Order Diarist · 24 stories

What I Ordered

I write about restaurants I visit in Seoul and the food I try there. · Writes about: Restaurants · Cafés · Shopping

Sokcho market salted seafood shop: clam, shrimp & roe trio, Hwangbuja

Hwangbuja Jeotgal (황부자젓갈) is a jeotgal (salted seafood) shop inside Sokcho Tourist Fish Market, also called Sokcho Jungang Market, in Sokcho, Gangwon. A regular who usually ordered Hwangbuja Jeotgal by courier stopped in on an East Coast trip and bought 400g of clam jeotgal (₩10,000), 500g of salted shrimp (chujeot, ₩12,000) and 400g of seasoned small-grain pollock roe, and got free squid jeotgal for writing a receipt review. Verdict: the salted shrimp were clean and plump and the pollock roe wasn't too salty, so it was delicious.

Written Oct 14, 2026Sponsored

PlaceIcheon, GyeonggiRestaurants

Goat soup lunch after visiting Icheon National Cemetery: Baekonjeong

Baekonjeong Yeomso (백온정 염소) is a goat soup and goat hotpot restaurant on Jeungsin-ro in Icheon, Gyeonggi. On the way home from visiting parents at Icheon National Cemetery, the writer stopped at Baekonjeong Yeomso around 4 PM for two goat soup sets at ₩22,000 each: a 16-herb broth with no gamey smell, goat meat more tender than Korean Hanwoo beef, plus goat muchim (seasoned goat salad) and pot rice with nurungji (scorched rice). Baekonjeong Yeomso is a good restorative goat soup stop in Icheon on the drive home.

Written Oct 11, 2026Sponsored

PlaceSokcho, GangwonRestaurants

Sokcho market snack bar for pollack-broth crab ramen: Masibuja Twigim

Masibuja Twigim (맛이부자튀김맛집) is a snack bar for seafood ramen, twigim (Korean fritters) and sundae (Korean sausage) at the entrance to Gate 6 of Sokcho Jungang Market in Sokcho, Gangwon. The writer came back to Masibuja Twigim for the red crab ramen (₩13,000) first tried a year earlier, and also ordered griddled Abai sundae (₩10,000) and a king shrimp and snow crab fritter set, taking the leftover fritters home. With a refreshing, spicy dried pollack broth in the red crab ramen and well-filled fritters, Masibuja Twigim gives plenty of reasons to return.

Written Jul 4, 2026Sponsored

PlaceSokcho, GangwonCafés

Sokcho market bread shop, open daily from July: Sokcho Sulppang

Sokcho Sulppang (속초술빵) is a makgeolli steamed bread (sulppang) shop at the entrance to Gates 5, 6 and 7 of Sokcho Tourism & Fish Market (Sokcho Jungang Market) in Sokcho, Gangwon. The writer stopped by on a Wednesday, Sokcho Sulppang's regular closing day, unsure it would be open, learned the shop opens every day from July, and took home sulppang at 5,000 won each to reheat. Sokcho Sulppang's sulppang is not too sweet, with a gentle sweetness and a texture that is both fluffy and chewy, making it a snack worth taking home from a Sokcho trip.

Written Jul 4, 2026Sponsored

PlaceHanam, GyeonggiRestaurants

Hanam pollock restaurant: opening-time lunch after Guri, Appa Jjim

Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch (아빠찜 하남본점) is a braised pollock and steamed monkfish restaurant in Deokpung-dong, Hanam, near Starfield and Pungsan Station. After an errand in Guri, the writer arrived right at opening and ordered cuttlefish braised pollock (₩38,000) with extra siraegi (dried radish greens), fragrant pot rice and a crispy seafood pancake; staff removed the big bones, and the siraegi and fried-crisp pancake stood out. With a large parking lot and a pleasant dining room, Appa Jjim Hanam Main Branch is a good choice for family meals or group lunches.

Written Jul 16, 2026Sponsored

PlaceGapyeong, GyeonggiRestaurants

Gapyeong dakgalbi after Jara Island flower festival: Dami Seorak

Dami Seorak Charcoal-grilled Dakgalbi is a charcoal-grilled dakgalbi (spicy chicken) and makguksu (buckwheat noodle) restaurant at 150 Hanseo-ro, Seorak-myeon, Gapyeong, Gyeonggi. On the way home from the Jara Island flower festival, a couple had 2 servings of marinated dakgalbi at 15,000 won each and a bowl of mul-makguksu (cold buckwheat noodles in broth) for 10,000 won, and the owner showed them how to finish the pre-grilled chicken over the charcoal. The clean-tasting marinated chicken with no gamey smell and the sweet-sour, refreshing mul-makguksu made a satisfying dinner.

