Gyeongju Hwangnidang-gil lunch: arugula tomato pizza at Midam Kitchen

The last day of our 2-night-3-day trip to Gyeongju with our kid! Before wrapping up the trip, we went for lunch at Midam Kitchen, a newly opened Western-style restaurant on Hwangnidang-gil. We ordered rucola tomato pizza, basil oil pasta, and one drink — and this place stuck in my memory because our kid ate the pizza so well haha.

Midam Kitchen: location, hours, and parking at a glance

• Location: 33 Cheomseong-ro 49beon-gil, Gyeongju-si, Gyeongbuk
• Hours: 10:30–21:00 / Last order: 20:30 / Closed: every Wednesday
• Parking: no dedicated lot, use nearby public parking
• With kids: baby chairs available
• What we ordered: rucola tomato pizza, basil oil pasta, one drink
• One-line review: a pretty garden and clean interior, but what stuck with us was how well our kid ate the pizza

The hanok exterior and garden on Hwangnidang-gil

The first thing that caught my eye when we arrived at Midam Kitchen was the exterior. It felt almost like a tiny palace haha — is that too much of a contradiction, calling something a "tiny palace" ㅋㅋ. There's a garden nicely arranged in front of the hanok building, so it was fun just looking around before we even went in to eat. It matched the Hwangnidang-gil atmosphere well, and the whole place was impressively kept clean and tidy.

Is it easy with kids? Seating and baby chairs

Since Midam Kitchen hasn't been open long, the interior was quite clean too. There were tables in a range of sizes — 2-top, 4-top, 6-top — plus a separate private room. It looked fine for a couple's date, but also comfortable for a family with kids or a larger group. Baby chairs were on hand too, which made it easy to visit with our child.

What we ordered and the prices

Rucola tomato pizza ₩18,900, basil oil pasta ₩14,900, one drink. We picked the rucola tomato pizza as something to share with our kid, and also ordered the basil oil pasta and a drink. Sharing one pizza and one pasta between us was just right for our last-day lunch haha 🤭

Rucola tomato pizza — the one our kid wanted to finish alone

When you go to a Western restaurant with a kid, there's always that worry over which menu item they'll actually eat, right? But that day, the worry turned out to be pointless haha. After one bite of the rucola tomato pizza, our kid must have loved it so much they said they'd finish the whole thing alone. I had a mini panic trying to convince them mom and dad needed to eat some too ㅋㅋㅋ. Seeing our kid eat like that alone tells you the menu choice was a success! We shared the basil oil pasta too and had a drink alongside it, wrapping up our last lunch in Gyeongju in a relaxed way.

How was the basil oil pasta?

The moment the basil oil pasta arrived, the gentle basil aroma spreading from it was lovely. Oil pasta can sometimes feel a bit greasy, but the fresh basil flavor added a cleaner, lighter taste than I expected. The oil sauce coated the noodles evenly, giving it a savory, deep flavor, and the plump, large shrimp on top were great to eat alongside it. Alternating bites of the rucola tomato pizza with the pasta in between, the two dishes went really well together. Our kid was completely absorbed in the pizza, and my spouse and I happily shared the basil oil pasta between us haha.

Overall verdict on Midam Kitchen

From the prettily decorated hanok exterior and garden to the clean interior, the overall atmosphere at Midam Kitchen was great. With various seating types, a private room, and baby chairs, it looked good for anything from a family meal with kids to a date to a group dinner. Just keep in mind there's no dedicated parking lot, so you'll need to use the nearby public parking. Most of all, our kid ate the rucola tomato pizza so well that they wanted to finish it alone — so this will stick in our memory as a great restaurant in Gyeongju to visit with a child :)