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Cafés, restaurants and places in Gyeongnam, written by bloggers who went there.
Yun Sikdang is a Korean set-meal restaurant with a wait, located about halfway down the Changwon furniture street in Gyeongnam. On a weekend evening the writer did an open-run right when break time ended, adding grilled mackerel and seasoned crab to the grilled bulgogi set meal, and refilled the sweet napa water kimchi. High chairs are available and the seasoning is mild, so eating with a baby worked fine.
Bueokgan Restaurant Yangsan Oslo Park Branch is a Western restaurant on basement level 1 of the Oslo Park shopping complex in Mulgeum, Yangsan, Gyeongnam. Visiting after a walk around Hwangsan Park, the writer ordered napa cabbage Caesar salad, Kung Pao chicken pilaf, truffle mushroom cream gnocchi, grapefruit ade and lemonade, and the pilaf topped with sous-vide chicken leg was the best of the lot. Two hours of parking are covered with a meal, so there was time to browse the Oslo Park complex afterwards.
Song Giwon Jinju Naengmyeon Main Branch is a naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodle) restaurant on Modeok-ro in Jinju, Gyeongnam. Going at 7:30pm with her mom, the writer found no wait and ordered bibim naengmyeon (Nongae), seokkeum naengmyeon (Song Giwon), and ujeon (beef pancake), packing up the leftover yukjeon. Last order is 7:40pm, so anyone visiting for dinner needs to time it carefully.
Bueokgan Restaurant Yangsan Oslo Park Branch is a European-style Western restaurant on the basement level of the Oslo Park commercial building in Mulgeum-eup, Yangsan. Three of us — one child, two parents — ordered vongole pasta, abalone cream risotto and pepperoni pizza from the table kiosk, and all three dishes arrived at the same time. With baby chairs, a yes-kids-zone policy, group seating and underground parking, Bueokgan Oslo Park suits both family meals and larger gatherings.
Song Giwon Jinju Naengmyeon Main Branch is a Blue Ribbon–listed restaurant on Modeok-ro in Jinju, Gyeongnam, serving Jinju naengmyeon: buckwheat noodles in a seafood broth topped with yukjeon (pan-fried beef). Stopping in at noon on the way to a Namhae day trip, the writer ordered Sunjo 1800 (mul-naengmyeon, chilled broth) for 13,000 won, Song Giwon 1997 (seokkeum-naengmyeon, mixed style) for 14,000 won and yukjeon for 25,000 won, and the self-serve kimchi bar was the most memorable part. A clean, mild broth and deeply buckwheat-scented noodles make Song Giwon worth a special drive even from Busan.
Seosan Dongjuk Kalguksu is a clam kalguksu (noodle soup) restaurant on Deokjeong-ro 201beon-gil in Gimhae, Gyeongnam. Over two bowls of dongjuk kalguksu and a ₩15,000 onaksae seafood pancake, the just-right spicy house kimchi, a fully lidded self-serve bar, and fresh clams that popped open at a touch of chopsticks stood out. The broth's finish felt a touch mild, but a handful of cheongyang chili fixed that, and the whole meal was good enough to make this the go-to kalguksu spot from now on.
Ganppa Maekju Changwon Sangnam Hyeongje Branch is a standing-bar izakaya in Sangnam-dong, Changwon, a satellite of the original Haeundae location, pouring only two draft beers: Ebisu and Sapporo. The Sapporo comes topped with cream straight from the tap, paired well with butter grilled octopus, and the thin glasses made every sip go down smoother. No food order required, so it's a great spot for solo drinking or a second-round stop.
Deodo Gejang is a crab-and-pot-rice Korean restaurant on the second floor of a large food complex near the entrance to Tongdosa in Yangsan, Gyeongnam. The signature pot rice assorted jang set brings shrimp jang, abalone jang, octopus jang, Jeju yellow crab jang, blue crab jang and spicy seasoned crab jang together on one brass plate, alongside kimchi pancake, ttukbaegi bulgogi, nutritious pot rice, and a final bowl of nurungji (scorched rice) tea. A comfortable choice for a satisfying, no-frills meal near Tongdosa in a spacious, clean dining room.
Miracle Yang Gopchang is a charcoal-grilled beef intestine restaurant near the Yulha café street in Gimhae, Gyeongnam. Visiting for dinner with a friend, the writer ordered a two-person gopchang (small intestine) and daechang (large intestine) hot pot with ramen noodles and fried rice, and following the owner's tip to skip extra broth and cook it dry-style, the noodles soaked up all the flavor beautifully. A great Gimhae gopchang spot for enjoying two different textures side by side, finished off with fried rice.
Shashlik Masan Branch is a charcoal-grilled skewer restaurant along the Gusan drive route in Changwon. A couple shared the lamb assortment charcoal shashlik (special cuts) for ₩36,800 plus an ₩18,400 add-on, everything arrived already grilled over charcoal so there was nothing left to cook, and the different cuts kept every bite interesting. With a large parking lot, sea-view seats, and watermelon punch to finish, it's an easy stop to fold into a drive.
Geojedo Grilled Fish & Ganjang Gejang (거제도생선구이.간장게장, grilled fish and soy-sauce crab) is a Korean restaurant near Gohyeon Port in Geoje, Gyeongnam. The writer stopped in during a family drive around Geoje Island, ordered the grilled fish set meal served with freshly cooked hot pot rice, and loaded up at the self-serve banchan bar with pancakes, tteokbokki, rolled egg and fritters. Orders go through a tablet (T-order) and the meal ends with a complimentary "ppeong-seukeurim" dessert, making it a satisfying family outing.
Baengnyeon Galbi Jangyu is a seasoned pork rib restaurant near Daecheongcheon in Jangyu, Gimhae, Gyeongnam. The 2-3 person rib set (₩65,000) includes 400g of seasoned king ribs, 400g of pork neck steak, and 2 pieces of seasoned beef ribs, plus complimentary tteokbokki, seonjiguk (ox blood soup), and corn cheese. With ample parking and a group room, it's an easy pick for family meals or gatherings in Gimhae's Jangyu area.
