Sangmu, Gwangju Italian restaurant: late lunch pasta at Camel Orzo

Today I visited Camel Orzo, a great Italian spot in Sangmu district! Camel Orzo is an Italian restaurant located in the Sweetien commercial building in Sangmu, where you can try all kinds of Western dishes. It's a place I've visited every time I craved Italian food in Sangmu, and this time I was craving pasta again so I came back haha.

How long is the wait at Camel Orzo? Checking with the Tabling app

There's a Table-ring waiting device in front of Camel Orzo. We went after lunch hour so there was no wait, and you can check the wait through the Table-ring app. There's also a waiting area, like in the photo above, that makes it easy to wait if there is a line. On our last visit we waited a little, and since it was a hot summer day, they brought us ice water to cool down while we waited. The staff were so kind and thoughtful!

Where to park at Camel Orzo: Nice Park when the Sweetien lot is full

It's located in the heart of Sangmu district, on the first floor of the Sweetien commercial building. Parking support is available at 4 different lots! I tried to park at the Sweetien lot right next to the restaurant, but it was full, so I parked at my backup, Nice Park.

Every time I come, the Sweetien lot has been full, so I'd actually recommend Nice Park more. It's located at 1209-6 Chipyeong-dong, Seo-gu — just put that into your navigation. It's only 1–2 minutes on foot from Camel Orzo, so it's close!

Inside Camel Orzo and how to order at the table kiosk

Inside, the restaurant is mostly made up of 4-person tables, and there are also larger tables for group gatherings.

There's a kiosk at every table, so you can order directly through it. They also brought us a separate paper menu, which made ordering easy.

The menu has lunch sets, happy hour sets, course sets, coffee and drinks, and so much more — pasta, risotto, pizza, dessert, an overwhelming variety that gave me decision paralysis. I wanted to try this, and that too... haha. But since our stomachs have limits, we picked out two dishes.

• Octopus & shrimp arugula pasta
• Hanwoo steak mushroom paella (autumn new menu, orderable after 1pm)
• Today's soda drink

Soda of the day at Camel Orzo: grapefruit soda ade

For today's soda, the grapefruit soda ade came out first. It was a solid, sweet and refreshing ade. You could bite into little bits of grapefruit flesh here and there, and it went down cool with every sip whenever the food felt heavy — grapefruit soda ade 🥤

The hanwoo steak paella and the octopus & shrimp arugula pasta both came out at once haha.

What the hanwoo steak mushroom paella tastes like

It's called hanwoo stk mushroom paella — I think 'stk' stands for steak. It's a rice dish said to include Italian cured pancetta, saffron, aged hanwoo (Korean beef) steak, grilled mushrooms, and peas!

As soon as the paella arrived, the mushroom aroma hit me. Since I love mushrooms, I tried those first. The whole paella had a strong mushroom scent. The rice had a sort of curry color, probably from the saffron.

The aged hanwoo steak was generous in portion too, going great with the rice. It was cooked just right and cut into bite-sized pieces, so it was tender and made for a hearty meal alongside the paella rice. There was so much meat that I almost got too full to finish later on, but since it was meat, I ate every last bite... haha.

Octopus and shrimp arugula pasta at Camel Orzo

Next up is the octopus and shrimp arugula pasta. I love oil-based pasta, and since this one had octopus (bolbo) and shrimp (gamberi), I ordered it right away. They say the ingredients are sautéed in garlic oil and finished with green pesto.

The octopus and shrimp went really well with the oil pasta, and the green herbs mixed in didn't clash with the oil pasta flavor either. The balance was excellent. The paella was delicious, but this oil pasta was great too. With plenty of octopus and shrimp packed in, the pasta had a chewy texture that made it fun to eat haha.

Is Camel Orzo in Sangmu worth a visit? Final verdict

That's my review of Camel Orzo, where the staff are kind and the food is delicious. Last time I came I had the pizza and it was really good too, so next time I visit with a group, I'll order pizza then. Camel Orzo is a well-known brunch spot in Gwangju that also works perfectly for dinner — a truly complete Italian restaurant. If you're gathering with friends in Sangmu or craving Italian food, I recommend Camel Orzo!