Jongno bakery Udo peanut choco pie as a filling breakfast: Ssuk's

It's been a while since I visited Gwangjang Market!

I was wandering around checking out the food and stalls at Gwangjang Market and decided to pick up a gift to bring to my parents' place. That's when I found a spot that's pretty trendy but still keeps its traditional flavor alive — Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul (쑥스초코파이 서울). I'd heard mugwort choco pie was famous enough that people make pilgrimages for it, and it turned out the Seoul branch is right near the entrance of Gwangjang Market. It's a great spot to duck into while wandering the market, so naturally I walked right in. Plus, I'm a total bread lover, haha... couldn't just walk past!!

Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul: address, hours and prices

Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul is located at 25 Jongno 32-gil, 1st floor, Jongno-gu, Seoul, near the entrance of Gwangjang Market and close to Jongno 5-ga Station. The signature menu is the handmade mugwort choco pie made with Geomundo sea-breeze mugwort, and it comes in 3-piece and 6-piece sets.

• Address: 25 Jongno 32-gil, 1st floor, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Location: Near the entrance of Gwangjang Market, close to Jongno 5-ga Station
• Signature menu: Handmade mugwort choco pie with Geomundo sea-breeze mugwort
• Sets: 3-piece / 6-piece
• Packaging: Individually wrapped, gift packaging available

Finding Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul at the Gwangjang Market entrance

Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul sits right at the entrance area of Gwangjang Market. I thought I might get a bit lost since it was my first time going, but the green sign stood out so much I found it in no time haha.

It's pretty close to Jongno 5-ga Station too, so it's a good stop if you're already at Gwangjang Market. Once inside, there were way more dessert varieties than I expected, so browsing was fun in itself.

Ssuk's Choco Pie apparently started in 2016 as Korea's first mugwort choco pie. The fact that they use Korean specialty ingredients and mugwort to make a distinctly Korean dessert made it feel perfect as a gift for older folks!

How many mugwort choco pie flavors are there?

Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul had the Geomundo sea-breeze mugwort choco pie along with several other flavors — sea-breeze mugwort injeolmi (sweet rice cake), Nonsan strawberry, Udo peanut, and more. Once I actually got inside, there were way more options than I expected. Decision paralysis... hahaha. They also sold scones, cookies, and cheesecake. Ugh, so hard to choose ㅠㅠㅠ

The mugwort choco pies run about ₩4,500–4,800 each, and there are sets where you can pick several at once. Since I was choosing a gift for my parents, I agonized for a while before finally deciding — six-piece set, locked in!!

There was a 3-piece option too, but I figured six was the right amount to share with the family!! The review event was actually pretty good too, so go for it!!

They were bigger than I expected, and being individually wrapped made them feel really upscale as a gift!! I loved that each one was wrapped separately. It's easier to store than having several loose pieces together, and it's also great for family members to grab one each! Plus, once I actually held one, the choco pie itself was way bigger than I imagined.

Is the packaging neat enough for a gift?

I brought the six-piece set home and shared it with my family — huge hit! I figured a choco pie would be pretty sweet, but it turned out to be much less sweet than I expected, so it wasn't overwhelming at all.

You can taste a subtle mugwort aroma, and thanks to the fresh cream inside, it's clearly different from a regular choco pie. My parents, who normally don't eat overly sweet desserts, said it was fine, which made me really glad I picked it as a gift. It also worked well as a simple meal substitute. Getting to pick different flavors was a nice bonus too!!

Personally, what I liked most was how filling it turned out to be. It's a decent size, so pairing it with coffee or tea was enough to fill me up. It seemed perfect for mornings when you're short on time or don't want a full meal, or for an afternoon snack when you're a bit hungry. Since it's not just sweet for the sake of it, it paired really well with coffee and was easy to eat simply.

Fresh cream instead of marshmallow in the choco pie

One distinctive feature of Ssuk's Choco Pie is that instead of marshmallow like regular choco pies, it's filled with fresh cream. They also follow a

What the Udo peanut choco pie tastes like

One distinctive feature of Ssuk's Choco Pie is that instead of marshmallow like a typical choco pie, it's filled with fresh cream. The product follows a five-free principle — no artificial coloring, preservatives, emulsifiers, shortening, or margarine — and uses Korean wheat and domestic specialty ingredients, so what more could you ask for!! They said it can be refrigerated for 8 days and frozen for up to 30 days, so we froze a few of them too!

Mugwort choco pies as a gift from Gwangjang Market

This time, I got to browse Gwangjang Market and also pick up a gift for my parents — such a satisfying day!

The six-piece set especially, with each pie individually wrapped, was great for sharing with family and also a solid choice when looking for a Gwangjang Market gift for parents or friends. Gwangjang Market has plenty of famous food, but bringing home a dessert like this that packs well was also really nice. It seems like it'd make a decent Chuseok holiday gift too, don't you think????

Final verdict on Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul

If you want to pick up not just tasty food but also a gift for your parents while visiting Gwangjang Market, Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul is worth stopping by. If you're a mugwort fan like me, it's great as a dessert, and since it's not too sweet and generously sized, it also works as a simple meal or a snack when you're a bit hungry! Most of all, seeing my parents and younger sibling enjoy it made me really glad I chose it as a gift this time.