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Cafés, restaurants and places in Gyeonggi, written by bloggers who went there.
Eight Years Pangyo is a brunch café with a terrace next to the park on Baekhyeon-dong's café street in Seongnam, Gyeonggi. On a weekend morning with family, the avocado chicken ciabatta sandwich (14,000 won), a bagel, a café latte and an americano were all eaten out on the terrace, with park sounds and passing dogs in the background. If the morning weather is good, the outdoor seats at Eight Years Pangyo are the right choice.
Paldam Sundae Gimpo Main Branch is a sundae-guk (blood sausage soup) restaurant in Jangi-dong (Seokmo-ri), Gimpo, Gyeonggi, known for its handmade sundae. Arriving a little before Sunday lunch peak meant a CatchTable wait of 2 to 4 parties, and the order was clear sundae-guk, spicy sundae-guk and suyuk (boiled pork slices), plus the self-bar of organ meat and rice. With room for only about 5 cars in front of Paldam Sundae, going earlier than peak time is the easier plan on a weekend.
Iniz Beauty is a semi-permanent eyebrow and lip makeup salon in Bucheon, Gyeonggi, a 6-minute walk from Exit 2 of Sinjungdong Station on Line 7, on the 3rd floor of the Wive the State Complex 6 shopping arcade. After a consultation about face shape, the signature combo brow was the pick: 15 minutes of numbing cream and about 1 hour 30 minutes of work, with the shape mapped to brow bone and hair direction. The brows at Iniz Beauty came out natural enough that some people didn't even notice the same day, and the free retouch runs from 30 to 60 days after the session.
Easy White Bread Bucheon Sinjung-dong is a fresh milk bread bakery on Giljuro in Sinjung-dong, Bucheon, Gyeonggi. The Golden Beurre milk bread costs 6,000 won for a half loaf and 11,000 won for a whole loaf, cut to 2.0cm and packed to go, and two coffees came along with it: the special brewed Mochoberry and the brewed Brown Velvet. Between the tasting corner and the thickness samples, Easy White Bread makes it easy to pick a loaf even on a first visit.
Nillai Gimpo Branch is a café with rice-field and mountain views on Gimpo-daero in Wolgot-myeon, Gimpo, Gyeonggi. A mother and her two daughters stopped in during a drive to Ganghwado and ordered pink lemon ade (7,500 won), chuhee-ok plum ade (7,500 won), omija tea (5,500 won) and a bakery trio (9,500 won) at an outdoor terrace table beside a small pool. Between the sound of the little pool and the wide-open rice fields, Nillai Gimpo Branch is an easy, restful stop to add to a Ganghwado road trip.
Sannaemaeul Yang Kkochi & Qingdao is a lamb skewer and Chinese pub in Unjeong, Paju, Gyeonggi, on the 2nd floor of World Tower 3. Over a couple's night out, Sannaemaeul Yang Kkochi & Qingdao served yang kkochi (lamb skewers) with yuxiang eggplant, tomato egg soup and a free bean sprout stir-fry the owner sent to every table, and the auto-rotating grill meant no one had to watch the meat mid-conversation. With a roomy free basement parking lot in the building, it is an easy pick for a drive-in date or group dinner in Unjeong.
Ari Chuksan is a Korean pork and beef butcher shop on Gangbyeon-ro in Cheongpyeong, Gapyeong, sitting next to a Hanaro Mart and right on the way to car-camping spots and pensions. On this visit Ari Chuksan sold pork belly (ogyeopsal) at 3,150 won per 100g, pork gabrisal at 3,750 won and pork jowl (hangjeongsal) at 6,980 won, all grilled on a campsite grill, with free Korean beef tendon and enoki mushrooms added in. At these Korean pork prices, that level of freshness makes Ari Chuksan excellent value.
Mimi China is a Chinese restaurant in a standalone building on Cheonjeong-guro in Paju, Gyeonggi. The order was jajangmyeon (black bean noodles), mimi jjamppong-bap (spicy seafood noodle soup with rice) and tangsuyuk (sweet and sour pork): the jjamppong-bap broth landed somewhere between Japanese ramen and Korean jjamppong thanks to the char siu and seafood, while the tangsuyuk came with thick-cut pork and a clean sauce served on the side for dipping. If you want jjamppong-bap and tangsuyuk in one meal in Paju, Mimi China is worth the trip.
Yubok Haemul Kalguksu Dongtan Direct Branch is a Korean restaurant near Dongtan Central Park in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi, serving pufferfish-broth seafood kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and flame-grilled webfoot octopus stir-fry. One serving of the pufferfish seafood kalguksu is 11,000 won, the octopus stir-fry is 17,000 won and the king meat mandu (dumplings) is 7,000 won, and because both the kalguksu and the octopus can be ordered as a single portion, a family of three with a baby ate comfortably. With baby chairs and parking, Yubok Haemul Kalguksu is worth saving for a family meal in Dongtan.
Neopttakjip Samsong Branch is a pork BBQ restaurant near Samsong Station and Starfield Goyang in Gyeonggi. After finishing a shopping trip at Starfield Goyang, two diners grilled the signature mixed grill 600g (54,000 won) on a thick cast-iron plate and helped themselves to curry salad from the self-serve bar in the middle of the restaurant. The chewy texture of kkodeulsal, tried for the first time, was the highlight of the meal at Neopttakjip Samsong Branch.
Gyuen-dang Avenue France Gwanggyo Branch is a Japanese gyukatsu restaurant in the basement of the Avenue France mall at Gwanggyo Jungang Station in Suwon, Gyeonggi. A family of three — the writer, her husband and their second daughter — booked a table well after the lunch rush and shared sirloin gyukatsu at 19,000 won, hamburg steak omurice at 17,000 won and atsuatsu udon at 11,000 won in one spread. Grilling each slice on the mini tabletop stove and the wide spacing between tables made Gyuen-dang a satisfying weekend meal out with a child.
Chamsae Bori Sikppang, Bucheon main branch, is a barley bread bakery on Gyeongin-ro in Sosa-gu, about a 10-minute walk from Bucheon Station. Looking for bread to eat instead of breakfast, the writer arrived at 11am and bought one Daesang chapbori loaf, one grain chapbori loaf and two rye chapbori loaves, and all three were moist and nutty. If you want a loaf made without wheat flour for breakfast, Chamsae Bori Sikppang Bucheon main branch is the answer.
