Itaewon Late Tab Keeper · 18 stories

Late Tab, Seoul/Gyeonggi and Incheon Bars and Restaurants

Writes about restaurants and bars across Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon, usually visited late in the evening. · Writes about: Restaurants · Bars · Things to do

PlaceJongno, SeoulThings to do

Hyehwa board game café: House of the Murderer and Pico Park at Hero

Hero Board Game Cafe Daehangno Branch is a board game café on the 2nd floor above Miniso on Daehak-ro 10-gil in Hyehwa, Seoul. After a play, the writer arrived around 4 p.m., paid the ₩5,000 unlimited rate and spent about 4 hours playing the murder mystery House of the Murderer, a Tetris arcade machine and Pico Park on the Nintendo Switch, with a chicken potato set covering dinner. Thanks to the unlimited rate, Hero Board Game Cafe Daehangno Branch is a thing to do in Seoul that gets better value the longer you stay.

Written Oct 23, 2026Sponsored
PlaceBupyeong, IncheonBars

Bupyeong tripe hot pot bar with rich broth and yuja soy: Horangi-gul

Horangi-gul Bupyeong (호랑이굴 부평점) is a gopchang jeongol (beef tripe hot pot, or motsunabe) bar with a traditional tiled-roof house concept on Pyeongnidan-gil near Bupyeong Station in Incheon. The writer ordered the beef gopchang and daechang hot pot for 2 at regular spice, finished with cheese risotto and Tico ice cream bars, and was most impressed by the rich broth thickened with melted gop (intestine fat) and the tangy yuja (citron) soy sauce. If you want a rich, hearty tripe hot pot with drinks, Horangi-gul Bupyeong is a great fit.

Written Jun 12, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeongdeungpo, SeoulRestaurants

Yeouido kaisendon restaurant: a first-timer's premium bowl, Ilpum

Ilpum Yeouido Branch is a kaisendon (raw seafood rice bowl) and sushi restaurant on basement level 1 of the Anwon Building on Eunhaeng-ro in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul. Trying kaisendon for the first time, the writer ordered a premium kaisendon, a regular kaisendon and a Hokkaido scallop cream croquette, wrapped bites in nori, then finished by mixing the leftover monkfish liver (ankimo) and crab into the rice. With chawanmushi, udon and mango pudding served alongside, Ilpum Yeouido Branch made a satisfying introduction to kaisendon.

Written Jun 14, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongbuk, SeoulBars

Seongbuk pub in Seoul with Welsh corgis: coconut sherbet at Coco's

Coco's Sungshin Women's University branch (코코스 성신여대점) is a Korean pub with food on the 2nd floor of a building near Sungshin Women's Univ. Station in Seongbuk, Seoul, where you can meet two Welsh corgi mascots. The order was coconut sherbet, honey butter cheese fries, a cheese dakgalbi (spicy stir-fried chicken) platter and handmade boneless chicken tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), and every dish at Coco's was generous and tasty. For cute corgis and good-value bar food, the cheese dakgalbi platter at Coco's Sungshin Women's University branch is a must-order.

Written Jun 17, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulRestaurants

Seongsu risotto & pasta spot: honey truffle cheese fries, Brivite

Brivite Seongsu is a pasta and risotto restaurant on Sangwon 6-gil in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. After a meal at the Gangnam branch they couldn't forget, the writer visited Brivite Seongsu and ordered a set of salmon steak pasta, spicy jambon risotto and truffle cheese fries. The truffle cheese fries, rich in truffle aroma and dipped in the honey pooled underneath, made it a particularly memorable meal.

Written Jun 18, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulRestaurants

Seongsu Taiwanese spot: classic bao cut with a knife, Bao Seoul

Bao Seoul Seongsu is a Taiwanese restaurant on Yeonmujang-gil in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. At Bao Seoul Seongsu the writer ordered the classic bao, a dongpo pork (braised pork belly) rice bowl and Taiwanese beef noodle soup. The bao was so generously filled it had to be cut with a knife, the pickles made the dongpo pork rice bowl taste fresh, and the black vinegar beef noodle broth felt unfamiliar at first, then was hard to stop drinking. Bao Seoul Seongsu is a good place for a first taste of unusual Taiwanese food that feels authentic rather than Koreanized.

