Local places · 15875 stories
Restaurants in Korea, told firsthand by local bloggers — with photos and Google Maps.
Tebo is a handmade-noodle udon restaurant on Apgujeong-ro 4-gil near Sinsa Station in Gangnam, Seoul. Visiting alone, the writer ordered cold kake udon with lime and yuzu kosho plus karaage, fried shrimp and a fried onsen egg for a total of 22,000 won, and the tart lime worked well with Tebo's thick, chewy noodles. Tebo suits both a quick solo meal and a Garosu-gil date.
Padong is a fusion Japanese restaurant on the basement level of an alley building by Mangwon Market in Mapo, Seoul, a five-minute walk from Mangwon Station Exit 2. Three of us ordered four dishes — futomaki, tuna rice bowl, kimchi cheese nabe and chicken karaage — to balance rice, hot broth and something fried. The futomaki with the spicy kimchi cheese nabe was the best pairing, and Padong feels easy enough for a small gathering or a solo meal.
Cheonghwaweon is a Chinese and Taiwanese restaurant on Myeongmul-gil in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, in the Sinchon area. On a weekday at 1pm, two of us ordered three kinds of dim sum — sujeongdal mandu (crystal dumplings), xiaolongbao and shumai, each 9,500 won — plus a tiger rice bowl (9,800 won), and the dim sum, steamed to order, worked well with the spicy rice bowl as a lunch for two. If you can never settle on just one dim sum, Cheonghwaweon's three-kind order is the way to go.
Yunseul is a Korean shabu-shabu restaurant on the 1st floor of Grand Central, in front of Exit 4 of Seoul Station in Jung-gu, Seoul. After a walk through Namdaemun Market, we stopped at Yunseul with our baby and ordered the clear anchovy broth shabu-shabu and minari gonijeon (watercress and fish roe pancake), with a baby chair and baby dishes already set at the table. The broth is light rather than salty, so Yunseul works for a family meal with a baby or a get-together near Seoul Station.
Two Find Peter Baegot Branch is a pasta and pizza restaurant in Baegot, Siheung, about 10 minutes by car from Shinsegae Siheung Outlet. Two friends shared vongole pasta (13,000 won), tomato seafood pasta, Caesar salad and pepperoni thin pizza, and the vongole had a savoury broth with no fishy taste. Reasonable prices, a private room and parking make Two Find Peter an easy stop on an outlet day out.
Choe Uyeong Sushiya Jongno Branch is a budget-friendly sushi and sashimi restaurant a 3-minute walk from Exit 1 of Jongak Station, between Jongak and Gwanghwamun in Seoul. The order was the 19,000-won special sushi set with 20,000-won tuna belly sashimi and 11,000-won flounder sashimi over beer and soju, and it was good enough that bluefin tuna sashimi at 11,000 won and ankimo (monkfish liver) at 6,000 won were added. For price and quality when sushi or sashimi is the craving in Jongno or Gwanghwamun, Choe Uyeong Sushiya delivers.
Danyang Heukmaneul Nurungji Dakgangjeong is a black garlic nurungji dakgangjeong (sweet crispy fried chicken) shop inside Gugyeong Market in Danyang, Chungbuk. Arriving at 5pm on a Saturday after a family grave-tending trip, the writer waited 40 minutes in a long line for a double black garlic dakgangjeong (20,000 won) and a two-bottle black garlic makgeolli set (10,000 won), then ate it picnic-style just outside the market. With crisp lotus root and nurungji (crispy rice crust) in the box, the whole family called it the best dakgangjeong they had ever eaten.
Hwagye Dakgalbi is a charcoal and griddle dakgalbi (grilled chicken) restaurant on the dakgalbi street along Sinsaembat-ro in Sinbuk-eup, Chuncheon. The two-person charcoal set at Hwagye Dakgalbi pairs salt dakgalbi and soy dakgalbi with grilled deodeok (bellflower root) and makguksu (chilled buckwheat noodles), and we added a ureong doenjang jjigae (river snail soybean paste stew). The salt version tasted clean and mild while the soy version was sweet and savory, so neither got tiring, and the doenjang jjigae ordered on a whim ended up the most memorable dish.
Anok is a hanok-style Korean restaurant in Hongdae, Seoul, a 7-minute walk from Exit 9 of Hongik University Station. Every table at Anok was full at 7pm on a weekend, where the meal ran from clear gomtang (beef bone soup) to steamed pork tail and the signature Pyongyang naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles) — the broth deep and savory, the pork tail generous for the price. Quieter and more composed than most Hongdae spots, Anok works just as well for family gatherings and anniversaries as for a couple's dinner.
Jangjakkun Yatap Direct Branch is a nurungji (scorched rice) whole chicken restaurant tucked inside the restaurant alley by Yatap Station in Seongnam, Gyeonggi. On a Sunday afternoon we reserved a table timed to the 16:30 chicken-roasting slot and ordered the herbal nurungji chicken at 21,000 won and the rosé nurungji chicken at 26,000 won for the kids. Alternating between the two flavors kept every bite interesting, and since Jangjakkun has no dedicated lot, the Matgoeul public parking lot is the easiest place to park.
Anmin Jung-dong is a fresh domestic pork grill restaurant on the ground floor near Unicity in Jung-dong, Changwon, Gyeongnam. A 5pm opening-run reservation secured a table for three servings of whole fresh pork belly, white fried rice and steamed egg, and a staff member grilled the meat from start to finish and cut it into bite-sized pieces. Between that grilling service and the side menu, Anmin Jung-dong is a Changwon pork belly restaurant worth returning to again and again.
Slow Cali Bupyeong is a poke and salad restaurant near Bupyeong Market Station in Incheon, and an easy place to eat alone. Salmon poke is 12,900 won and tofu poke 10,500 won, plus 2,000 won for extra chicken breast and 1,800 won for a protein cookie, for a total of 27,200 won, with a self-serve bar holding soup (jangguk), two side dishes and extra sauce. Between the solo-friendly seats and the spotless dining room, Slow Cali Bupyeong is the one poke spot in Bupyeong worth returning to.
