Worn Mirror Traveler · 26 stories

Worn Mirror, Jeju and Seoul Faces and Bars

Writes about beauty spots, cafes, restaurants, and bars across Seoul, Jeju, and Gyeonggi, with occasional stops in Gwangju and Busan. · Writes about: Hair & beauty salons · Restaurants · Cafés · Things to do · Bars

PlacePaju, GyeonggiCafés

Paju Unjeong terrace café: lychee tea & chewy financier, Pound Coffee

Pound Coffee Unjeong Main Branch (파운커피 운정본점) is a dog-friendly café in Unjeong new town, Paju, known locally for its baked goods. The writer ordered a chamomile lychee tea (5,500 won), a Hallabong pearl yogurt (6,500 won) and the last garlic mayo financier left before it sold out (3,500 won), and enjoyed them on the terrace. Most of Pound Coffee's baked goods were sold out, but the crisp-outside, chewy-inside garlic mayo financier lived up to expectations.

Written May 30, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJongno, SeoulRestaurants

Spicy chicken stew & kalguksu in Jongno: Waryongdong Dak Maeuntang

Waryongdong Dak Maeuntang (와룡동닭매운탕) is a spicy chicken stew restaurant in Waryong-dong, Jongno, Seoul, about a 10-minute walk from Exit 7 of Jongno 3-ga Station. A small dak maeuntang (spicy chicken stew) came with a free chicken salad. With chogye guksu (cold chicken noodles) and kalguksu noodles added, two people finished everything over 4 hours and 6 bottles of soju. Waryongdong Dak Maeuntang is a Jongno pub that suits drinkers who want big portions and food that goes well with soju.

Written Jun 9, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Mapo Station gyukatsu at 5pm, no wait: regular vs fillet set, Gyudo

Premium Gyukatsu Gyudo Mapo Gongdeok Main Branch is a gyukatsu (breaded beef cutlet) restaurant on the B1 level of the Hanwha Obelisk building, right by Exit 1 of Mapo Station in Seoul. A couple arrived for the 17:00 weekend afternoon opening, walked in without a wait, shared a gyukatsu set and a fillet gyukatsu set, and finished the free cauldron pot rice with bonito or tonkotsu broth poured over it. Both the regular gyukatsu and the fillet were delicious, and Gyudo is a strongly recommended gyukatsu spot for anyone eating in Mapo or Gongdeok.

Written Jun 13, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGoyang, GyeonggiRestaurants

Pork bone stew in Baekseok, Goyang: table drink fridges at Gongdan

Gongdan Gamjatang Samgyeopsal (공단감자탕삼겹살) is a gamjatang (pork bone stew) and pork belly restaurant right outside Exit 3 of Baekseok Station in Ilsan, Goyang. The writer and her husband shared a small Mountain-Sized Gamjatang with glass noodle and sujebi (hand-pulled dough flake) add-ins, finished with fried rice, and were struck by the clean, lightly spicy broth with no heaviness, the chili soy dipping sauce and the drink fridge at every table. For gamjatang in Baekseok, Ilsan, the writer ranks Gongdan Gamjatang Samgyeopsal among her top ten gamjatang spots.

Written Jun 13, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeo-gu, IncheonRestaurants

Cheongna kalguksu restaurant: fresh kimchi refilled 3 times, Singanae

Singanae Kalguksuyuk (신가네 칼국수육) is a kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and bossam (boiled pork) restaurant in Cheongna, Seo-gu, Incheon, where 15,000 won per person gets you kalguksu with unlimited bossam refills. After work, the writer and her husband ordered the 2-person kalguksu set as one bowl of spicy jang kalguksu and one of clam-broth regular kalguksu, and refilled the geotjeori (fresh kimchi), made daily, three times. Singanae Kalguksuyuk is a good-value, clean family dinner spot in Cheongna that even serves coffee for dessert.

Written Jun 24, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGoyang, GyeonggiRestaurants

Korean BBQ near Western Dom: ogyeopsal dinner and kongguksu, Auseong

Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu (아우성 개성손만두) is a Korean restaurant near Western Dom in Ilsan, Goyang, serving ogyeopsal (five-layer pork belly) and kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup). Over dinner, 2 servings of ogyeopsal came with free steamed egg and bean sprouts grilled on the pan, followed by the summer-only kongguksu (cold soybean noodle soup); the chewy ogyeopsal had no gamey smell and the soy broth was rich and thick. For pork belly and kongguksu in one stop at Western Dom, Auseong Gaeseong Sonmandu is an easy recommendation.

