Side Street Packer · 26 stories

Lunches on Side Streets

I write about restaurant meals found around Seoul. · Writes about: Restaurants · Cafés · Stays · Shopping

PlaceYongsan, SeoulRestaurants

Hot pot restaurant at Seoul Station for a rainy-day dinner: Deungchon

Deungchon Shabu Kalguksu Seoul Station branch (등촌샤브칼국수 서울역점) is a mushroom shabu kalguksu restaurant on the ground floor of Gateway Tower on Huam-ro in Yongsan, Seoul, connected directly to the basement of Seoul Station Exit 11. On a rainy day, three women friends ordered 2 portions of shabu kalguksu plus 1 extra portion of shabu beef for dinner and filled up on a rich broth packed with minari (water dropwort) and potatoes, knife-cut noodles and crispy fried rice. When you crave a spicy broth near Seoul Station, Deungchon Shabu Kalguksu Seoul Station branch is a wholehearted recommendation.

Written Jun 20, 2026Sponsored
PlaceNamdong, IncheonShopping

Mansu Station, Incheon garage: ₩57,000 Avante oil change, Smile Auto

Smile Auto (스마일자동차공업사) is a car repair shop on Hachon-ro in Namdong, Incheon, near Mansu Station. The blogger brought an Avante sedan in for a basic engine oil change and, in about 30 minutes and for around 57,000 won, got residual oil removal, a new oil filter and ring, washer fluid and antifreeze top-ups, brake pad, tire and air pressure checks, and an engine bay cleaning. Smile Auto suits anyone in Incheon looking for an affordable, friendly oil change garage that explains things simply, even to drivers who know little about cars.

Written Oct 10, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Hongdae steak restaurant, weekday wedding invitation dinner: Hey Joji

Hey Joji is an American-style Western restaurant tucked into an alley in Yeonnam-dong, Seoul, about a 10-minute walk from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 3. On a weekday evening the writer met a friend at Hey Joji to hand over a wedding invitation, got in with no wait, and shared the house steak (31,000 won), the jambon butter cheddar pasta (16,000 won) and a Stella beer (7,000 won). With a well-cooked house steak, sweet-and-salty sweet potato fries on the side and a jalapeño rigatoni that cuts the richness, Hey Joji is a solid pick for a wedding invitation meetup or a date for two.

Written Oct 8, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGwanak, SeoulRestaurants

Sillim Indian restaurant, two Set Bs for four with beer: India Darbar

India Darbar is an Indian restaurant on the second floor of a building on Sillim-ro near Sillim Station in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, where Indian staff cook and serve the food. Four friends ordered two Set Bs (₩34,000 each, for two people) and shared boneless tandoori chicken, chicken tikka masala, palak paneer, butter naan and plain naan, then toasted with lassi and beer. India Darbar is an Indian curry spot near Sillim Station that is great for group sharing, and the butter naan is the standout.

Written Oct 5, 2026Sponsored
PlacePyeongtaek, GyeonggiRestaurants

Gentle buckwheat cold noodles by Pyeongtaek Station: Seoul Myeonok

Seoul Myeonok (서울면옥) is a Pyongyang naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodle) restaurant right next to Pyeongtaek Station in Gyeonggi, run by the same family for three generations over 60 years. On her first-ever try of Pyongyang naengmyeon, the writer and her boyfriend ordered Pyongyang naengmyeon and bibim naengmyeon at ₩11,000 each plus a half plate of pork belly suyuk for ₩16,000, and enjoyed the rich warm broth, the buckwheat noodles and the spicy pollack salad side dish. Seoul Myeonok's buckwheat naengmyeon is an easy recommendation for Pyongyang naengmyeon beginners and anyone who finds wheat noodles hard to digest.

Written Oct 4, 2026Sponsored
PlaceBupyeong, IncheonRestaurants

Pyeongridan-gil restaurant: garlic pasta & flap steak, Two Find Peter

Two Find Peter Bupyeong is a Western restaurant on Pyeongridan-gil in Bupyeong, Incheon, serving pasta, risotto, steak and pizza. The writer chose Two Find Peter Bupyeong for a wedding invitation meetup and shared whole-garlic aglio e olio (11,000 won), seafood tomato fettuccine (17,000 won) and a beef flap steak (36,000 won) with friends. With a ragù-rich seafood tomato fettuccine and a flap steak served with plenty of wedge potatoes, Two Find Peter Bupyeong delivers both atmosphere and flavor.

