Stroller Bench Sitter · 12 stories

Pine Bench, Kids Menu

Writes about family-friendly restaurants, cafes and beauty stops around Seoul, Gyeonggi and Gangwon, and how they went with kids in tow. · Writes about: Kids & baby · Restaurants · Cafés · Hair & beauty salons

PlaceSokcho, GangwonRestaurants

Sokcho breakfast restaurant, octopus stew over rice: Deungdae Gotgan

Deungdae Gotgan (등대곳간) is an ocean-view Korean restaurant right in front of Deungdae Beach in Yeongnang-dong, Sokcho. On the first morning of a Sokcho trip, the writer weighed octopus hangover soup but ordered jjageul nakji (spicy simmered octopus stew) and a pork cutlet instead, spooning the spicy octopus stew over seasoned seaweed flakes and rice and alternating with the crispy cutlet until the rice bowl was empty. Deungdae Gotgan opens early, making it a good place for a hearty first meal of a Sokcho trip.

Written Apr 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSokcho, GangwonRestaurants

Sokcho Beach noodle spot: crispy shredded potato pancake, Topgol

Sokcho Topgol Makguksu Main Branch is a makguksu (buckwheat noodle) restaurant right in front of Sokcho Beach in Sokcho, Gangwon, popular with locals and family travelers. After a walk along the beach, the writer arrived just past the lunch rush and ordered perilla oil makguksu, bibim makguksu, memil jeonbyeong (buckwheat crepe rolls) and gamja-jeon (potato pancake). The nutty perilla oil makguksu and sweet-and-sour bibim makguksu were good, but the crispy shredded-potato pancake is the dish the writer still remembers most.

Written Apr 22, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongnam, GyeonggiRestaurants

Seohyeon Station kalguksu shop I've loved since 20: Gangnam Gyoja

Gangnam Gyoja Bundang Seohyeon Branch (강남교자 분당서현점) is a kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and gyoja dumpling restaurant on the 2nd floor of Dadu Plaza, right in front of Seohyeon Station in Bundang, Seongnam. The writer has visited every season for over 10 years, since age 20, and ordered spicy kalguksu, basic kalguksu and gyoja dumplings for two; the one-dish-per-person garlic kimchi and juicy dumplings were as good as ever. When you crave kalguksu with garlic kimchi, Gangnam Gyoja Bundang Seohyeon Branch still delivers the same classic taste.

Written Apr 27, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Katsu restaurant at Sinsa Station, weekend late lunch: Ikki Roll Katsu

Ikki Roll Katsu Garosu-gil Main Branch is a roll katsu restaurant on basement level 1 at the start of Garosu-gil, near Sinsa Station in Gangnam, Seoul. For a spring weekend late lunch, the writer ordered chicken cheese roll katsu, rosé katsu and salad-loaded flame-grilled brisket jjolmyeon (chewy spicy noodles), with cream soup and jangguk (clear soup) from the self-bar. The chicken cheese roll katsu, which is less greasy because it is made with chicken, is a must-order on every return visit.

Written May 11, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulCafés

Sinnonhyeon bakery café: mocha salt bread & Americano, Bakerist Brown

Bakerist Brown is a bakery café spread over B1 to 3F behind the CGV near Sinnonhyeon Station and Gangnam Station in Seoul. After a dermatology appointment, the writer stopped at Bakerist Brown for a favorite pairing of mocha salt bread and an Americano, plus the signature salt coffee and the May seasonal mango cream croissant. Bakerist Brown is worth a visit if you want a range of salt bread alongside seasonal fruit desserts.

Written May 15, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulCafés

Sinsa Station café: choco butter sand after lunch, Butter & Shelter

Butter & Shelter Gangnam-Sinsa is a butter sand bakery café on Garosu-gil near Sinsa Station in Gangnam, Seoul. After a Sunday lunch, the scent of butter drew the writer into Butter & Shelter for an Americano and a favorite choco butter sand, then out again with chewy butter tteok (butter rice cake) and an original butter sand to take on a picnic. Butter & Shelter Gangnam-Sinsa is a Sinsa Station dessert café that covers good coffee and trendy desserts in one stop.

