wang Sogeum Gui Yangju Branch works well as a relaxed spot for an evening get-together.

Written Sep 24, 2026Sponsored

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Gimhae, GyeongnamRestaurants

Gimhae sushi restaurant for a Chuseok holiday family dinner: Sushi Hwa

Sushi Hwa is a Japanese restaurant on Bongridan-gil in Gimhae that serves both flame-seared and raw sushi. On a Chuseok holiday evening, the writer parked at Gimhae Shinsegae, walked 15 minutes to Sushi Hwa and ordered the flame-seared sushi set, the salmon sushi set and the kids' flame-seared sushi set, choosing cold soba as the noodle side for all three. Sushi Hwa worked as a family dinner because a child who cannot eat raw fish and two parents who love raw sushi were all served at the same table.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Seongnam, GyeonggiThings to do

Bundang text neck care: 60-min 1:1 radio frequency, Speed Conditioning

Speed Conditioning Exercise Center is a pain-care exercise studio in Bundang, Seongnam, two minutes from Exit 2 of Seohyeon Station. On Chuseok morning the writer took a 60-minute 1:1 session with director Lee Hwa-jin, who used radio frequency to release the deep muscles of the back, neck and shoulders and then taught how to actually engage the back muscles. For anyone who has lived for years with text neck, rounded shoulders and a hunched back, Speed Conditioning Exercise Center is worth a visit for reading your body first.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Bucheon, GyeonggiRestaurants

Bucheon clam kalguksu with a minced chili kick: Jakdong Hongdukkkae

Jakdong Hongdukkkae Kalguksu Bucheon Main Branch is a clam kalguksu (hand-cut noodle soup) restaurant near Kkachiul Station, by the Wonmisan trail entrance in Bucheon, Gyeonggi. On a weekday afternoon with a friend and a baby, two servings of clam kalguksu at 11,000 won each came with barley rice and kimchi made that day, and the fresh house-made noodles cooked for about 6 minutes, timed by an hourglass. A spoonful of minced chili turned the seafood-rich broth cleanly spicy, and the bowl suits every age.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Seodaemun, SeoulRestaurants

Severance Hospital burger with an ingredient origin board: Bas Burger

Bas Burger Yonsei Cancer Hospital Branch is a handmade burger restaurant in the basement 1 arcade of Severance Hospital in Seodaemun, Seoul. The writer ordered the Bas Burger set (₩12,100), the wasabi mayo shrimp burger (₩10,900) and onion rings (₩3,500), comparing the mild classic burger with the whole-shrimp patty while checking the posted ingredient origins and the unlimited potato chips. Bas Burger is an easy, no-fuss meal to grab while you are at the hospital.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Mapo, SeoulBars

Izakaya bar seats in Sinsu-dong, Seoul: mackerel sushi at Mulgogijip

Mulgogijip is an izakaya in Sinsu-dong, Mapo, Seoul, right beside the Gyeongui Line Forest Trail. From the bar seats we ordered the dry-aged sashimi moriawase, the seasonal mackerel bong-chobap (pressed mackerel sushi), the kiosk-only truffle abalone pasta and Yebisu draft beer. The quiet room and wide gaps between tables make Mulgogijip an easy pick for a first date or date night.

Written Sep 24, 2026Sponsored
Suwon, GyeonggiRestaurants

Solo dining at Sarangjip, a Korean BBQ near Ajou Univ. in Suwon

Sarangjip is a pork kimchi grill restaurant a 5-minute walk from the Ajou University entrance in Suwon, Gyeonggi. Dining alone on a weekday evening, the writer ordered the pork kimchi grill (small) for two at ₩19,000 and finishing fried rice at ₩2,000, then wrapped meat, kimchi, onion, mayo and ssamjang in perilla leaves the way the owner recommends and cleared the plate. Between kiosk ordering and 1 hour of free public parking, Sarangjip is an easy place to eat alone.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
SejongRestaurants

