Gangneung breakfast restaurant at 7am, gondre bibimbap: Pick Up To You

On the last morning of my Gangneung trip, I stopped by Gukbap Cafe Pick Up To You for a hot bowl of gukbap (rice and soup) before heading out! It didn't feel like a hardcore gukbap specialist so much as a trendy gukbap spot right by the station where you can eat a solid meal before you leave.

Where is Gukbap Cafe Pick Up To You, and what time does it open?

📍 See the map

The location is basically right in front of Gangneung Station — head toward the dead-end alley and you'll find it. About a 3-minute walk from Exit 3 of Gangneung Station!

• ⏰ Hours: Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri/Sun 07:00–18:00 / Wed 09:00–16:00
• * Closed every Saturday
• 🅿︎ Parking available in front of the store

🚻 The restroom is located outside, and soap is provided. You take a key, unlock the gate, and it locks automatically behind you.

☆ Zero Pay accepted

Is Gukbap Cafe Pick Up To You comfortable for solo diners?

Gukbap Cafe Pick Up To You has pretty spacious seating and seemed like a fine place to come alone. While we were eating, about 10 young people who looked like college students came in and sat in two groups of 5 at neighboring tables. There seemed to be a lot of delivery orders too.

Since not many places open this early in the morning, this seems like a great spot especially for travelers without a car who want breakfast gukbap before catching a train.

I'll share the Wi-Fi password too — water is self-serve from the water purifier.

Menu and how to order at Gukbap Cafe Pick Up To You

You can scan the QR code on the table to see the full menu with photos. There are 9 core dishes, and when ordering you can choose whether to include bean sprouts and how spicy you want it. True to the name 'gukbap cafe,' they also sell coffee.

The beef bone gomtang (bone broth soup) is apparently made with Gangwon Korean beef bones. Salt and pepper are on the table so you can season to taste. The beef head gukbap comes out white, but the owner gives you dadaegi (spicy chili paste) to add if you want it spicy. The gukbap broths are simmered from pork bones, beef bones, and chicken feet.

There was Hongcheon Korean beef head gomtang broth in the fridge, which seemed to be the base they use. The broth was so rich and deep I wanted to buy a pack to take home.

Even the way the spoons were neatly stacked showed how thoughtful the owner is.

What the four gukbap bowls taste like

The basic side dishes were braised tofu and diced radish kimchi! The tofu was pan-fried with sauce on top, and it was nutty and savory.

In order: beef brisket gondre (mountain vegetable) bibimbap, spicy hangover gukbap loaded with bean sprouts, Korean beef head gukbap, and soft tofu gomtang. With the bibimbap they give you gomtang broth on the side, and you adjust the seasoning to taste. I'd only ever had gondre bibimbap made from dried-out frozen greens before, but here it felt like fresh vegetables.

The soft tofu gomtang was mild, which made it great for breakfast. Unlike the sundubu-tang (spicy soft tofu stew) I'd had a few days earlier, this one used gomtang broth, so it was easy to eat with rice. The soft tofu itself was silky and soft, fitting for a region famous for sundubu.

The beef head gukbap came with thin wheat noodles. As the noodles softened, they seemed to cool the broth down a bit, so it would also work well for feeding little kids rice mixed into soup.

Here's what it looked like after I'd stirred all the noodles in!

The beef brisket gondre bibimbap surprised me — it was way better than expected! The brisket was cooked almost fried-crisp, which paired really well with the rest.

For the spicy hangover gukbap loaded with bean sprouts, you can choose sundae (blood sausage) only, meat only, or half-and-half — I went with half-and-half. The sundae wasn't the glassy noodle kind but more like abai sundae, and the thinly sliced meat was generous, so it felt hearty.

There was so much stuff packed into the bowl that I was already full by breakfast.

Adding a handmade pork cutlet for 5,000 won a piece

And then the handmade pork cutlet I'd been most excited about!! You can choose loin or tenderloin. The set menu is ₩12,000 for 2 pieces, but you can add just 1 piece for ₩5,000!! I couldn't find it under side dishes, but it was listed as an add-on under the gukbap menu, so I added it that way~~

It came as one big piece, easy for four people to share, with thick, crispy meat. Exactly the taste of a homemade pork cutlet!

Japanese-style tonkatsu is delicious too, but sometimes you crave this kind of homestyle pork cutlet. The gomtang and gukbap here are great, but the pork cutlet... it's seriously delicious!! I'd almost call this a pork cutlet specialty spot.