Spoon Collector · 28 stories
I write about meals at restaurants I visit in Gyeonggi Province. · Writes about: Restaurants · Shopping · Cafés · Bars · Things to do · Hair & beauty salons
Petrico is a dessert café on Jandari-ro in Seogyo-dong, Mapo, Seoul, that bakes soufflé pancakes to order. The soufflé platter (19,000 won) lets you try several flavors at once but takes about 20–30 minutes to cook. On weekdays before 6pm, the nearby street public parking lot is the easiest option, with a discount for multi-child card holders, so Petrico is worth a visit if you leave yourself time to wait.
MELA Hongdae is an Italian brunch café and restaurant in a side street between Hongdae and Hapjeong in Mapo, Seoul. At MELA Hongdae the writer ordered minari (Korean water parsley) vongole pasta for ₩23,000 and ragu tteokbokki (rice cakes in ragu) for ₩22,000, then added a ₩4,000 mini salad to round out the table. Verdict: at MELA Hongdae, two mains plus the ₩4,000 mini salad is the combination to order.
Goobne Chicken Hongdae Red Road is a chicken restaurant on Jandari-ro near Hongdae's Red Road in Mapo, Seoul. The writer ordered Gochu Basasak (crispy chili-coated chicken) and cheese balls at Goobne Chicken Hongdae Red Road, and found the Gochu Basasak tasted best dipped in the sauce. If you're driving, a ₩5,000 weekday lot across the road on the Hapjeong side, paid through the Modu Parking app, is a tip worth keeping.
Nani Yeouido Branch is an izakaya (Japanese-style pub) on the 3rd floor of the S-TRENUE Building on Gukjegeumyung-ro in Yeouido, Seoul. Over highballs and beer with a view of the Yeouido skyline at night, the writer ordered a single ₩29,000 yakisoba as both a drinking snack and dinner, and found the portion generous and the flavor good. Nani Yeouido Branch is a good fit when you want drinks and dinner covered by one dish instead of several small plates.
MOI is a Western restaurant in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 2nd floor of Gongjak Sangga at 113 Yeouinaru-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, where pasta is paired with wine. The writer ordered seaweed butter with bread (6,000 won), galbi ragu pasta with braised short rib (23,000 won) and gamtae cream pasta made with fine green seaweed (23,000 won), alternating between the two very different pastas. MOI is a Yeouido restaurant worth remembering for a blind date or an anniversary dinner.
Suragan Tteokbang (수라간떡방) is a rice cake shop on Noyeon-ro in Jeju City that makes omegi-tteok, Jeju's traditional rice cake. The writer was searching for additive-free Jeju omegi-tteok, found Suragan Tteokbang, and liked its pretty gift box, parcel packing and detailed eating instructions. Suragan Tteokbang recommends microwave thawing over natural thawing, and its boxed omegi-tteok makes a Jeju travel gift you can hand over as is.
Dobana Tea House is a large tea house on Seosa-ro in Jeju City, about 10 minutes by car from Jeju Airport. The writer ordered a matcha latte and a hojicha latte (roasted green tea latte) side by side to compare them, and was impressed by the spacious hall, the separate private rooms and an event that gives out tea for writing a review. For a cup of tea instead of coffee on the first or last day of a Jeju trip, Dobana Tea House is a good choice.
Cheongchuni Oranda Dongmun Market Main Branch (청춘이오란다) is a snack shop inside Dongmun Market in Jeju that sells handmade oranda (puffed grain clusters bound with syrup) and gwajul (traditional Korean puffed rice snacks). The writer liked how soft and moist the yuzu oranda was, at ₩10,000 a bag, enough to buy it in bulk, and also browsed the nut, garlic and gamtae oranda alongside white rice gwajul, brown rice gwa, buckwheat gwajul and steamed rice gwa. For a different kind of Jeju Dongmun Market souvenir snack, Cheongchuni Oranda's yuzu oranda is a safe choice.
Jejju Seogwipo New Town Branch is a Korean takeout shop for lunch boxes and sushi on Gimjeongmunhwa-ro in Seogwipo, Jeju. On a Jeju trip, the writer took a Jejju lunch box (17,800 won) and 8 pieces of fresh salmon sushi back to the accommodation; pairing the lunch box with the sushi added variety and meant no driving around to find a restaurant. For family or group trips weighing a Jeju group lunch box order, Jejju Seogwipo New Town Branch is worth contacting in advance about headcount and pickup time.
Donsahyang Olle Market Main Branch (돈사향 올레시장본점) is a Jeju black pork BBQ restaurant on Cheonji-ro in Seogwipo, near Seogwipo Olle Market, known for dishes that pair Jeju black pork with Daejeong garlic. The writer ordered the signature Jeju Doldol Manongsal, black pork skirt rolled up and grilled, and especially remembered the self-serve banchan bar, the complimentary steamed egg and the free wine corkage. Donsahyang Olle Market Main Branch suits Seogwipo travelers who want a distinctly Jeju black pork dish with a bottle of wine.
Saimdang Bueok (사임당부엌) is a home-style Korean set meal (hansik) restaurant in Gangneung, Gangwon, a 3-minute walk from Ojukheon. On a family trip, the writer had the Saimdang set (19,000 won) for lunch: 12 side dishes plus japchae (glass noodles), steamed scallops, spicy stir-fried pork, grilled fish and house-made Chodang soft tofu, while a kids' meal was 9,000 won. Made more memorable by an owner who offered to remake the spicy pork because it had scorched very slightly, Saimdang Bueok is a Gangneung Korean restaurant well suited to families with children.
Jejurowoon Cheonghaewon Seongsan Ilchulbong Branch (제주로운청해원 성산일출봉점) is a braised hairtail and seafood restaurant on Sinyang-ro in Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo, Jeju. Before visiting Seongsan Ilchulbong, the writer had lunch there with the kids and ordered the braised hairtail set for 2 (24,000 won per person): braised hairtail, grilled tilefish, sticky pot rice and soy-marinated crab, with sea urchin seaweed soup chosen as the soup, so adults and children ate together at one table. The Jejurowoon braised hairtail set suits families who want spicy braised hairtail and a dish for the kids in the same meal.
