Seomyeon, Busan bar for sweet potato cheese fritters: 5 Budu Twigimjip

A second round in Seomyeon, and this place is pretty good! It's 5 Budu Twigimjip (5부두튀긴집), a chili fritter hotspot.

After a big first round, picking a second spot is surprisingly tricky, right? I don't want a bar that's too loud, but I don't want one with flimsy snacks either.

This time I had dinner in Seomyeon with a friend and went looking for somewhere to have one more light drink, and that's how I found 5 Budu Twigimjip. The mood was better than I expected and the fritters were good quality, so I was happy with it and want to introduce it to you 😊

Where is 5 Budu Twigimjip and what are its hours?

5 Budu Twigimjip is at 25-5 Jungang-daero 691beonga-gil, Busanjin-gu, Busan, on the first floor, within walking distance of Lotte Department Store in Seomyeon. It is open Mon–Thu 18:00–02:00 and Fri–Sat 18:00–03:00, and closed on Sundays.

When I visited, there was also a Naver 5% discount coupon.

The properly retro atmosphere of 5 Budu Twigimjip

The first thing I noticed on arriving was the exterior, which feels like an old market alley. A green awning and a wooden sign. It had a trendy bar vibe but also felt warm and familiar.

Inside was even more fun 😆 The walls were covered in old posters and there were low stools, so it felt a bit like walking onto a TV drama set.

Each table had red tongs and a ladle, and little details like that stirred up nostalgia. Barley tea in a Delmonte bottle. No need to explain the vibe any further, you get the feeling, right?!

5 Budu Twigimjip menu and prices

As a fritter specialist, 5 Budu Twigimjip had a really wide range. Signature fritters like the Himssen chili fritters (힘쎈고추튀김) at ₩7,000 and the Obun pan fish cake soup (오분 판오뎅) at ₩7,500 are reasonably priced.

• Himssen chili fritters ₩7,000
• Obun pan fish cake soup ₩7,500
• Seasonal mixed vegetable fritters ₩12,000
• Special shrimp fritter ₩4,000
• Haenam gourmet fritter ₩4,000
• Songrogamtwi ₩10,000

There are also plenty of Korean snack bar dishes like tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), sundae (blood sausage), croquettes and egg roll fritters, so you can order to your taste. The prices are easy on the wallet, so it looked like a decent recommendation for a second round in Seomyeon.

What we ordered that day

• 🍢 Obun pan fish cake soup
• 🌶 Himssen chili fritters
• Jagalchi squid fritters
• 🍠 Haenam gourmet fritter
• 🍺 Draft beer

How was the Obun pan fish cake soup broth?

The Obun pan fish cake soup at 5 Budu Twigimjip has an anchovy broth base with radish, so it tasted clean yet deep. It came first in a bubbling pot, and just looking at it made me want a drink. When I sipped the broth, it was clean but had real depth.

The radish added a sweet, savory umami that was the best part. Sipping the broth between bites of fritters was just perfect.

Then the fritters came out. They looked really tempting from the very first glance 🤤

Do the Himssen chili fritters live up to the name?

The Himssen chili fritters (₩7,000) at 5 Budu Twigimjip are big chili peppers packed with meat filling, and they aren't spicy, so anyone can enjoy them. The chili fritters were the first thing I ate, and they truly live up to the name. The pepper is quite large, and when I cut it in half, the meat filling was packed in with no gaps.

It was crispy outside and moist inside, and I could taste a fair amount of juiciness. A faint chili aroma comes through, but it wasn't as spicy as I expected, so I think anyone could eat it without worry.

How are the Jagalchi squid fritters as a beer snack?

The Jagalchi squid fritters at 5 Budu Twigimjip have a thin batter that stays crisp and plump squid, so they went well with beer 🦐 The batter isn't thick, just a thin coating, so the crunch stayed alive, and the squid was nice and plump too.

Every bite had a springy texture, which made it a great beer snack.

The surprise number one: Haenam gourmet fritter

The Haenam gourmet fritter (해남고메튀김, ₩4,000) at 5 Budu Twigimjip is a sweet-and-salty fritter of sweet potato with added cheese, and it was the surprise top pick of the day. At first I thought it was just a sweet potato fritter, but it was much tastier than I expected. Cheese on sweet potato completes that sweet-salty combo 🍠

Crispy outside and fluffy inside, with a great texture, and I kept reaching for more. Personally, it's the one I'd recommend right after the chili fritters. I was already fairly full, but the fritters just kept going down 🍺

5 Budu Twigimjip as a Seomyeon second round: overall review

One-line review: the chili fritters alone give you a reason to come back.

The combo of retro atmosphere, good-value snacks and a light second round worked well. If you're looking for a second-round spot in Seomyeon that isn't too heavy, 5 Budu Twigimjip was a good place for a drink.

There's a wide variety of fritters so picking is fun, and the prices are easy on the wallet. I especially recommend trying the Himssen chili fritters and the Haenam gourmet fritter 😋