Mirror Table Regular · 31 stories

Mirror and Menu

I write about beauty finds and restaurant visits around Seoul. · Writes about: Hair & beauty salons · Restaurants · Bars · Cafés · Shopping

PlaceSeongdong, SeoulHair & beauty salons

Wangsimni hair salon: blending monthly gray root dye lines, Oreudeubi

Oreudeubi Sangwangsimni Station Branch is a hair salon in the Centras shopping complex between Sangwangsimni Station and Sindang Station in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. The writer, who dyes gray roots every 3-4 weeks, visited after work on a weekday and had scalp protector applied before a ₩70,000 root dye and a treatment; the layered line left by monthly dyeing blended naturally into the lower hair. Oreudeubi Sangwangsimni Station Branch suits anyone who touches up gray roots often.

Written Apr 26, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Eel bowl restaurant in Daechi-dong: breaking a fast with Dad, Manmok

Manmok is a newly opened Japanese restaurant in Daechi-dong, Gangnam, Seoul, near Seolleung Station Exit 2, serving Kanto-style eel bowls made with Gochang freshwater eel. After fasting since the previous day for a health checkup, the writer shared a weekday lunch with Dad, ordering the whole-eel bowl with chawanmushi (steamed egg custard), two refills of white kimchi and homemade black tea and matcha ice cream. Manmok's spacious, quiet dining room makes it a solid pick for both meals with parents and office team dinners.

Written May 5, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJung-gu, SeoulRestaurants

Parents' Day Italian in Myeongdong: blueberry pizza, Mano di Chef

Mano di Chef Myeongdong Branch is an Italian restaurant with a Namsan Tower view on the 11th floor of the UNESCO Building in Myeongdong, Seoul. On Parents' Day, the writer took both parents to Mano di Chef for grilled chicken Caesar salad, gamtae (thin seaweed) pesto octopus gnocchi, blueberry arugula pizza and grapefruit ade, and both parents were very pleased. Thanks to the view, the atmosphere and the light, clean flavors, Mano di Chef Myeongdong Branch proved a successful choice for a meal with parents in Myeongdong.

Written May 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeodaemun, SeoulHair & beauty salons

Ewha hair salon mocha brown gray coverage before a wedding: Eco Revy

Eco Revy Hair Ewha Branch is a hair salon near Ewha Womans University Station in Seodaemun, Seoul, specializing in head spa and hair-loss care repair treatments. The writer, who had been touching up gray roots every month, got a free scalp and hair diagnosis at Eco Revy Hair Ewha Branch and then a full-head mocha brown color that is not too dark, ahead of a wedding next year. Eco Revy Hair Ewha Branch is a good fit for anyone who wants gray hair covered without going too dark.

Written May 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Diet-friendly halal takeout in Hongdae: platter & wrap, Halal Steaks

Halal Steaks (할랄스텍스) is a New York street-style halal fast-food restaurant near Exit 9 of Hongik Univ. Station in Mapo, Seoul. After a hair-dye appointment at a salon near Ewha Womans University and a stroll through Hongdae, the writer took home a small Signature Combo Platter and a chicken sandwich (chicken wrap) from Halal Steaks. The trip took almost an hour, yet no sauce leaked, and the meal was light rather than greasy. Halal Steaks is a good fit for anyone in Hongdae looking for a solo meal or a diet-friendly lunch.

Written May 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceWonju, GangwonRestaurants

Wonju gyukatsu restaurant, dinner with parents after Jecheon: Ichigyu

Ichigyu Wonju is a gyukatsu (breaded beef cutlet) restaurant on the first floor of Lotte Cinema in Musil-dong, Wonju. On the drive back to Seoul from a Jecheon trip, the writer stopped at Ichigyu Wonju for dinner with their parents, ordering striploin gyukatsu, Japanese curry and truffle gyudon (beef rice bowl), and the building's 2 hours of free parking made the meal easy. Ichigyu Wonju tastes no different from the Gwanghwamun and Seoul Station branches, making it a great Wonju restaurant to take your parents to.

