Gwangsan Noon Bell Pilgrim · 18 stories
I write about meals at restaurants I visit in Gwangju and the Jeolla region. · Writes about: Restaurants · Cafés · Bars
Notldun is a dessert café on Seoulsup 2-gil near Ttukseom Station in Seongdong, Seoul, known for its house-made mille-feuille and madeleines. On a late-evening visit to Notldun, the writer tried the premium strawberry latte, Valrhona dark chocolate latte, matcha latte and a vanilla madeleine, but few desserts were left. Verdict: to pick from Notldun's full dessert selection, go during the day rather than in the evening.
Fleurs sur la route is a pasta and pizza restaurant with a European garden feel on Seoulsup 2-gil in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. After playing at the Seoulsup tennis courts, we ordered bacon cream rigatoni, the Fleurs sur la route pizza and red scallop pasta steamed in sake, and both the fresh-flower-and-plant interior and the food quality were satisfying. If you visit Fleurs sur la route on a weekend, a reservation is a must.
Saigonjang is a Vietnamese and Southeast Asian restaurant near the Dongmyeong-dong café street in Dong-gu, Gwangju, and has been open for over 10 years. Three friends shared pad Thai with shrimp, 6 cha gio (Vietnamese fried spring rolls) and Singapore chili shrimp; the cha gio were crunchier than expected, and the egg fried rice mixed into the leftover chili shrimp sauce was the highlight. With arched floor-to-ceiling windows and wide tables, Saigonjang is a satisfying choice for a group meal.
Yuil Jangeo (유일장어) is a freshwater eel restaurant on Donggok-ro in Gwangsan, Gwangju. The writer brought the family on a weekday lunch as a restorative meal for their mother after knee surgery and ordered the eel set (jangeo jeongsik) of seasoned grilled eel, eel soup and side dishes for 15,000 won, a lunch special orderable only 11am–2pm. With a large parking lot, widely spaced tables, private rooms and high chairs, Yuil Jangeo is an easy eel restaurant to visit with parents or small children.
Daily Fix Jangmi Sangga is a classic American diner-style burger restaurant in the basement of Building B at Jangmi Sangga, near Jamsil Station in Songpa, Seoul. For a late lunch, a couple ordered a pastrami sandwich, chili cheese fries (9,900 won), coleslaw and a Zero Cola. Adding coleslaw on top brought the salty pastrami to just the right level. With Jangmi Sangga parking support, unlimited drink refills and a 90s underground-arcade atmosphere, Daily Fix is a place worth coming back to.
Yoran is an izakaya on Bongeunsa-ro near Samseongjungang Station in Gangnam, Seoul, serving assorted sashimi and a range of Japanese-style drinking dishes. The writer and friends shared assorted sashimi for 3 (75,000 won), grilled sea bream head, sake-steamed clams with a vongole pasta add-on (7,000 won) and stir-fried beef brisket with bean sprouts. Everyone was impressed by the well-aged sashimi, and a plan for a single highball turned into 4 bottles of soju. Yoran's assorted sashimi was the best the writer had eaten all year.
Deep House is a café by day and a lounge by night, right in front of Dosan Park in Gangnam, Seoul. Before a meeting near Seonjeongneung Station, the writer spent 1–2 hours at Deep House with a laptop over an iced peanut latte, an iced americano and Philadelphia cheesecake, and noticed the black interior, digital art and displays of artist-customised products. Deep House is a relaxed spot for daytime work, and valet parking at 5,000 won for 2 hours makes parking around Dosan Park easy.
Geumseong Hoegwan Seoul City Hall Direct Branch is a Korean BBQ restaurant near City Hall Station in Jung-gu, Seoul, where staff grill the meat at your table and sundubu (soft tofu stew) comes as a standard side. The writer ordered one portion each of hwangje galbi (18,000 won) and yangnyeom so-wang galbi, a marinated beef king rib (29,700 won). The writer ate the milder hwangje galbi first, moved on to the marinated galbi, and finished with Geumseong bibim naengmyeon (spicy cold noodles, 7,000 won). Geumseong Hoegwan is a good City Hall pick for tasting two kinds of galbi in order and ending on cold noodles.
Ilpum Gwanghwamun is a Japanese restaurant specializing in kaisendon (seafood rice bowls) on B2 of Le Meilleur Jongno Town in Jongno, Seoul, near Gwanghwamun. The writer and his wife ate the basic kaisendon (₩26,000), topped with kelp-aged sashimi, and the aburidon, whose fish is seared with a flame, and explain how to wrap each bite in seaweed and how the two bowls differ. At Ilpum Gwanghwamun, choose the basic kaisendon for the fish's natural umami and the aburidon for a richer, nuttier flavor.
Palpalneoguri Haejang Sindang Main Branch (팔팔너구리해장 신당본점) is a hangover gukbap (rice soup) restaurant right outside Exit 1 of Sindang Station in Jung-gu, Seoul. On a late lunch around 2 p.m., a couple shared the Naengkeum Arong Set (a half plate of Naengkeum Arong beef shank suyuk plus a beef udon gukbap) and one bowl of Ppyeogalbi Jinguk (rich bone-rib soup). At Palpalneoguri Haejang, pick the Naengkeum Arong Set if you want soup and suyuk together, and the Ppyeogalbi Jinguk if you want a rich broth with plenty of meat.
Yukdaejang Dangye Musil-jeom (육대장 단계무실점) is a 24-hour yukgaejang (spicy beef soup) restaurant on Roanokeu-ro near Wonju City Hall in Gangwon. Four people arrived around 11:30 a.m. and shared 2 brisket yukgaejang, grilled bulgogi and a herbal bossam (boiled pork) platter, and also checked out the parking lot for 20+ cars and the Naver Reservation coupons. Yukdaejang Dangye Musil-jeom is an easy stop whenever you need a hearty bowl of soup, from early lunch to late at night.
Dance Dance Dance Seoul Station is a sandwich shop on B3 of Grand Central, near Exit 4 of Seoul Station in Jung-gu, Seoul. On a hot day, before a friend visiting Seoul headed home, the writer and the friend shared 2 iced Americanos and 1 egg potato sandwich, which Dance Dance Dance cuts in half for you. Close to the station, open from 7 AM and offering 60 minutes of parking, Dance Dance Dance Seoul Station is an easy, light stop before or after a train.