Sejong BBQ restaurant, 170g pork belly ₩12,000: Yachae Hanssam Daepae

Yachae Hanssam Daepae is a Korean pork (handon) BBQ restaurant in Sanul-dong, Sejong, in front of Building 710 of Sanulmaeul Complex 7. A single menu of thin-sliced pork belly (daepae samgyeopsal) runs 12,000 won for 170g, and the park right outside the door works as a playground, so the room was full of families with everyone from strollers to middle schoolers; three servings plus one extra were enough for the table. With free steamed egg and kimchi soup rounding out a generous spread, Yachae Hanssam Daepae is an easy grill house to visit with kids.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Namyangju, GyeonggiCafés

Namyangju river café for a friends' terrace catch-up: Waltz & Dr. Mahn

Waltz and Dr. Mahn is a large café with Bukhan River views in Joan-myeon, Namyangju, Gyeonggi, and it runs a coffee museum on the same grounds. Visiting with friends, the writer ordered the Honor & Chevalier at 18,000 won and a Vienna coffee at 16,000 won, then looked around both the riverside terrace and the window-lined indoor hall. The European mood was lovely, but the Vienna coffee at Waltz and Dr. Mahn was the most memorable part.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Mapo, SeoulRestaurants

Mangwon-dong live squid sashimi set and free sides: Mapo Bamdada

Mapo Bamdada is a sashimi restaurant in Mangwon-dong, Seoul, a 5-10 minute walk from Exit 4 of Mapo-gu Office Station on Line 6. The live squid and sashimi set arrived with a table full of free side dishes — grilled fish, clam soup, mulhoe (cold raw fish soup) and soy-marinated shrimp — with the live squid springy and chewy and the flounder soft but firm. With a 10,000-won lunch special plus roulette and birthday events, Mapo Bamdada is an easy neighborhood spot for a quiet sashimi meal for two.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Hwaseong, GyeonggiRestaurants

Dongtan shabu kalguksu set for two, ₩20,000 without meat: Deungchon

Deungchon Shabu Kalguksu Gran Passage Branch is a shabu kalguksu (hot pot noodle) restaurant on the 2nd floor of the Green Zone in the Gran Passage CGV building in Dongtan, Hwaseong. A married couple ordered the spicy shabu kalguksu set for two and found the lineup had changed: the set is now ₩20,000 with no meat, down from ₩30,000 with beef, so they added shabu beef for ₩10,000 and ate through minari, bean noodles, dumplings, kalguksu noodles and fried rice. Splitting the price this way makes Deungchon a fair pick for vegetable-first eaters, while beef lovers pay ₩30,000 as before.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Buk-gu, DaeguRestaurants

Daegu shabu-shabu buffet with takoyaki and buckwheat soba: Shabu20

Shabu20 Daegu Bokhyeon branch is an all-you-can-eat premium beef shabu-shabu, Vietnamese rice paper roll and hot pot restaurant on Gonghang-ro in Bokhyeon-dong, Buk-gu, Daegu, near Kyungpook National University's north gate. Diners pick a half-and-half katsuobushi and spicy hot pot broth, cook sirloin and pork belly with bean sprouts and bok choy, then work through the self-bar of fried chicken, pasta, takoyaki and buckwheat soba. With up to 190 seats and plenty of parking, Shabu20 is an easy choice for a Chuseok holiday family meal.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored
Busanjin, BusanRestaurants

Jeonpo Station pork belly grilled tableside: 189 Cheolsune, Busan

189 Cheolsune Matgimchi Samgyeopsal is a newly opened kimchi pork belly restaurant in Seomyeon, Busan, 384m from Exit 5 of Jeonpo Station and next to the Angel Hotel. The order was matgimchi samgyeopsal (kimchi pork belly) for 2-3 people with doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), rice and steamed egg, and the staff grilled the pork belly tableside until it was as soft as boiled suyuk, to eat with kimchi and scallions. Between the tender meat, the house kimchi, the self-serve bar and a private room, 189 Cheolsune works for both group dinners and a date night in Seomyeon.

Written Sep 25, 2026Sponsored

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