Gwanghwamun hanjeongsik with a 30-month-old: two ₩40,000 sets

A clean, well-put-together Korean meal with my kid — this is Modam Dining, a Gwanghwamun spot that's great for matchmaking dinners too.

Today I'm writing about a visit to Modam Dining Gwanghwamun with my 30-month-old. When eating out with a kid, taste matters, but so does the atmosphere, how the staff treats you, and whether the child can eat comfortably.

Modam Dining turned out to be a clean, atmospheric Korean restaurant overall — good for family meals, but also for matchmaking dinners or dates.

Where is Modam Dining Gwanghwamun, and what are the hours and parking?

Modam Dining Gwanghwamun is on B1 of Deoksugung D-Palace, 10 Saemunan-ro 2-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul. Hours are 11:00-22:00, break time 15:00-17:00, last order 20:10.

• Location: B1, Deoksugung D-Palace, 10 Saemunan-ro 2-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Hours: 11:00-22:00 / Break time 15:00-17:00 / Last order 20:10
• Parking: 2 hours free at the D-Palace building's basement parking

Modam Dining Gwanghwamun is a restaurant where you can enjoy hanjeongsik (Korean set-course meals) and jeongsik (single set meals) in the Gwanghwamun area.

We visited with our kid this time, and the calm, orderly mood of the place felt quite different from our usual kid-friendly outings, which had me looking forward to it.

It has that distinct tidy feel of a hanjeongsik restaurant, but without being too heavy or stiff, which I liked. If you're looking for a nice lunch or dinner spot in Gwanghwamun, or somewhere to eat with your parents, I'd recommend this place.

Dining with a 30-month-old: separate rice and soup for the child

At Modam Dining Gwanghwamun, they prepared separate rice and soup for my 30-month-old, which was such a relief. The thing that stresses me out most when eating out with a kid is, of course, their meal.

If you only order adult dishes and there's nothing your kid can eat, the whole meal can feel a bit chaotic. But at Modam Dining, they gave us separate rice and soup for the kid, which was really convenient.

Having a separate meal prepared for our kid let us eat much more at ease, and the staff were friendly the whole time, which made it even better.

Watching our kid happily eat the perilla oil capellini and tteokgalbi from the set, and look around at everything, made me glad we brought them along.

What we ordered: two 40,000-won sets at Modam Dining Gwanghwamun

At Modam Dining Gwanghwamun, we ordered the abalone tteokgalbi set for ₩40,000 and the abalone shrimp butter rice set for ₩40,000. Both were ordered as full sets, and each had its own charm, so they went well together.

Abalone tteokgalbi set, 40,000 won

First, the abalone tteokgalbi set. You can't talk about hanjeongsik without tteokgalbi (grilled short rib patty), and adding abalone on top made it feel extra special.

It's a dish both kids and adults can enjoy without complaint, and paired with the rest of the set, it made for a satisfying meal.

Abalone shrimp butter rice set, 40,000 won

The abalone shrimp butter rice set. This is the one I picked, and pairing it with butter rice gave it a different feel from a typical Korean set meal.

If you like abalone and saeujang (soy-marinated raw shrimp), this is a dish worth trying — it tasted great too, so I finished it in no time. Since both dishes come as full sets, it's nice to order different ones and share rather than sticking to just one.

The starter dishes served first were just right for whetting the appetite. We started the meal slowly, savoring each one.

Does Modam Dining Gwanghwamun work for a matchmaking or family dinner?

What I liked most about eating at Modam Dining Gwanghwamun was how clean the overall atmosphere was and how neatly the food was presented.

With hanjeongsik, several dishes come out together, so the composition matters, but so does whether the dining space feels comfortable. Modam Dining has a good atmosphere, so it seems like a solid choice for occasions that need a bit more care, like matchmaking dinners, or family meals with parents.

We ate comfortably even with our kid along, and the friendly service made it an all-around satisfying time.