Rice Pot Neighbor · 54 stories

Beside the Rice Pot

I write about restaurants and everyday meals I visit around Seoul. · Writes about: Restaurants · Cafés · Bars · Hair & beauty salons · Things to do · Shopping

PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Wangsimni bakery: croissants and less-sweet egg tarts, Jakeun Ojilin

Jakeun Ojilin Wangsimni Station branch (작은어질인 왕십리역점) is a bakery right next to Exit 6 of Wangsimni Station in Seongdong, Seoul. On a weekday late afternoon the writer picked up a pain suisse, an egg tart, a financier and a croissant to take away, and the flaky croissant and the egg tart with its not-too-sweet cream stood out. Jakeun Ojilin is a Wangsimni bakery with easygoing college-area prices, worth stopping by often if you live nearby.

Written Nov 8, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Seongsu bakery takeout: palmier and gift salt bread at Forest Oven Lab

Forest Oven Lab is a Seongsu bakery café on the 2nd floor of a building on Seoulsup 4-gil in Seongdong, Seoul. The writer took home four breads from Forest Oven Lab: a naturally leavened sourdough baguette, a palmier, salt bread picked as a gift for a friend, and a croissant. The sourdough baguette eaten at home had a pleasant tang and nutty flavor and sat easy on the stomach. Every bread chosen was delicious, making Forest Oven Lab a Seongsu bakery worth recommending in full.

Written Nov 7, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Hongdae halal eatery: no-bread gyro platter & charger, Halal Steaks

Halal Steaks (할랄스텍스) is a halal platter and sandwich restaurant on Yanghwa-ro 16-gil near Hongik Univ. Station in Mapo, Seoul. Eating solo, the writer ordered a medium gyro platter with the no-bread option at the kiosk and fully charged a phone at the in-store charger during the meal. Relaxed for solo diners, with beef and lamb over basmati rice and a good white sauce and hot sauce combination, Halal Steaks has become the writer's regular solo-dining spot in Hongdae.

Written May 11, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulCafés

Diet-friendly Apgujeong brunch café: chicken Caesar at Le Bon Goûter

Le Bon Goûter (르봉구떼) is a French-style brunch café on Eonju-ro 164-gil near Apgujeongnodeo Station in Gangnam, Seoul. After booking on Naver, the writer had a chicken Caesar salad loaded with chicken and a smoked salmon galette topped with fresh flowers, and also checked parking (₩5,000 for the first 120 minutes), valet, pet and corkage policies. Le Bon Goûter pleases both the eyes and the palate, an Apgujeong brunch spot worth returning to for a date.

Written Nov 6, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Seongsu dessert café for Pepero Day gifts and wine at home: Notldun

Notldun is a dessert café in Seongsu, on Seoulsup 2-gil near Ttukseom Station in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. On a weekday afternoon visit, the writer had the Signature Blanc and Signature Noir cakes packed cold to enjoy at home with wine, and browsed Notldun's financier selection and Valrhona madeleine collection as Pepero Day gifts. With elegant gift boxes and neat cold packaging, Notldun is a great choice for special-occasion dessert gifts.

Written Nov 7, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeongdeungpo, SeoulRestaurants

Saetgang Station burger takeout, soft minced patty: Dumburger Yeouido

Dumburger Yeouido is a handmade burger joint right in front of Exit 1 of Saetgang Station in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul. On the way to a book café, the writer picked up a Signature Dumburger, a cheeseburger and coleslaw to go, and the soft patty made from finely minced meat was the standout. With a hand-wash sink and counter seating, Dumburger Yeouido is a handmade burger spot worth returning to for lunch in Yeouido.