Written May 30, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSongpa, SeoulRestaurants

Korean beef offal BBQ after a Seokchon Lake picnic in Jamsil: Midang

Midang Hanwoo Gopchang (미당한우곱창) is a Korean beef offal BBQ restaurant in the Garak Market food alley near Police Hospital Station in Songpa, Seoul. After a picnic at Seokchon Lake, three friends had lunch at Midang Hanwoo Gopchang: gopchang (beef small intestine), daechang (large intestine) and a soy-based yukhoe bibimbap (raw beef rice bowl) special, with a dipping sauce made only from Hadong plum and cheongyang chili and complimentary special cuts grilled by the owner. For clean-tasting hanwoo offal that isn't overly strong, Midang Hanwoo Gopchang is a satisfying choice.

Written May 23, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYongsan, SeoulCafés

Dessert café by CGV in Yongsan: deep chocolate before a movie, Berg

Berg I'Park Mall Yongsan is a soft serve and dessert café on the 6th floor of Fashion Park at Yongsan I'Park Mall in Yongsan, Seoul, right next to the CGV ticket booth. Before seeing the movie Gunche (군체), the writer took deep chocolate ice cream, a Landberry iced tea and the signature Ibeuje (cold brew ice cream latte) into the theater, and both the rich chocolate and the tangy berry drink were satisfying. If you want a pre-movie dessert instead of the usual popcorn and cola, Berg I'Park Mall Yongsan is a good choice.

Written May 31, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJongno, SeoulRestaurants

Jonggak noodle shop, quick lunch: stir-fried beef noodles, Cheonghwa

Cheonghwa Uyuk Dosakmyeon (청화 우육도삭면) is a beef noodle and dim sum restaurant in the Pimatgol alley on the ground floor of Le Meilleur Jongno Town, near Jonggak Station in Seoul. A Gwanghwamun office worker often meets a friend with a short lunch break at Cheonghwa Uyuk Dosakmyeon, and this time ordered the stir-fried beef noodles for the first time alongside the usual beef knife-cut noodle soup. Verdict: the spacious two-floor dining room and fast turnover keep lunch waits short, and the mildly seasoned stir-fried beef noodles sat easy on the stomach afterwards.

Written Oct 27, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJongno, SeoulRestaurants

Jonggak Korean lunch for two: jjolmyeon & hamburg steak, Bonghyejane

Bonghyejane Jubang Jongno Tower branch (봉혜자네주방) is a Korean set-meal restaurant on basement level 2 of Jongno Tower in Jonggak, Seoul, a 1-minute walk from Jonggak Station Exit 3-1. A couple working in Gwanghwamun and Euljiro met there for lunch and shared spicy jjolmyeon (chewy noodles) with flat dumplings for 12,500 won and the 1988 hamburg steak for 13,500 won; both ate their fill and still had plenty left over. Bonghyejane Jubang is a Jonggak lunch spot where even snack-style dishes deliver satisfying portions and good value.

Written Oct 25, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Yeonnam-dong pasta spot, weekend fig burrata salad: Hôtel de Couture

Hôtel de Couture (오뗄드꾸뜨) is a pasta and Western restaurant in Yeonnam-dong, Mapo, Seoul, about 500m from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 3. On a weekend morning the writer ordered an iced americano, a burrata seasonal fruit salad (19,000 won) and a mortadella lemon butter pasta (17,000 won). The writer, who usually eats salad out of duty, called the fig burrata salad the best salad they have ever had. With a sunny dining room and an easy walk to Yeontral Park, Hôtel de Couture is a good pick for a date or a blind date.

Written Oct 25, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJongno, SeoulRestaurants

Gwanghwamun salad shop for lunch with parents: gomtang pasta, Wystab

Wystab Diet Gwanghwamun is a salad, poke and protein box restaurant in the basement of Le Meilleur near Jonggak Station in Jongno, Seoul. The writer, a regular with more than 10 visits, brought their visiting parents for a weekday lunch and shared a smoked duck light protein box, an egg bomb poke protein don with beef and an American-style chicken gomtang (chicken soup) protein pasta. Verdict: Wystab Diet Gwanghwamun is mild, easy on the stomach and wait-free, a healthy Gwanghwamun lunch spot that pleased the parents too.

Written Jun 8, 2026Sponsored