Yangjae Stream buckwheat restaurant with mushroom dumplings: Seonbawi

What kind of restaurant is Seonbawi Memil Jangteo?

Seonbawi Memil Jangteo (Yangjae branch) is a 100% pure buckwheat restaurant about 278m from Exit 2 of Yangjae Citizens' Forest Station. It's a great place to head to when you're craving makguksu (cold buckwheat noodles) or kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) near Yangjae Citizens' Forest. We'd already tried various makguksu and bossam (boiled pork) at the Gwacheon Seonbawi branch, so we went in with high expectations.

Seonbawi's Yangjae branch is known locally as a buckwheat specialist that proudly serves 0% wheat flour, 0% starch, 100% pure buckwheat noodles. We went in thinking only of makguksu, but the menu turned out to have a wide range including clam kalguksu, so it was easy to pick something to eat. This Yangjae Citizens' Forest area restaurant is conveniently close to the station, making it a good stop before or after a walk along Yangjae Stream, and it also has parking right in front, which was handy on days we drove. We parked right outside.

• 📍 Address: 15-11 Gangnam-daero18-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🚇 Transit: About 278m from Exit 2, Yangjae Citizens' Forest Station
• 🕐 Hours: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
• 🚗 Parking: Available in front of the restaurant
• 🚻 Facilities: Separate men's/women's restrooms, group seating, Wi-Fi
• 🍜 Menu note: 100% pure buckwheat, no wheat flour or starch

How do the 0% wheat, 0% starch buckwheat noodles taste?

The first thing you notice walking in is the sign announcing 0% wheat flour, 0% starch. Buckwheat noodles are often blended with wheat flour or starch to boost chewiness, but this place puts its use of pure buckwheat front and center.

Pure buckwheat noodles have a distinctive nutty aroma and a texture that breaks apart more easily, so if you're expecting the usual chewy noodle, it might feel a little different. But if you like the taste of buckwheat itself, this Yangjae Citizens' Forest restaurant's texture might actually win you over. People who know buckwheat noodles seek this place out, while people who don't (me, in the past) tend to say the more wheat flour, the chewier and tastier — haha.

Since the noodles are freshly cut to order, this is a great choice when you want to properly enjoy buckwheat cooking.

Buckwheat clam kalguksu: how many clams and how is the broth?

Seonbawi Memil Jangteo's buckwheat clam kalguksu comes with the pot piled full of clams. We'd already worked through every kind of makguksu at Seonbawi and loved the bossam too, but today we were craving warm buckwheat noodles, so we picked this. If you went in thinking of this place only as a makguksu specialist, the clam kalguksu might surprise you all over again.

The clam portion is generous enough to catch your eye the moment it hits the table. The refreshing broth drawn from the clams, with pollack added on top, makes for a broth that's clean yet savory.

The kalguksu noodles are also made with buckwheat, so the texture is different from regular wheat-flour kalguksu. Sip the hot broth, eat some noodles, pick out a clam here and there, and before long the bowl feels quite substantial. Picking through the clams takes a bit of time, so your stomach feels light and comfortable even after finishing the noodles.

With the weather turning cooler these days, on days when you crave something hot after walking along Yangjae Stream, this makes a nice alternative to makguksu.

Neungi mushroom wang-mandu wrapped in buckwheat dough

We also tried the buckwheat dumplings — filled with mountain mushroom (neungi) and meat, wrapped in a buckwheat-flour skin, giving them a mild flavor that's easy on the stomach.

What's on the menu at Seonbawi Memil Jangteo?

Memil Jangteo's menu is more varied than you'd expect. We used to eat often at the original Gwacheon Seonbawi station branch — Gwacheon apparently doesn't have that many good restaurants, so this place is where locals go out to eat for big occasions like their kids' graduations. It's a menu older folks unconditionally love, but since kids tag along with their parents, they end up learning to appreciate buckwheat early too, haha.

• ✓ Perilla oil makguksu — A safe pick if you like the nutty flavor of perilla oil and perilla seeds mixed in.
• ✓ Pollack sashimi makguksu — Spicy-sweet pollack sashimi on top, eaten together with the buckwheat noodles.
• ✓ Dongchimi makguksu — The right choice if you prefer makguksu with a clean, refreshing radish-water broth.
• ✓ Wang-mandu — Comes in mountain mushroom or meat versions, good as a side with kalguksu or makguksu.
• ✓ Pollack sashimi suyuk — Boiled pork served with pollack sashimi and bossam radish salad, a good side order for a group.

It's not a one-trick buckwheat shop — the lineup makes it easy for everyone in a group to pick what they each feel like eating.

Who will enjoy Seonbawi Memil Jangteo most?

• ✅ Anyone who likes the nutty flavor and texture of pure buckwheat, knows its health benefits, or wants noodles with no wheat flour or starch
• ✅ Anyone who likes the distinct flavor of perilla oil makguksu
• ✅ Anyone who wants both makguksu and buckwheat kalguksu in one place, or is craving a refreshing clam-broth kalguksu
• ✅ Anyone looking for lunch near Yangjae Citizens' Forest, or a meal before/after a walk along Yangjae Stream
• ✅ Anyone dining with family or a group, or wanting to treat older relatives to old-fashioned buckwheat noodles
• ✅ Anyone looking for a Yangjae-dong restaurant with parking

The original Gwacheon branch has an old-school interior, while the Yangjae Citizens' Forest branch just finished a renovation and now feels modern.

Walking Yangjae Stream after lunch

My impression of Seonbawi's branch was that instead of flashy gimmicks, it nails the basics of pure buckwheat with confidence. If you're near Yangjae Citizens' Forest craving makguksu, or want a hot bowl of clam kalguksu, or just want a wider range of menu options to choose from, this is worth a visit.

With Yangjae Stream and the Citizens' Forest so close by, it was lovely to eat good food, chat with friends, and stroll while listening to the clear sound of the water. Fall feels like it's coming soon, and it's a shame how fast these two weeks have flown by. Guess all we can do is enjoy it as much as possible.