Written May 17, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulHair & beauty salons

Apgujeongnodeo salon repair clinic + thick-hair cut: Choijin Hair

Choijin Hair Apgujeongnodeo flagship is a hair salon right in front of Apgujeongnodeo Station, on Seolleung-ro 161-gil in Gangnam, Seoul. A reviewer with damaged hair from daily flat-ironing had a repair clinic, a cut and a blow-dry at Choijin Hair, and her frizzy hair came out smooth and silky, with very thick hair carefully thinned by scissors. Choijin Hair is a satisfying Apgujeongnodeo salon for anyone who wants damaged-hair repair and thinning in one visit.

Written May 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongnam, GyeonggiRestaurants

Jeongja Café Street Italian restaurant for a cold night: Kin's Dining

Kin's Dining is a newly opened brunch and Italian restaurant on Jeongja-dong Café Street near Jeongja Station in Bundang, Seongnam. On a suddenly cold evening, the writer ordered the two dishes at the top of the menu, truffle mushroom potato gnocchi and roast chicken Toowoomba rigatoni. Both were delicious, and the small, cozy room was a plus. If you like gnocchi and rigatoni, start with Kin's Dining's two signature dishes.

Written Oct 22, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Seongsu soufflé café after a pop-up: tiramisu & hot moka pot, 5to7

5to7 Seongsu Main Branch is a soufflé pancake dessert café on Seoulsup 2-gil, right at the entrance to Seoulsup in Seongsu, Seoul. After browsing a Seoulsup character pop-up store, the writer waited 30 minutes on a weekday afternoon and enjoyed a tiramisu soufflé, a hot moka pot americano and a cream cheese matcha latte on the 5to7 terrace. 5to7 Seongsu Main Branch is a soufflé-and-coffee spot where the moka pot americano is as worth returning for as the fluffy soufflé.

Written Oct 16, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYongin, GyeonggiRestaurants

Dongbaek butcher BBQ for two: hanwoo skirt & pork neck, Hanokjip

Dongbaek Hanokjip Charcoal Grill Butcher Restaurant is a butcher-style Korean BBQ restaurant near Eojeong Station in Dongbaek, Giheung-gu, Yongin, where you choose meat aged in-house and grill it over charcoal. Two people shared hanwoo (Korean beef) skirt steak, pork neck and bibim naengmyeon (spicy cold noodles) dressed with kelp vinegar, and the self-serve banchan bar and sides like doenjang sulbap (soybean paste stew rice) were satisfying too. Dongbaek Hanokjip is a generous neighborhood BBQ spot: they were so full the marinated pork galbi had to wait for next time.

Written Oct 22, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongnam, GyeonggiRestaurants

Garlic bulgogi & Yeongcheon-style bibimbap in Pangyo: Bulgogi On Soban

Bulgogi On Soban Pangyo Branch is a Korean restaurant on basement level 1 of Samhwan Hipex Building A in Sampyeong-dong, Pangyo, Seongnam. On the first day of the October long holiday, the writer had lunch at Bulgogi On Soban and ordered the signature sizzling-plate bulgogi set with 48-hour aged garlic beef bulgogi, served with lettuce wraps, black rice, bean sprout soup and house-made side dishes. Even after a long gap, the bean sprout soup and yukhoe bibimbap (raw beef bibimbap) at Bulgogi On Soban taste just as good, making it a Pangyo Korean restaurant worth returning to.

Written Oct 11, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Cheongdam Station Korean restaurant: hot-day solo kalguksu at Mimgye

Cheongdam Mimgye is a Korean restaurant specialising in chicken dishes, 1 minute from Exit 8 of Cheongdam Station in Gangnam, Seoul. To dodge the rush-hour subway, the writer had dinner there: abalone chicken soup (dakgomtang) and half-chicken kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup), seasoned to taste with minced garlic and dadaegi (spicy seasoning paste), a hot broth that warmed them through on a hot day. With a solo bar table, free corkage and unlimited rice at weekday lunch, Cheongdam Mimgye is an easy place near Cheongdam Station for a nourishing Korean meal.

Written Jun 19, 2026Sponsored
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