Folded Map Drifter · 31 stories

A Folded Map Through Busan and Gangwon

She writes about cafes, restaurants, bars, beauty spots, and stays across Seoul, Gyeonggi, Busan/Gyeongnam, Gwangju/Jeolla, Gangwon, and Daegu/Gyeongbuk. · Writes about: Restaurants · Cafés · Stays · Bars · Hair & beauty salons

PlaceSeongdong, SeoulRestaurants

Ttukseom tonkatsu: a pregnant couple's weekday lunch at Katsuryu

Katsuryu is a newly opened tonkatsu (breaded pork cutlet) restaurant with a black interior, between Ttukseom Station Exit 7 and Seoulsup in Seongdong, Seoul. A heavily pregnant blogger and her husband had the rosu (pork loin) and hire (pork fillet) katsu sets at 14,000 won each, plus black tiger shrimp and a mildly spicy curry sauce, on a weekday lunch, and loved how crisp and juicy the cutlets were, fried to order. With easy parking at the Seongsu Culture and Welfare Center public car park, Katsuryu suits everything from a solo lunch to a Seoulsup date.

Written Nov 3, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGwangjin, SeoulRestaurants

Konkuk Univ. pizzeria brunch and daytime beer for two: Sanjeonsujeon

Sanjeonsujeon Pizza & Pasta (산전수전 피자&파스타) is a newly opened pizza and pasta restaurant on Achasan-ro 31-gil, near Konkuk Univ. Station in Gwangjin, Seoul. A couple visited around noon on a weekday and filled up on a half-and-half pizza (hot chicken and honey potato) and a hot cream pasta for a total in the ₩30,000 range, and liked the wood-toned interior, open kitchen, room-like space and indoor restroom. For an easy, good-value brunch or daytime beer near Konkuk Univ., Sanjeonsujeon Pizza & Pasta is worth considering.

Written May 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSongpa, SeoulRestaurants

Songpa gopchang BBQ with minari sauce & homemade kimchi: Jinseong

Jinseong Hanwoo Gopchang Bangi Direct Branch is a Hanwoo beef gopchang (grilled small intestine) restaurant in Bangi-dong Food Alley, Songpa, Seoul. On a rainy weekday after work, two people ordered 2 portions of gopchang and 1 of daechang (large intestine), had staff grill everything, ate it with the special minari sauce and 3 kinds of homemade kimchi, and finished with fried rice. The gopchang packed with rich filling and the scallion kimchi worth taking home make Jinseong Hanwoo Gopchang a definite place to return to.

Written May 24, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Ttukseom ice cream shop for a garden expo lunch picnic: Mellows

Mellows is an ice cream shop on Wangsimni-ro 10-gil in Seongdong, Seoul, near Ttukseom Station, serving ice cream by day and whiskey and other drinks in the evening. While working at the Seoulsup garden expo, the writer returned to Mellows for lunch dessert several times. This time the writer took peach, deep choco and original ice cream to go and ate them on a picnic mat in Seoulsup. The smooth, nutty 3,500 won original milk ice cream is why Mellows became a regular stop.

Written Oct 31, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulRestaurants

Seongsu cold udon restaurant: bukkake and mazeudon with friends, Kosi

Kosi Seongsu Branch is a tonkatsu and udon restaurant in Seongsu, Seoul, about a 5-minute walk from Ttukseom Station Exit 6. After work, the writer and friends came for an early dinner and ordered bukkake udon (₩9,000) with a tonkatsu set add-on (+₩5,000), cheese katsu (₩12,500) and mazeudon (mixed udon, ₩11,000) at the table kiosk. The cold udon at Kosi Seongsu Branch was as good as the one the writer fell for at the Konkuk branch: Kosi is worth a visit for its udon, not just its tonkatsu.

Written Jun 5, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulRestaurants

Seongsu taco restaurant for daytime beer: cheese croquette, Morimoly

Morimoly (모리몰리) is a gimbugak (fried seaweed chip) taco restaurant in Seongsu-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, that opens at 11am, making it a good spot for a daytime beer in Seongsu. The writer and her husband ate in, ordering the signature Morimoly taco set, a whole-cheese croquette and bottled beer, and loved how the slow-cooked chicken thigh paired with the nutty gimbugak. With a calm café on the 2nd floor and a hip beer pub on the 3rd, Morimoly is a satisfying place for tacos and beer in Seongsu.

