Compact Case Diarist · 14 stories

The Compact Case

I write about beauty finds and everyday routines in Seoul. · Writes about: Hair & beauty salons · Restaurants

PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Gangnam Korean restaurant: yukhoe bibimbap + kimchi stew, 1992 Deopbap

1992 Deopbap & Jjageuli Gangnam Main Branch is a Korean rice bowl and jjageuli (thick spicy stew) restaurant right outside Exit 3 of Gangnam Station in Seoul. On a weekend evening the blogger ate alone at a bar table in the hanok-style dining room, with its waterwheel and Korean painted folding screen, ordering the seasoned yukhoe (raw beef) Jeonju bibimbap for 15,000 won with kimchi stew on the side. Chewy yukhoe, six kinds of namul (seasoned vegetables) and a mild gochujang sauce made 1992 Deopbap & Jjageuli a satisfying solo meal near Gangnam Station.

Written Jul 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Sinnonhyeon rice noodle restaurant with a janggu drum room: Geumnyeong

Geumnyeong Gomtang Yeoksam Branch is a Korean restaurant near Exit 4 of Sinnonhyeon Station in Gangnam, Seoul, serving minari (water dropwort) gomtang and minari rice noodles. On a quiet visit after the lunch rush, the minari rice noodles at Geumnyeong Gomtang came in a mild, clean, not-too-salty broth that was easy to finish, and the banchan self-bar and a private room with a janggu (Korean drum) stood out. Geumnyeong Gomtang Yeoksam Branch is a place to remember when you want a gentle, easy-on-the-stomach meal.

Written Jul 20, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulHair & beauty salons

Nonhyeon-dong hair salon summer C-curl perm for straight hair: Anew

Anew Hair Cheongdam Main Branch is a hair salon on Seolleung-ro 127-gil near Exit 5 of Gangnam-gu Office Station, close to Nonhyeon-dong in Gangnam, Seoul. In the summer heat, the writer had long, heavy straight hair tidied with a layered cut, then got a C-curl perm and a hair clinic treatment at Anew Hair Cheongdam Main Branch. Verdict: the heaviness disappeared, dry hair turned soft, and a natural C-curl made styling straight hair much easier.

Written Jul 26, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Sinnonhyeon Korean BBQ lunch: ₩10,000 stone pot green onion bulgogi

Deo Bareun Jeongyuk Sikdang (더바른정육식당) Gangnam Sinnonhyeon Station Main Branch is a hanwoo and Jeju black pork restaurant in Gangnam, Seoul, a 1-minute walk from Exit 3 of Sinnonhyeon Station. At lunch, the stone pot green onion bulgogi (₩10,000) arrived bubbling hot with far more meat than expected, and plenty of green onion kept it from tasting greasy. For a filling lunch near Sinnonhyeon Station, Deo Bareun Jeongyuk Sikdang's stone pot green onion bulgogi is well worth ordering.

Written Jul 31, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Pork kimchi stew after a workout in Yeoksam: Namdo Changpyeong Gukbap

Namdo Changpyeong Gukbap (남도창평국밥) is a Korean restaurant near Yeoksam Station in Gangnam, Seoul, serving gukbap (rice soup) and dwaeji kimchi jjim (braised pork and kimchi stew), and is better known as a lunch spot. The writer went alone after an evening workout for the earthenware-pot pork kimchi stew (12,000 won) and was happy with the generous portion, the spicy yet clean broth, and the side dishes of seasoned young garlic leaves, kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi) and homemade squid jeotgal (salted squid). Namdo Changpyeong Gukbap is not just for lunch; it makes a hearty after-work dinner too.

Written Jul 30, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Eel restaurant near GS Arts Center: post-gym mini hitsumabushi, Chisot

Chisot Yeoksam Main Branch is a Japanese restaurant in Yeoksam, Gangnam, Seoul, near GS Arts Center, specialising in authentic Nagoya-style hitsumabushi (grilled eel over rice). After an after-work gym session, the writer ate the mini hitsumabushi with 72-hour aged tare sauce (25,000 won) three different ways, and also tried kombu-jime aged salmon sashimi through a review event. For anyone missing the eel rice they ate in Nagoya, Chisot Yeoksam Main Branch brings that taste back with eel that has no fishy smell.

