Jongno pizza pub with parmesan self-bar and fries: Backstreet Pizza

Today I'm bringing you a review of Backstreet Pizza, famous as one of Jongno's best pizza spots! It's near Jongno Pocha Street and Ikseon-dong, so it's a great stop on a date course, and once you head down to the basement you get this cozy hideout vibe. The pizza lets you enjoy four flavors on one pie, which is perfect for us since we always want to try a bit of everything haha. Let's get into the Jongno pizza restaurant review, Backstreet Pizza.

Where is Backstreet Pizza, and what are the hours?

Backstreet Pizza / 16-2 B1 Supyo-ro 26-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul (75-4 Donui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul) ⏰ Hours: Weekdays 12:00–24:00, weekends 11:00–23:00, last order 23:15 🍕 Group-friendly, Wi-Fi, takeout, reservations, easy pay

Backstreet Pizza, a well-known Jongno pizza spot, is about a 2-minute walk from Jongno 3-ga Station Exit 5.

Coming out of Exit 5, walk about 200m toward Jongno's Jinnakji alley and you'll reach the The Dream Chuksan building. The restaurant is on the basement level, and it's much easier to spot once you look for the red door. It sits right between Jongno Pocha Street and Ikseon-dong, so it's great for wandering around before or after your meal, and it works well as part of a date course.

Weekdays 12:00–23:00, weekends 11:00–23:00, weekday last order 22:15. Weekends open an hour earlier than weekdays, and on weekdays last order is at 10:15pm, so keep that in mind if you're planning a late visit.

A basement hideout in Jongno 3-ga

Once you head down to the basement at Backstreet Pizza, you find a cozy, hideout-like space. The overall lighting is dim, so it feels less like a pizza restaurant and more like a moody, atmospheric pub.

Thanks to the soft lighting, the atmosphere is great and it's a nice spot for two people to sit and chat quietly, which made it a good fit as a Jongno date spot.

What's on the Backstreet Pizza menu?

• PIZZA — Quarter Street R ₩38,000 / L ₩50,000, Shrimp Gangster R ₩35,000 / L ₩47,000, Cheese & Patty Bomb R ₩33,500 / L ₩45,000, Mushroom BANG! R ₩30,500 / L ₩42,000, Potato Killer R ₩28,500 / L ₩38,500, Mac n cheese R ₩27,500 / L ₩37,500, Papperoni Shotgun R ₩27,000 / L ₩37,000, Hawaiian R ₩26,500 / L ₩35,000, Papperoni R ₩23,000 / L ₩33,000, Cheddar Cheese R ₩21,000 / L ₩26,000, Half & Half R ₩2,000 / L ₩3,000
• DRAFT — RedRock ₩6,000, Kozel ₩8,000, Hoegaarden ₩8,000, Stella Artois ₩8,000
• SIDE — French Fries ₩9,900, Buffalo Wing (Garlic) ₩12,900, Fried Chicken (Boneless) ₩16,900, Yangnyeom Chicken (Boneless) ₩16,900, Half & Half Chicken (Fried + Yangnyeom) ₩17,900
• BOTTLE — Big Wave ₩7,000, Pilsner Urquell ₩7,000, Corona ₩7,000, Desperados ₩7,000, Heineken ₩7,000
• SOFT DRINK — Coca-Cola ₩3,000, Coca-Cola Zero ₩3,000, Pepsi Zero ₩3,000, Sprite ₩3,000, Sprite Zero ₩3,000, Toms Zero (Apple, pine, orange) ₩3,000, Dr. Pepper ₩3,000
• HIGHBALL — Midori Sour ₩8,000, Blue Hawaii ₩8,000, YuJa Oolong ₩8,000, It's Lychee ₩8,000
• SOJU — Chamisul Fresh ₩5,000, Chum Churum ₩5,000, Cass ₩6,000

Ta-da~ Our pizza and fries arrived! With four flavors on one pie, it was great for trying several flavors at once. Let's go through each one!