Written Nov 6, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulHair & beauty salons

Hongdae hair salon: metal detox clinic for stiff, oily hair, Juno Hair

Juno Hair Hongdae Entrance Branch is a large hair salon right outside Exit 2 of Hongik Univ. Station in Mapo, Seoul. During the change of seasons, the writer brought stiff, oily hair to Juno Hair for the Premium Hair Care S Course, which starts with a metal detox. The care ran while the writer relaxed in a Verspa massage chair, and the visit finished with hair styling. The Juno Hair S Course left the hair noticeably firmer and softer right away, making it a very satisfying treatment.

Written Nov 6, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulCafés

Apgujeong dessert shop for CSAT gifts: thin cookies, Donuts Yun

Donuts Yun Apgujeong is a dessert shop near Apgujeong Station in Gangnam, Seoul, where fruit sando (fruit cream sandwiches), donuts, handmade Pepero and cookies can be packed together to take away. While preparing Pepero Day and CSAT (Korea's college entrance exam) gifts, the writer bought a mixed fruit sando, 3 kinds of brown butter thin cookies and egg tarts, and the owner packed each kind separately, which made gifting easy. For putting several desserts together as one gift set in Apgujeong, Donuts Yun Apgujeong is a good fit.

Written Nov 5, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulCafés

Hongdae ice cream café for a solo pistachio treat: Chimney Mansion

Chimney Mansion is a large, country-house-style chimney bread (trdelník-style) dessert café in a quiet alley between Hongdae and Hapjeong Station in Mapo, Seoul. On a hot day, the writer went to Chimney Mansion alone, ordered the Lucky Chimney Pistachio ice cream on the 1st floor, and ate it at a 2nd-floor window seat, cutting the chimney bread with scissors to dip into the ice cream. Better known for its chimney bread, Chimney Mansion turned out to be a great summer dessert café for settling in solo, thanks to its fresh ice cream and cozy atmosphere.

Written May 15, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeongdeungpo, SeoulRestaurants

Salmon sushi restaurant in Yeouido: in-season set & aburidon, Ilpum

Ilpum Yeouido Branch is a sushi and Japanese rice bowl restaurant on the B1 floor of Anwon Building on Eunhaeng-ro, near National Assembly Station in Yeouido, Seoul. The writer booked ahead for a weekend visit and ordered aburidon (a rice bowl of surface-seared seafood), a salmon sushi set and shrimp sushi, with a meal that ran from soup and chawanmushi to tempura udon and mango pudding. Ilpum Yeouido Branch is a good Japanese restaurant for salmon sushi and seared aburidon in autumn, when salmon is in season.

Written Nov 4, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJongno, SeoulRestaurants

Pine tree view Korean BBQ near Gyeongbokgung: 1++ ribs, Gukbinkwan

Tonguidong Gukbinkwan is a hanok-style hanwoo (Korean beef) restaurant in Tongui-dong, near Gyeongbokgung in Jongno, Seoul. At a seat overlooking the pine tree by the entrance, the writer had the 1++ hanwoo short rib platter, briquette-grilled deodeok (bellflower root) and steamed rice; staff grilled everything, and the water kimchi and sweet pumpkin salad were good enough to refill. Tonguidong Gukbinkwan delivers both atmosphere and great hanwoo, with Gyeongbokgung close by for a walk after the meal.

Written Nov 4, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeongdeungpo, SeoulRestaurants

Yeouido IFC Mall Korean restaurant for a slow-aging diet: Modam Urban

Modam Urban is a Korean set-meal (hanjeongsik) restaurant on the L3 floor of IFC Mall in Yeouido, Seoul, serving meet-the-parents sets, royal-style sura-sang tables and à la carte dishes. A blogger who follows a slow-aging diet booked Modam Urban ahead of an IFC Mall outing and ordered crispy bulgogi and a barley cream risotto topped with chicken; 6 starters, including mung bean porridge and mushroom pyeonyuk, filled the table along with the mains. With fresh vegetables, whole-grain rice and mushroom dishes, Modam Urban is a calm, casual-upscale Korean restaurant where you can eat healthily and leave full.

Written Nov 2, 2026Sponsored