Back Kitchen Visitor · 40 stories

A Back Kitchen in Daejeon

Writes about small restaurants and everyday meals around the Daejeon and Chungcheong area. · Writes about: Restaurants · Bars · Cafés

PlaceYeonsu, IncheonCafés

Dog-friendly Songdo outlet café: pulpy citrus grapefruit ade, Wunder

Wunder Coffee Bar Hyundai Premium Outlet Songdo Branch is a pet-friendly café in the B1 food square of the Hyundai Premium Outlet Songdo (Songhyeona) in Yeonsu, Incheon. On a weekend shopping trip, the writer and a partner ordered a tangerine grapefruit ade (6,500 won) and a Wunder Gato (7,500 won) with vanilla ice cream, then took a break among other customers with dogs. Wunder Coffee Bar is a good spot for a sugar boost with your dog when shopping at the Songdo outlet wears you out.

Written Nov 15, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeonsu, IncheonRestaurants

Songdo pasta restaurant date, every dish extra spicy: Cenacolo Artfore

Cenacolo Artfore is a pasta and risotto restaurant on the 2nd floor of Artfore Building C in Songdo, Yeonsu, Incheon. On a weekend date at a window seat, the writer and their partner ordered abalone vongole pasta (25,000 won), sweet shrimp risotto (24,000 won) and shrimp rosé pasta (26,000 won), all with the extra-spicy option, and the moderate heat kept every dish from feeling greasy. For a Songdo date spot where you can adjust the spice level to taste, Cenacolo Artfore is a good choice.

Written Nov 14, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeonsu, IncheonRestaurants

Teppanyaki lunch in Songdo: free parking, spicy-sauce tonpeiyaki, Jojo

Jojo Triple Street Branch is an okonomiyaki and yakisoba teppanyaki restaurant on the 1st floor of Building C at Triple Street in Songdo, Yeonsu, Incheon. On a weekday lunch, the blogger parked in the underground lot and shared the Jojo Signature Set for 2 (₩39,000), with okonomiyaki (savory pancake), karai yakisoba (spicy stir-fried noodles) and tonpeiyaki (pork and egg omelet), kept warm on a large tabletop grill. The favorite combination was tonpeiyaki dipped in Jojo's spicy special sauce, making it a filling, good-value meal.

Written Nov 14, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMichuhol, IncheonRestaurants

Michuhol ramen shop: spicy dongpo & jambon date lunch, Menya Seoul

Menya Seoul Lotte Department Store Incheon Branch is a ramen shop in the B1 food hall of Lotte Department Store in Michuhol, Incheon, and was selected for the 2027 Blue Ribbon Survey. During a shopping date, the writer and their partner had the spicy dongpo chashu ramen set (12,900 won) and the spicy jambon chashu ramen (10,900 won) with an extra ajitamago (marinated egg), and enjoyed the deep, spicy broth, chewy noodles and tender chashu. Menya Seoul is a good choice for lunch during a date at Lotte Department Store Incheon.

Written Nov 11, 2026Sponsored
PlaceChuncheon, GangwonRestaurants

Chuncheon tuna restaurant for a floor-seat date: Maguro Tuna

Maguro Tuna is an aged-tuna restaurant on the 3rd floor of a building on Boan-gil in Hupyeong-dong, Chuncheon, Gangwon. The writer and their partner sat at a floor-seating table for the Jin course (53,000 won): Mediterranean bluefin tuna sashimi cut by cut, refills, and complimentary fatty belly sushi and shrimp tempura. For couples in Chuncheon who want a tuna course and a glass of soju in a cozy setting, Maguro Tuna is good value.

Written Nov 6, 2026Sponsored
PlaceChuncheon, GangwonRestaurants

Pasta restaurant in Chuncheon for a rainy day: three plates at Layout

Layout Chuncheon is a pasta and Western-style restaurant on Jungangno in Chuncheon, Gangwon. On a rainy-day lunch during a Gangwon trip, the writer and a partner shared aglio e olio (16,000 won), spicy vongole (22,000 won) and white ragu paccheri (23,000 won), with free parking behind the building and cozy lighting and a window bar table setting a date mood. Layout Chuncheon is a good pick for an easy-parking pasta date on a Chuncheon trip.

