Colkage-free lunch for four in Myeongdong: Mano di Chef

The weather was so nice I headed out to Myeongdong for the first time in a while. There are tons of good restaurants in Myeongdong, but I went to my personal favorite, Mano di Chef Myeongdong Branch, the bisque pasta place I visit regularly.

Mano di Chef Myeongdong is on the 11th floor of the UNESCO Building

The weather was seriously insane, right? Days like this you just have to go outside. For the location of Mano di Chef Myeongdong, check the map below — it's on the 11th floor of the UNESCO Building.

Here it is. Ahh... I'm already excited wondering how good the food will be today. Let me say it again — this place is a guaranteed, no-fail taste.

The entrance to Mano di Chef, a Myeongdong pasta spot. There's a fairly large restroom right outside that feels like it could be part of the restaurant or not.

The branch with the widest table spacing

Clean and pleasant interior. I've been to other Mano di Chef branches too, and this Myeongdong pasta spot seems to have the widest spacing between tables.

What four of us ordered, and the prices

For a light lunch, the four of us decided to order one salad, one pasta, one pizza, and one rice dish to try a bit of everything. So here's what we chose:

• Grilled Chicken & Caesar Salad (21,900)
• Margherita Pizza (27,900)
• Crab & Shrimp Pasta (27,900)
• Steak & Spicy Rice (31,900)

That's the four dishes we ordered — a well-rounded pick of the best menu items.

Namsan Tower view and free corkage

Mano di Chef Myeongdong, a pasta spot with a decent view of Namsan Tower. Plus corkage is free, so if you have a wine you usually enjoy, you can bring it without any hesitation. We skipped drinks since it was a light lunch.

Now that I think about it, their wine ade is really clean and delicious — I should've ordered it. Oh well... guess I'll have to come back again.

Grilled Chicken & Caesar Salad

The first dish to arrive was the Grilled Chicken & Caesar Salad. Romaine lettuce with grilled chicken breast and croutons, all tied together with a savory dressing. The chicken breast wasn't dry at all — cooked just tender enough, and it went really well with the Caesar dressing and romaine! No wonder it's their best-selling salad.

Margherita Pizza

Then the Margherita pizza came out surprisingly fast. I really love Margherita and tend to order it wherever I go, and the one at Mano di Chef Myeongdong was really delicious! The thin, chewy crust was topped with fragrant cheese, basil, and tomato sauce. A tasty Margherita that wasn't heavy at all.

Cheers with the salad. If it's just two people, I think you could order this plus a wine ade and be totally satisfied haha. Both were so good.

Bisque sauce: Crab & Shrimp Pasta

And the crab & shrimp pasta from this Myeongdong bisque pasta spot. I didn't even know what bisque pasta was — apparently it's pasta made with a sauce base cooked from shellfish shells and heads. Is what I ate actually bisque pasta?

The cream sauce had deep umami with just the right amount of crab meat to bite into — not greasy at all, and full of flavor. There were also four really plump shrimp in it! It felt like it added even more depth to a regular cream pasta. I always order the tomato seafood pasta at this Myeongdong pasta spot, but I tried something new this time and it was very satisfying ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The only rice dish: Steak & Spicy Rice

And this is the only rice menu item at Mano di Chef, a Myeongdong pasta spot — the Steak & Spicy Rice, which I almost always order when I come. The cut steak is a whopping 150g, so there's a decent amount of meat, which fills you up — but true to its name, the spicy rice's savory heat keeps the dish, which could otherwise be greasy, perfectly balanced!

The caramelized onions add even more to the steak's flavor... an absolute banger.

A reason to go back: new menu items

True to being a Blue Ribbon-rated restaurant in Myeongdong, Mano di Chef Myeongdong never disappoints no matter when you go.

I just noticed they have new menu items now. The carrot purée & octopus gnocchi and steak & carrot hummus look amazing... why did I only see this now, ugh. I'll definitely visit again — Mano di Chef Myeongdong, a Myeongdong restaurant. The space is spacious, the atmosphere is great, and I'd strongly recommend it to anyone who wants a can't-fail pasta and pizza meal in Myeongdong.