Seongdong pasta restaurant with spicy vongole: Kongkase Seongsu

The atmosphere at Kongkase Seongsu near Seoul Forest

I visited Kongkase near Seoul Forest! The moment I opened the door and stepped inside, I was a little taken aback—it was such a polished space, like something you might find in Austria or LA. The ceilings were seriously high, and there was even a tree planted inside the restaurant, so the atmosphere was truly amazing ㅠㅠ Totally my kind of place.. There are seats where sunlight pours through the big windows, too. It is not just that currently trendy, vaguely wood-table, wood-aesthetic kind of place; the wooden tables and green-tile finish were unique and pretty haha.

As it turns out, the owner is a renowned chef who even appeared on Master of Living 😱

The meaning of Kongkase and what I ordered

The explanation of the name Kongkase on the menu was really cool, too. It is said to mean tomatoes peeled and neatly diced, and carries the idea of presenting classic dishes in a more approachable way. Based on years of on-site experience, it means adding style to classic menus—menus that made the ideas and ingredients underpinning cooking hard to encounter easily—to present them with more depth and accessibility..

I ordered a vongole, date caramel cake, and an Americano.

They have wine by the glass, and quite a varied bottle selection, too!

From the bread to the vongole

The pre-meal bread came first, presented so prettily in cute parchment paper. The olive oil served alongside smelled lovely, and dipping it in balsamic made this bread lover very happy.. The bread itself was lightly crisp outside and moist inside, so good as an appetizer.

I suddenly had a craving for this style of vongole, so I ordered it.. I cannot remember how long it had been since I ordered vongole pasta or oil pasta while eating out haha.

The vongole was mixed with julienned zucchini and something like Cheongyang chili peppers, so it had exactly the flavor I wanted, plus a little heat,,! It was generously filled with clams, and the noodles were cooked just right, perfectly al dente—slurp slurp.

With the zucchini and Cheongyang chili peppers, it had a slightly cleaner, spicy point than ordinary vongole, so I kept reaching for my fork. A subtle garlic aroma had seeped in, too, so I mopped up every bit of the sauce..

The better-than-expected date caramel cake

And the date caramel cake that I diligently ordered for dessert was honestly so much tastier than I expected! The cake itself was moist and dense, too. Paired with an Americano, it was perfect for dessert time,,

The white topping was ricotta cheese, and its soft, nutty flavor balanced beautifully with the fresh mint herb on top, which added a refreshing aroma.

The gentle sweetness distinctive to dates met caramel in what could have been a rich combination, but it was not heavy at all—just right.

Dessert by day, wine at night

They sell wine here as well, so I think it would be nice to come back next time specifically for wine. Seeing the wine glasses and bottles displayed on one side of the restaurant made me think they would have a well-rounded wine-pairing menu, too. It seems well suited to sharing a glass of wine in a moody evening setting. During the day, you can enjoy coffee and dessert as if at a café; in the evening, you can make a course-like meal of wine and pasta. It feels like such a versatile space.

The space is pretty, the food is truly delicious, and learning about the chef’s background made me trust the place even more. You can feel the care put into each ingredient right there on the plate, and it made me really want to return. If you are looking for a pasta restaurant with a great atmosphere or a pretty dessert café near Seoul Forest, I highly recommend Kongkase!