Written Oct 3, 2026Sponsored
PlaceBucheon, GyeonggiCafés

Bucheon bakery: honey fig and pecan cream cheese halves, Easy White

Easy White Bread Bucheon Sinjung-dong is a fresh loaf bakery right by Sinjung-dong Station in Bucheon, Gyeonggi, that bakes its bread each day and sells it out the same day. At Easy White Bread, a half Golden Beurre loaf was cut to 2cm and one untoasted slice was topped half with honey fig cream cheese and half with pecan cream cheese; the honey in the cream cheese suited the buttery loaf. The loaf is delicious on its own too, making Easy White Bread a bakery worth recommending in Sinjung-dong.

Written Oct 3, 2026Sponsored
PlaceJung-gu, DaejeonRestaurants

Daejeon fusion Korean for a two-person wedding invite meal: Usul

Usul is a fusion Korean restaurant on Jungang-ro 138beon-gil in Daeheung-dong, Jung-gu, Daejeon. Three months before her wedding, the writer met her older sister at Usul to hand over a wedding invitation. They shared gochujang yukhoe (spicy beef tartare) with yubu (fried tofu) rolls, a super sweet corn and shrimp potato pancake, and squid-ink fried shiitake, with green tangerine ade and darae (hardy kiwi) ade. With a wood-toned, high-ceilinged room and 3 hours of free underground parking, Usul pairs easily with a trip to the Sungsimdang main bakery.

Written Aug 3, 2026Sponsored
PlaceBucheon, GyeonggiRestaurants

Bucheon family-meeting Korean restaurant, cockle salad: Gim Myeongju

Gim Myeongju Tteuranchae Bapsang Sinjung-dong Branch is a Korean set-meal restaurant in Sinjung-dong, Bucheon, known for hot-pot rice (sotbap) with unlimited refills of rice and side dishes. With 39 days to go before the wedding, the writer and a friend ordered the Tteuranchae Bapsang set for two (26,000 won) plus a cockle salad (15,000 won), and enjoyed the freshly cooked pot rice, the savory cheonggukjang (fermented soybean stew) and the nurungji (scorched rice). With its own parking lot and private rooms, Gim Myeongju Tteuranchae Bapsang is worth considering for a pre-wedding family meeting or a group gathering.

Written Oct 1, 2026Sponsored
PlaceSeo-gu, GwangjuRestaurants

Gwangju Sangmu pasta restaurant: ₩117,000 Family Set B, Bueokgan

Bueokgan Sangmu Branch (부엌간 상무점) is a European-style pasta and brunch restaurant in the Sangmu district of Seo-gu, Gwangju. Four adults and a 14-month-old baby met at Bueokgan for a wedding invitation gathering and ordered Family Set B (117,000 won): pastry soup, seafood tomato pasta, kung pao chicken pilaf and a 200g top blade steak. With a high chair and a baby plate provided, Bueokgan Sangmu Branch is worth recommending for get-togethers with little kids.

Written Aug 10, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGwangsan, GwangjuRestaurants

Cheomdan Gwangju Chinese restaurant Chuseok dinner for four: Mayway

Mayway is a Chinese restaurant in the Cheomdan area of Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju. Over the Chuseok holiday a family of four ordered one hot stone jjajang (black bean noodles), a small tangsuyuk (sweet and sour pork), one seafood nurungji (scorched rice) soup and yusanseul-bap, and added pa-kimchi (green onion kimchi) from the self-serve bar to the jjajang. The tangsuyuk had a thin, well-seasoned batter, and the mother of the family said Mayway is where she will book the next family gathering.

Written Sep 27, 2026Sponsored
PlaceGangnam, SeoulCafés

Yeoksam café for thick baked cheesecake, open till 10pm: Mini Male

Mini Male Coffee Roaster Yeoksam Branch is a roastery café near Yeoksam Station in Gangnam, Seoul, that brews with beans it roasts in-house. With time to spare before meeting a friend, the writer ordered a Helsinki latte and a slice of cheesecake — the latte was nutty and creamy, and the cheesecake was dense enough to feel the moment the fork went in. Open weekdays from 8am to 10pm, Mini Male works as a stop either before work or after.

Written Sep 22, 2026Sponsored