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Cafés, restaurants and places in Gyeonggi, written by bloggers who went there.
Opumchae Yangju Goeup Main Branch is a duck bulgogi restaurant on the second floor of Gwangjang Plaza in Goeup, Yangju, Gyeonggi. The couple premium duck flower bulgogi (4.5) and self-fried rice (0.3) came at a window seat looking down on the park, with unlimited fresh wrap greens and side dishes from the self-bar. With many wide group tables, Opumchae Yangju Goeup Main Branch suits family gatherings and work dinners.
Xpa is an EMS training center and EMS spa on the 4th floor of a building near Mangpo Station in Suwon, Gyeonggi. After months of recurring neck and shoulder joint pain from caring for a child, the writer lay in a tub set to 41°C for a 20-minute EMS spa session with two modes, sweating from about the 10-minute mark and coming out as relaxed as after a hot spring trip. If tight neck and shoulders and sluggish circulation are the problem, the Xpa EMS spa is worth trying once.
Juno Hair Dongtan Solbitnaru Branch is a hair salon on the second floor of Jeongnim Plaza near Dongtan Naru Village in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi, taking up the whole floor. Hair that had been covered in black dye a year earlier — and turned away by other salons — was colored by designer Sia into an even brown with no patchiness and no red tint. With a kids' room and private rooms, Juno Hair Dongtan Solbitnaru Branch is an easy Dongtan coloring salon for families too.
Gohyangok Eolkeun Sundaeguk Wondang Branch is a sundae soup (Korean blood sausage soup) restaurant in Deogyang-gu, Goyang, Gyeonggi, near Seooreung and on the road to Seoul Hanyang CC and Hanyang Pine CC. The writer ordered the mild sundae soup set and the spicy sundae soup set, each with sundae and bossam (boiled pork) steamed in a hinoki basket, and used the self-bar with free-refill somyeon noodles. Gohyangok is worth remembering for a filling breakfast before an early round of golf.
Nokji Bundang Jeongja Branch is a lamb restaurant in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, newly opened in front of the Doosan building by Jeongja Station. Two servings of French rack were grilled and rested tableside by the staff, then eaten with Maldon salt, an egg-yolk truffle soy sauce, minari (water dropwort), and mashed potato. The lamb had almost none of the usual gamey smell, and with one bottle of corkage free, Nokji is worth a return trip for a group dinner or a date in Jeongja.
Bacha Pangyo Branch is a Korean bar-restaurant in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, a 5-minute walk from Pangyo Station. The order covered sous vide pork jowl with seasoned chive salad, rochi-saeu (rosé sauce tteokbokki with shrimp, bacon and boneless chicken), cream draft beer and whiskey ice cream. With floor-to-ceiling windows and blue lighting, Bacha Pangyo Branch stays calm enough for a long conversation.
Gohobi Katsu is a Japanese tonkatsu restaurant a 10-minute walk from Suwon Station in Suwon, Gyeonggi. The rosu katsu (pork loin cutlet) is 13,000 won, menchi katsu is 4,000 won per piece and the mazesoba set is 13,000 won; at Gohobi Katsu the rosu katsu came out with a crisp coating and tender meat. With only bar-style tables facing an open kitchen, Gohobi Katsu is an easy stop for solo diners.
Rustic Smokehouse Yongin Bojeong Branch is a Texas barbecue restaurant on the Jukjeon cafe street in Bojeong-dong, Yongin, near Jukjeon Station. Over dinner with her mom, the writer ordered the B SET (TWO MEAT BBQ) with brisket smoked for 10 hours until it needed no knife, pulled pork that turned sweet and savory once mixed into the dark sauce, and Toowoomba pasta on the side. With a proper meal as the main event and parking on site, Rustic Smokehouse Yongin Bojeong Branch is a 100% repeat visit.
Jeongjik Farm Flower is a 24-hour flower shop in Byeongjeom, Hwaseong, a 7-minute walk from Byeongjeom Station and run by a florist with 19 years of experience. For a first meeting with her boyfriend's parents, the writer ordered a size M flower basket (60,000 won) in pink tones, and it came filled with carnations, roses and lisianthus. Naming just a color scheme and a budget was enough to get the look she wanted, making Jeongjik Farm Flower a reliable choice for a first-meeting flower gift.
Grill the Terrace Dongtan Main Branch is a Korean BBQ restaurant near Dongtan Bukgwangjang in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi, where garlic beef ribs and pork belly are grilled at the table. To treat a friend who traveled a long way, the meal ran from garlic beef ribs to steamed egg and finished with both mul-naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles in broth) and bibim-naengmyeon (spicy mixed cold noodles). Grill the Terrace also works as the start of an evening course, with Dongtan Central Park and Nojak Park a short walk away.
Hwadeogeuro Gan Godeungeo Suwon KT Wiz Park Branch is a wood-fired fish grill Korean restaurant in Jowon-dong, Suwon, a 3-minute drive from KT Wiz Park. On a weekend family lunch the writer ordered the grilled mackerel set for 16,000 won and the braised mackerel with radish set for 18,000 won together, comparing the mild grilled fish with the spicy braise and adding jeon (savoury pancakes), tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes) and namul (seasoned vegetables) from the self-serve corner. The fish was clean with no fishy taste, the kids ate well, and the family even refilled their rice.
Pistache by Capore is a large bakery café on a roughly 2,000-pyeong (about 6,600 sq m) site overlooking the Namhan River in Ganghwa-myeon, Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi. From the 3rd-floor river-view seats, Pistache by Capore serves Yangpyeong coffee alongside butter rice cake, walnut bread, mocha bun and condensed milk cream baguette, and the 4th-floor gallery shows the free "Dandy Mac" exhibition themed on the café's mascot poodle, Mac. With pets welcome, free parking and a kids' one-day class, Pistache by Capore is an easy place to linger on a drive out of Seoul.