Written Oct 4, 2026Sponsored

PlaceHanam, GyeonggiRestaurants

Army stew restaurant in Hanam: kelp broth takeout with ramen, Masisso

Masisso Budae Jjigae Misa Station Direct Store is a solo-dining army stew (budae jjigae) restaurant a 2-minute walk from Exit 5 of Misa Station in Hanam, Gyeonggi. With no time to eat in, the writer took the army stew, broth and ramen noodles home packed separately and boiled them in a hot pot, and the Wando kelp broth, used instead of beef bone broth, came out clear and clean. Masisso's takeout army stew is generous, with many kinds of ham and sausage that make every spoonful fun to fish out.

Written Aug 5, 2026Sponsored

PlaceNamyangju, GyeonggiRestaurants

Namyangju valley BBQ, pork belly grilled on hanji: 2002 Witch's

2002 Witch's Arpeggio (2002 마녀의 아르페지오) is a Korean BBQ restaurant beside Myojeoksa Valley in Wabu-eup, Namyangju, Gyeonggi, known for pork belly in tomato-jang (tomato paste sauce), made without gochujang and aged 48 hours in a jar. With a younger sibling and their spouse, the writer sat at a parasol table by the valley and ordered 2 servings of tomato-jang pork belly at Shin Ramyun spice level, a potato pancake that is crispy outside and chewy inside, and pollack roe nurungji (scorched rice) fried rice cooked in a small cauldron, then stopped by the valley and drove on to Chukryeongsan. Grilled on hanji (Korean mulberry paper) and torched for a smoky finish, the tomato-jang pork belly and tomato kimchi at 2002 Witch's Arpeggio make it a worthwhile meal on a valley outing.

Written Sep 28, 2026Sponsored

PlaceNamyangju, GyeonggiCafés

Namyangju river café with an English royal antique lamp: Waltz and Dr.

Waltz and Dr. Mahn is a specialty coffee café and coffee museum on the Bukhan River in Namyangju, Gyeonggi, opened in 1996 by Dr. Park Jong-man. This visit took in the interior and art space, where a 180-year-old English royal lamp, a 200-year-old mini pipe organ and Victorian-era coffee cups are on display, then a window seat for Honor and Chevalier at 18,000 won, an iced americano at 14,000 won and opera cake at 9,000 won. Between the coffee, the antiques and the river view, Waltz and Dr. Mahn felt worth the price.

Written Aug 13, 2026Sponsored

PlaceHanam, GyeonggiRestaurants

Personal perilla oil and a 10-stamp card at a Hanam jjukkumi spot

Jigueseo On Jjukkumi Hanam Main Branch is a perilla-oil jjukkumi (webfoot octopus) restaurant set in a forest garden in Chungung-dong, Hanam, Gyeonggi. A couple ordered the Banggan perilla-oil jjukkumi hotpot rice set for two at ₩13,000 per person, and each person received their own bottle of 100% Korean perilla oil to drizzle over the rice, along with five side dishes, clam and seaweed soup, and free coffee or ice cream. Collect 10 stamps at Jigueseo On Jjukkumi and the restaurant packs two servings of jjukkumi to take home.

Written Aug 19, 2026Sponsored

PlaceHanam, GyeonggiRestaurants

Hanam Misa Chinese restaurant, early lunch booking: two ginseng roots

O Hyeongje Hwangje Nurungjitang Hanam Misa Main Branch is a Chinese restaurant on Misa-daero in Hanam, Gyeonggi that skips jjajangmyeon and jjamppong to focus on seafood nurungjitang (scorched rice soup) and tangsuyuk (sweet and sour pork). An early lunch reservation brought seafood abalone nurungjitang for two at 20,000 won per person, each stone pot topped with a root of jangnaesam (cultivated wild ginseng) — the writer ate both roots, as her hot-blooded husband skips ginseng. With more than 15 ingredients in a thick, gently seasoned broth, O Hyeongje Hwangje Nurungjitang works well as a restorative family meal.

Written Sep 17, 2026Sponsored

PlaceGangnam, SeoulRestaurants

Cheongdam-dong clear vs spicy milbok pufferfish soup: Bogi-o Boguk

Bogi-o Boguk is a Gyeongsang-style pufferfish restaurant in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam, Seoul. My husband and I ordered clear and spicy milbok soup for ₩24,000 each; the clear broth was mild, the spicy one had a pleasant kick, and the fish was chewy. The bright, spacious dining room also seemed suitable for family meals or group gatherings.

Written Aug 29, 2026Sponsored

You've reached the end · 24 stories