Written Jun 29, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGoyang, GyeonggiRestaurants

Baekseok braised rib restaurant, level 2 heat and Coolpis: Jimidang

Jimidang Ilsan Main Branch (지미당 일산본점) is a spicy braised pork rib restaurant in Baekseok-dong, Ilsan, Goyang. The writer, who loves spicy food, and her husband, who doesn't, ordered spicy ribs for two at level 2 with a buckwheat pancake and gondre (Korean thistle) rice for dinner, and ended up reaching for Coolpis and a cooling patch. Level 2 at Jimidang Ilsan Main Branch is seriously hot, but so addictive you'll scrape the pot clean.

Written Jun 26, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGoyang, GyeonggiHair & beauty salons

Pungsan Station hair salon for a short summer men's cut: Hair Onsae

Hair Onsae (헤어온새) is a shop-in-shop shared hair salon with a barber shop inside, near Pungsan Station on Jungsan-ro in Ilsan-dong-gu, Goyang. The writer brought her husband to Hair Onsae because his shaggy long hair felt too hot for summer, and the designer turned it into a short, neat men's cut, pointed out bangs damaged by down perms and advised skipping the next down perm. After years of disappointing cuts on his own, the husband left Hair Onsae with a result good enough to impress his wife.

Written Jun 26, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeosu, GwangjuRestaurants

Yeosu City Hall shabu-shabu, mala half pot & cheese fondue: Tongkeun

Tongkeun Shabu is a shabu-shabu and salad bar restaurant on the 3rd floor of a building across from Yeocheon Fire Station in Hakdong, Yeosu. Tagging along on her husband's work trip to Yeosu, the writer ordered a half-and-half pot of mala and original broth, worked through a salad bar with cheese fondue, sushi, kkwabaerou (sweet-and-sour fried pork) and yukhoe (Korean beef tartare), and got 1++ grade hanwoo chuck through a Naver review event. Tongkeun Shabu is a good-value shabu-shabu spot in Yeosu that's worth the trip for the salad bar alone.

Written Jul 1, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYeosu, JeonnamRestaurants

Yeosu Western restaurant: spicy cream pasta & bulgogi risotto, Ravenna

Ravenna is a Western restaurant on the 2nd floor of a building on Soho-ro in Yeosu, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the sea. The order at Ravenna was a spicy cream pasta L (1.5 portions) and a miso bulgogi risotto S (1 portion). Starter bread with butter and a salad came out first, and the standout was the miso bulgogi risotto topped with gat kimchi (mustard leaf kimchi) from the self-serve bar. For a relaxed Western meal with a sea view on Soho-ro in Yeosu, Ravenna is a satisfying choice.

Written Jun 30, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulHair & beauty salons

Seolleung Station hair salon tone-up dye to matte brown: Bitnage Hair

Bitnage Hair Seolleung Station Branch is a hair salon on Teheran-ro 43-gil in Gangnam, Seoul. At Bitnage Hair Seolleung Station Branch, the blogger had a tone-up dye to fix light hair with long grown-out roots and creeping red tones; the result was a matte brown with no red, and the scalp massage during the shampoo stood out too. For anyone who wants to keep a light hair color, this Seolleung Station dye was satisfying from consultation to shampoo.

Written Jul 6, 2026Sponsored
PlacePaju, GyeonggiBars

Yadang Station pizza pub, cheese oven spaghetti: Long Time No See

Long Time No See Yadang Branch (롱타임노씨 야당점) is a self-pour draft beer pizza pub on the 2nd floor of Samyung Cinema near Yadang Station in Paju, Gyeonggi. After work, with the windows thrown wide open, the writer poured draft beer with a wristband and ate cheese oven spaghetti and a half-and-half pizza of mashed potato and spinach tomato. If you want pizza and beer with an open-air, street-terrace feel, Long Time No See Yadang Branch is a good fit.

Written Jul 7, 2026Sponsored