Written Aug 2, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Yeoksam eel restaurant: wood-tone bar and shrimp steamed egg, Chisot

Chisot Yeoksam Main Branch (치솟 역삼본점) is a Japanese eel bowl (hitsumabushi) restaurant on Bongeunsa-ro 30-gil near Yeoksam Station in Gangnam, Seoul, with a calm wood-tone interior and both table and bar seating. Hitsumabushi at Chisot costs ₩25,000 (mini), ₩37,000 (regular) or ₩48,000 (deluxe), and the blogger ate it three ways: eel and rice on their own, with scallions, nori and wasabi, and as ochazuke with broth poured over, alongside a steamed egg topped with shrimp. Chisot Yeoksam Main Branch is a good pick near Yeoksam Station for a slightly special eel bowl, even when dining solo.

Written Oct 5, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Seoul Korean BBQ in Sinnonhyeon for lunch: stone pot octopus bibimbap

Deo Bareun Jeongyuk Sikdang (더바른정육식당) is a Korean BBQ restaurant on Gangnam-daero near Sinnonhyeon Station in Seoul, grilling 1++ hanwoo beef and Jeju black pork over real charcoal. After plans in Gangnam, the writer skipped the meat at lunch and ordered the stone pot octopus bibimbap (dolsot nakji bibimbap), which came with generous plump octopus, a spicy, tangy and sweet sauce, and crispy scorched rice from the stone pot. Deo Bareun Jeongyuk Sikdang works not only for BBQ gatherings but also as a filling lunch spot.

Written Oct 5, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Pasta restaurant in Cheongdam, Seoul for a solo lunch: 37.5 Signature

37.5 Signature Cheongdam is a brunch and pasta restaurant on the 2nd floor of a building on Samseong-ro 119-gil, near Cheongdam Station in Gangnam, Seoul. After a morning workout, the writer came alone and ordered the signature mentaiko (salted pollock roe) oil pasta for 20,900 won plus a side of rye bread; the pasta came loaded with shrimp, clams, baby octopus and squid, and the savory roe blended into the oil sauce without feeling greasy. With its white interior and chandeliers, 37.5 Signature Cheongdam is a comfortable spot whether you're eating solo or on a date.

Written Jul 28, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Korean restaurant by GS Arts Center for solo jang kalguksu: Kkeutjang

Kkeutjang Yeoksam is a Korean restaurant near Yeoksam Station and GS Arts Center in Gangnam, Seoul, serving Gangneung-style jang kalguksu (knife-cut noodles in a soybean-paste broth). On a solo visit, the signature jang kalguksu cost 11,000 won, and the free barley rice from Kkeutjang Yeoksam's self-serve bar went into the leftover broth to finish the meal. The broth of dried pollack (hwangtae) and Tongyeong anchovy, deepened with fermented paste, stood out, making Kkeutjang Yeoksam an easy choice for a solo meal, lunch or a hangover cure.

Written Aug 5, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Gangnam Taiwanese restaurant with an open noodle kitchen: Namsogwan

Namsogwan U Yuk Dosakmyeon is a Taiwanese-style Chinese restaurant a 2-minute walk from Exit 11 of Gangnam Station in Seoul. One solo bowl of u yuk dosakmyeon (beef knife-cut noodles) costs 11,000 won, with beef shank simmered all day in a Hanwoo bone broth and wide 24-hour-aged noodles whose uneven thickness gives both a soft bite and a chewy one. With noodles and dim sum shaped by hand at the side of the dining room, Namsogwan makes a filling solo lunch near Gangnam Station.

Written Aug 13, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Salmon shrimp jang rice bowl solo lunch in Gangnam: Cheongdam Kkatsu

Cheongdam Kkatsu Gangnam-gu Office Station Branch is a Japanese restaurant serving pork cutlets and rice bowls on the first floor of SK Hub Blue in Gangnam, Seoul. On a weekday lunch visit alone, the salmon shrimp jang rice bowl (₩14,500) came with aged salmon that was soft with no fishy smell and springy soy-marinated shrimp. With tablet ordering and a self-bar offering free rice refills, Cheongdam Kkatsu is an easy place to eat lunch on your own.

Written Aug 21, 2026Sponsored