Quarter Street, 38,000 won for four flavors on one pie

Quarter Street, ₩38,000. Backstreet's signature menu, letting you enjoy four flavors on one pizza.

Shrimp Gangster: four shrimp on every slice

The first flavor we tried was Shrimp Gangster! Piled high with plump buttered shrimp — each slice has a whopping four shrimp on it, so it looked super generous right from the start haha.

The shrimp had a nice springy texture with a subtle, savory butter flavor, and with the cheese on top, the whole thing came together soft and rich. The shrimp were so big that you really felt their presence in every bite, and the texture was great chewed together with the cheese.

Of course you have to dip the crust ends in the sauce haha. I assumed at first it was a regular garlic dip, but it turned out to be yogurt-based — slightly tangy and clean. It cut through the richness nicely and was perfect for the crust ends, and honestly I reached for it more than a garlic dip.

Pepperoni Shotgun: double the pepperoni

Next up was Papperoni Shotgun! The name alone sounds intense haha. It's supposed to have double the pepperoni of a regular pepperoni pizza, and one bite in you could really feel that thick, salty pepperoni flavor with a slight kick of spice.

With pepperoni piled generously on top, every bite delivered a strong, salty pepperoni flavor, and combined with the savory cheese it was exactly that classic, rich pepperoni pizza taste. If you're already a fan of pepperoni pizza, this one's a safe bet.

The self-bar: parmesan cheese powder and hot sauce

Backstreet Pizza's self-bar had parmesan cheese powder and hot sauce ready to go, so you could season each slice to your taste. Parmesan for a richer, savory bite, or hot sauce when you want a little spice — it was fun switching things up slice by slice.

Potato Killer: fries with bacon and honey

Next was Potato Killer! Seasoned fries topped with salty bacon and sweet honey.

One bite gave you the fluffy texture of the fries, the saltiness of the bacon, and a subtle honey sweetness all at once — the sweet-and-salty combo really worked. With fries as a topping, this one was noticeably heavier and more filling than the other pizzas.

With a little honey sweetness slipping in between the salty pizza flavor, it was oddly addictive and I kept going back for more haha.

Cheese & Patty Bomb: a burger in pizza form

Next up was Cheese & Patty Bomb! Beef patty topped with jalapeño, pickles, and tomato, finished with cheddar cheese. One bite in, the hearty beef patty combined with the savory cheddar made it feel a little like eating a burger in pizza form haha. The spicy jalapeño and tangy pickles cut through the richness here and there, and the balance was better than I expected.

Drinks at Backstreet Pizza, including Sprite Zero

You need something fizzy with pizza~ Lots of places have Coke Zero, but Zero Sprite is surprisingly rare haha. I'm a total Sprite person, so I was really happy to see Zero Sprite at Backstreet Pizza.

Drinking it with the pizza cut through the richness completely and made everything taste even cleaner. We had somewhere to be afterward, so we skipped beer, but with such salty, topping-loaded pizza, it would pair really well with a cold one. Next time I visit, I definitely want to have it with beer haha.

French fries, 9,900 won

French Fries, ₩9,900. The fries were dusted with seasoning, giving them just the right salty kick.

Instead of just long straight fries, there were also fluffy potato chunks mixed in, so there was a nice variety of textures. Crispy outside and fluffy inside — delicious to snack on between pizza slices haha.

What I liked and what fell short at Backstreet Pizza

• 👍 Only 2 minutes on foot from Jongno 3-ga Station, so it's very accessible
• 👍 Close to Ikseon-dong and Jongno Pocha Street, easy to combine with a date course
• 👍 Four flavors on one pie make for fun sampling
• 👍 Toppings across the board are generous — shrimp, pepperoni, potatoes, beef patty
• 🥲 Being in the basement, first-timers might walk right past the entrance

🍕 Bottom line — Backstreet Pizza, a great Jongno pizza spot where you can enjoy four distinct flavors on one pie without ever getting bored. With its cozy pub atmosphere on top, it was a great stop for pizza and a drink while on a date in Ikseon-dong, and next time I definitely want to try it with beer too 🍕🍺