Written Jun 6, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulRestaurants

Seoulsup Italian, no-wait weekday octopus & gnocchi: Billadeubeulleu

Billadeubeulleu Seongsu is a white-and-blue Italian brunch restaurant on Seoulsup 2-gil in Seongdong, Seoul. The writer, who works at the Seoulsup garden expo, walked in with a visiting friend for a weekday lunch with no wait and ordered the polpo mambo (whole octopus leg, 25,000 won) and the gorgonzola truffle cream gnocchi (21,000 won). Verdict: the Billadeubeulleu polpo mambo felt special, and the gnocchi cream sauce was good enough to scrape the bowl clean.

Written Jun 14, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJongno, SeoulRestaurants

Jongno 3-ga dumpling shop: light rice cake dumpling soup, Jongga Mandu

Jongga Mandu is a Korean restaurant specializing in handmade dumplings on Supyo-ro in Jongno 3-ga, Seoul. Instead of the dumpling hot pot, the writer and a close younger friend ordered two bowls of tteok mandutguk (rice cake dumpling soup) at ₩13,000 each, generously filled with handmade meat and kimchi dumplings and jorangi-tteok (cocoon-shaped rice cakes) in a rich yet clean broth. Jongga Mandu is a Jongno 3-ga lunch spot where you end up fishing out every last dumpling, even on a day you're not very hungry.

Written Jun 17, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Seoulsup café for decaf iced tea during the garden expo: Iridescent

Iridescent is a pet-friendly café on Seoulsup 4-gil in Seongdong, Seoul, about a 10-minute walk from Ttukseom Station Exit 8. While working at the Seoulsup International Garden Expo, the writer took a weekday lunchtime break at Iridescent with a decaf iced tea, and friendly menu guidance, reliable internet and music from large speakers made it easy to both work and relax. Iridescent is recommended for Seoulsup visitors who want an unusual menu and atmosphere instead of a chain café.

Written Jun 23, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Pregnancy-friendly decaf café near Seoulsup: peach soft serve, Mellows

Mellows (멜로우즈) is a red-brick ice cream café on Wangsimni-ro 10-gil in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, between Seoulsup Station and Ttukseom Station. The pregnant writer visited Mellows at lunchtime with a close friend. The writer ordered a decaf drink and peach ice cream, the friend had a matcha latte and ice cream topped with poured coffee concentrate, and the two stayed about an hour and a half in the indoor hall. With an americano at 2,500 won, ice cream at around 3,500 won and a soft Sangha Farm milk flavor, Mellows is a Seongsu dessert café worth a special trip back.

Written Jun 23, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeongdong, SeoulCafés

Seongsu dessert café date while pregnant: brown cheese croffle at Biat

Biat Seongsu is a dessert café on the second floor of a building on an alley off Achasan-ro 5-gil in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. On a weekday date with her husband, the pregnant writer skipped the affogato and ordered a croffle topped with vanilla ice cream and brown cheese, plus milk tea and an ade, then enjoyed the café's two differently styled rooms and its mirror photo zone. For a relaxed weekday dessert date on a quiet side street, Biat Seongsu is a good fit.

Written Oct 15, 2026Sponsored
PlaceHaeundae, BusanRestaurants

Haeundae Western restaurant, Saturday lunch for four: Smith's Farm

Smith's Farm (스미스씨네농장) is a Western restaurant on Haeun-daero 483beonga-gil in Haeundae, Busan, with parking inside the building and no break time. Four adults walked in with no wait on a Saturday lunch and filled up on octopus steak, gorgonzola jambon pizza, oil pasta, grilled romaine and cabbage salad, plus drinks and draft beer, for just over 100,000 won. Smith's Farm is worth recommending to Haeundae visitors who want octopus dishes, rich cheese pizza and good value in one meal.

Written Jun 28, 2026Sponsored