Ikseon Third Seat · 5 stories

Third Stool, Seoul Restaurants

Writes about small Seoul restaurants she visits on ordinary weeknights. · Writes about: Restaurants

Seoulsup blind date spot for evening pasta: Fleurs sur la route

Fleurs sur la route is a Western restaurant on Seoulsup 2-gil in Seongdong, Seoul, set in a house converted to look like a European country home. On an evening visit under soft lighting, the writer had the liquor-steamed red scallop spaghetti and the meat tomato conchiglie (each listed as 25.0), and both were delicious, while the zoned interior made quiet conversation easy. Fleurs sur la route is a solid pick for a Seongsu date or a Seoulsup blind date when both atmosphere and food matter.

Written Oct 23, 2026Sponsored

PlaceGwangjin, SeoulRestaurants

Korean BBQ near Guui Station: ₩19,000 beef rib & top blade, Ssamchae

Ssamchae Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal (쌈채솥뚜껑삼겹살) is a Korean BBQ restaurant in Jayang-dong, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, near Guui Station, serving pork belly grilled on a cast-iron lid and beef grilled over a charcoal brazier. On this visit, the writer grilled emperor beef rib meat (200g per serving, 19,000 won) and a steak-thick top blade (150g) over charcoal, with a cheese bomb steamed egg (5,000 won) on the side. For thick, tender beef at a reasonable price, Ssamchae Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal's charcoal grill is a good fit.

Written Oct 20, 2026Sponsored

PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Corkage-free eel restaurant in Yeoksam, Seoul: hitsumabushi, Unagiwa

Unagiwa is a corkage-free Japanese eel rice bowl restaurant near Yeoksam Station in Gangnam, Seoul, serving Nagoya-style hitsumabushi (grilled eel over rice) made with domestic Japonica eel grilled over charcoal. The writer shared the Hitsumabushi Sang (one whole eel) with a friend who had eaten hitsumabushi in Nagoya this year, ate it four different ways, and especially liked the bouncy chawanmushi and the perilla leaf and scallion yakumi (condiments). Verdict: the friend rated Unagiwa's hitsumabushi tastier than the one in Nagoya.

Written Oct 16, 2026Sponsored

PlaceGwangjin, SeoulRestaurants

Seoul Korean BBQ in Jayang-dong: charcoal beef rib finger, Ssamchae

Ssamchae Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal (쌈채솥뚜껑삼겹살) is a newly opened Korean BBQ restaurant in Jayang-dong, Gwangjin, Seoul, near Guui Station, serving pork grilled on an iron lid and beef grilled over a charcoal brazier. The writer ordered the brazier-style Ssamchae half set with 1 portion of top blade, 2 portions of premium beef rib finger and 1 portion of pork skin, added whole pork skirt meat and received free minari kalguksu (water dropwort noodle soup) as an opening-event gift. Despite the pork belly name, Ssamchae Sotttukkeong Samgyeopsal is a good-value Korean BBQ spot with satisfying charcoal beef and generous 200g portions.

Written Jun 29, 2026Sponsored

PlaceJongno, SeoulRestaurants

Tiger rice bowl and shumai before a play in Daehangno: Cheonghwawon

Cheonghwawon Daehangno Branch is a Taiwanese-style Chinese restaurant serving beef knife-cut noodles and dim sum near Hyehwa Station Exit 4 in Jongno, Seoul. Before a small-theater play, the writer ordered beef knife-cut noodles, shumai (5 pieces) and the tiger rice bowl: the knife-cut noodles were chewy, somewhere between noodles and hand-torn dough flakes, and the broth tasted clean, with no heavy spices or gamey beef smell. Cheonghwawon makes a filling, easy-on-the-wallet meal before or after a Daehangno show.

Written Aug 14, 2026Sponsored

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