Written Nov 7, 2026Sponsored
PlaceHwaseong, GyeonggiRestaurants

Korean lunch spot in Dongtan: jjageuli with ramen, 1992 Deopbap

1992 Deopbap&Jjaglee Dongtan Seok-u branch is a good-value Korean lunch restaurant on Keunjaebong-gil near Samseong in Ildongtan (Dongtan 1), Hwaseong. The writer added ramen noodles to the signature Deumppuk Jjageuli (a thick, spicy Korean stew) and ordered the seasoned yukhoe (raw beef) Jeonju bibimbap as a kimchi stew set, and both came in big portions with rich broth. Verdict: 1992 Deopbap&Jjaglee is a good-value Dongtan pick for office workers who want a filling Korean lunch.

Written May 15, 2026Sponsored
PlaceChuncheon, GangwonRestaurants

Pink-salt pork jowl katsu for two in Chuncheon: Jeongseong Katsu

Jeongseong Katsu Chuncheon Hyoja Branch is a tonkatsu restaurant in Hyoja-dong, Chuncheon, that uses Korean Handdon pork and sits a 3-minute walk from Kangwon National University's back gate. The writer and their partner ordered the pork jowl katsu set and the sweet potato cheese katsu set (₩14,900 each) with the basic sauce, dipping the cutlets alternately in pink salt and tonkatsu sauce. Each set came with rice, curry and a spicy cabbage salad. Jeongseong Katsu is a good fit for two people who want to try both the sweet potato mousse's sweetness and the pork jowl's chewiness.

Written Nov 5, 2026Sponsored
PlaceChuncheon, GangwonRestaurants

Chuncheon sushi buffet: smoked pork belly and injeolmi bingsu — QooQoo

QooQoo Chuncheon Branch is an all-you-can-eat sushi buffet on Jiseok-ro in Toegye-dong, Chuncheon. On a Chuncheon trip, the writer and a partner arrived right at weekday opening and tried sushi, hot dishes such as smoked pork belly and lamb chops, en croute soup, Pokémon collaboration cakes, soybean-powder and injeolmi bingsu (shaved ice with red beans), and bead ice cream. With spacious seating, a kids' play room and a wide menu, QooQoo Chuncheon Branch is a solid pick for family gatherings too.

Written Nov 3, 2026Sponsored
PlaceAnseong, GyeonggiCafés

Gongdo, Anseong date café: rosé pasta & pizza bread, Chat Baker

Chat Baker Brunch & Bakery Café is a large two-floor brunch and bakery café on Seodong-daero in Gongdo-eup, Anseong, Gyeonggi. On a weekend date, the writer and their partner had Gongju chestnut bread, pizza bread and iced Americanos, plus Johnsonville sausage rosé pasta (19,000 won) and bacon cream pasta in a bread bowl (20,800 won), and found the roomy seating, free parking and dog-friendly outdoor terrace convenient. From the bread to the pasta, everything at Chat Baker was satisfying, making it a brunch café in Gongdo, Anseong worth recommending for a date.

Written Oct 30, 2026Sponsored
PlaceHwaseong, GyeonggiRestaurants

Dongtan Lake Park Japanese restaurant: mini-brazier gyukatsu, Hurato

Hurato Sikdang Dongtan Lake Commo (후라토식당 동탄레이크꼬모점) is a Japanese restaurant on the 2nd floor of Lake Commo by Dongtan Lake Park in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi. At a weekend lunch at Hurato Sikdang, we ordered gyukatsu (breaded beef cutlet) and the steak rice bowl, 19,500 won each, plus the summer seasonal cold soba for 10,000 won. We grilled the gyukatsu ourselves on a mini brazier with a stone plate, and free underground parking and high chairs made the visit easy. Hurato Sikdang is a good Japanese spot for a date or family meal followed by a walk around Dongtan Lake Park.

Written May 28, 2026Sponsored
PlacePyeongtaek, GyeonggiRestaurants

Pyeongtaek cockle restaurant, late dinner after sellout: Kkomak Manse

Kkomak Manse Pyeongtaek Manse-ro Main Branch (꼬막만세 평택만세로본점) is a Korean restaurant specialising in Beolgyo cockles on Manse-ro in the Sosabeol area of Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi. On a late-evening visit for two, the signature Manse seasoned cockles had sold out, so we ordered the tangy Beolgyo cockle salad and the red cockle bibimbap and wrapped both in perilla leaves and seaweed. Kkomak Manse also offers free rice, a self-serve bar, high chairs and a large parking lot. It's an easy choice for a family meal or a cockle dinner for two in Pyeongtaek.

Written Oct 28, 2026Sponsored