Written Jun 28, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulBars

Wangsimni Korean pub: chicken hot pot tenderloin timing, Ari Gyegok

Ari Gyegok Wangsimni Hanyang University Branch is a traditional-themed Korean pub on Majo-ro 3-ga-gil in Seongdong, Seoul. Already won over by the food at another Ari Gyegok branch, the writer came to the Hanyang University branch for the original chicken hot pot, clay duck pancake, sweet potato yakgwa ice and chicken yukjeon, and was most impressed by the tender chicken tenderloin in the hot pot and the crispy skin of the clay duck pancake. Verdict: at Ari Gyegok, the original chicken hot pot's tenderloin and the clay duck pancake are must-orders.

Written Jun 26, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSongpa, SeoulRestaurants

Bangi-dong beef gopchang BBQ, 6pm wait and kkakdugi yangbap: Jinseong

Jinseong Hanwoo Gopchang Bangi Direct Branch (진성한우곱창 방이직영점) is a Hanwoo beef gopchang (small intestine) restaurant in Bangi-dong, Songpa, Seoul. After arriving at 6pm and waiting 15 minutes, the writer had 2 portions of Hanwoo gopchang, 1 portion of Hanwoo daechang (large intestine), kkakdugi yangbap (fried rice with radish kimchi) and anchovy noodles; the minari (water dropwort) pickle garlic sauce, three house-made kimchis and cabbage kimchi grilled in gopchang fat stood out. Even with the wait, the meal showed why Jinseong Hanwoo Gopchang is a go-to beef gopchang spot in Bangi-dong.

Written Jun 25, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Hongdae pizza pub, Seoul: cheese sauce tops 5 dips at Raymond's

Raymond's Hongdae is an American-style giant-slice pizza pub at 15 Yanghwa-ro 18an-gil in Mapo, Seoul. With the Monde Set, the writer dipped boneless fried chicken, truffle fries and 4 pizzas into 5 sauces one by one, and the hand-sized-plus slices paired with cheese sauce stood out most. At Raymond's Hongdae, taste each sauce first, then pick the one that suits you.

Written Jul 3, 2026Sponsored
PlaceBucheon, GyeonggiRestaurants

Bucheon Station roe and milt stew spot after an escape room: Haemul

Haemul Teukbyeolsi Bucheon Station branch is a seafood stew restaurant near Bucheon Station in Bucheon, Gyeonggi, serving stone-plate algoni-jjim (spicy fish roe and milt stew) and agujjim (spicy braised monkfish). After an escape room, three friends ordered the stone-plate algoni-jjim set at medium spice plus self-serve cheese fried rice, and the set came with corn cheese, steamed egg and seaweed soup. With big, well-seasoned milt and roe, Haemul Teukbyeolsi served a satisfying meal that three hungry people finished in no time.

Written Jul 1, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangdong, SeoulRestaurants

Cheonho octopus restaurant revisited after moving away: Jjuksami

Jjuksami Cheonho Main Branch (쭉삼이 천호본점) is a jjukkumi (webfoot octopus) restaurant at the far end of Cheonho's Jjukkumi Alley in Cheonho-dong, Gangdong, Seoul. A longtime regular who went there with her parents since childhood returned after moving away and ordered octopus, shrimp and pork belly for 2 with a cheese plate and cheese flying fish roe fried rice, plus a free spaghetti sari (extra noodles) stir-fried after the octopus was gone. Jjuksami still tastes exactly as it did back then, a true nostalgic favorite.

Written Oct 12, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Hapjeong Station Indian restaurant: Set B & chicken soup, Deli India

Deli India is an Indian restaurant on the 2nd floor on Dongmak-ro 9-gil in Mapo-gu, Seoul, between Hapjeong and Sangsu. At Deli India, the writer chose butter chicken curry for Set B and added chicken soup and mango juice, eating through salad, chicken tikka, curry, naan and rice like a full course. Verdict: Deli India's Set B is well put together, and the chicken in both the tikka and the butter chicken curry is especially tender.

Written Jul 18, 2026Sponsored