Ikseon-dong bakery garlic bread reheated in an air fryer: Munhwa

Munhwa Bakery, a Jongno 3-ga favorite

From Seonhyewon in Samcheong-dong to Munhwa Bakery in Ikseon-dong

I went to Seonhyewon, the hard-to-book hotspot in Samcheong-dong.

Seonhyewon is a peaceful hanok. Since only people with a timed reservation get in, it wasn't crowded at all, which was nice. I looked at the exhibits at Seonhyewon, then walked the flower-lined path to Insadong.

Today's second Seoul destination: Munhwa Bakery, famous as an Ikseon-dong bakery must-visit.

Munhwa Bakery opening hours

A Jongno 3-ga favorite, a Jongno 3-ga bakery. Munhwa Bakery, an Ikseon-dong bakery, is open 11am to 8pm.

Seoul really is global these days — because of hallyu and K-content there are so many foreign visitors now. I sometimes forget whether I'm even in Korea anymore, haha. A foreigner peering into the bakery window looked almost like the Little Match Girl at Christmas — kind of wistful. Made me want to buy them some bread? Haha.

Two parties at a time, bread displayed behind glass partitions

The dark brown wood interior is calm, which makes the bread on display stand out even more. At most bakeries the bread is left wide open and it always bugs me a little, but here it's protected behind a glass partition, which I like.

When it's busy you can't just barge in. The shop is small and it's takeout-only, so only 2 parties can enter at a time. Luckily it wasn't crowded when I went, so I got in by myself — solo bread shopping run, haha. Let's start by checking out the bread that looks most delicious.

Munhwa Bakery bread lineup and prices

• Coffee bread — ₩5,800
• Garlic bread — ₩6,800
• Black sesame bread — ₩3,800
• Milk cream bread — ₩3,500
• Cheese bread — ₩5,400
• Squid ink condensed milk bread — ₩4,500
• Rice chestnut loaf — ₩5,800
• Rice cheese loaf — ₩5,900
• Maple cream cheese bread — ₩4,900
• Sweet potato bread — ₩3,800
• White bean paste bread — ₩3,800
• Walnut bread — ₩3,500
• Injeolmi (rice cake) bread — ₩3,800
• Peanut bread — ₩3,800
• Mugwort rice cake bread — ₩5,700
• Onion bagel — ₩6,000

Injeolmi (rice cake) bread, peanut bread, mugwort rice cake bread, onion bagel

The onion bagel — one of the signature items at Munhwa Bakery, said to be one of Seoul's top 3 bakeries — is a baguette-shaped bread dotted with black sesame and stuffed with onion cream. Crisp enough to scratch the roof of your mouth, with an onion cream that isn't the least bit greasy. Somehow I feel like I know exactly how it tastes without even trying it, haha. It was heating up again at midday and I had another schedule, so sadly I skipped the onion bagel.

Black sesame, milk cream, cheese, squid ink condensed milk, rice chestnut loaf, rice cheese loaf, maple cream cheese, sweet potato, white bean paste and walnut bread

Not a single cheese bread left, which somehow made me want it even more. Everything looked delicious and honestly I wanted to scoop it all up. I heard the rice chestnut loaf is great too — why does everything here look this good? In the end I went with the white bean paste bread, since I have an old-lady's palate, haha.

Coffee bread and garlic bread

This right here is the true signature of Munhwa Bakery, the Ikseon-dong favorite: coffee bread and garlic bread. If you went to Munhwa and didn't buy these, people would ask if you're some kind of spy, haha. The garlic bread, said to be one of Seoul's top 3. The owner — or maybe a staff member — picks out whatever bread you ask for from behind the glass.

The garlic bread, with plenty of garlic sauce packed between the slits, I asked them to cut. They also cut the long coffee bread into bite-sized pieces.

Write a receipt photo review and get a free salt bread from Munhwa Bakery. There were also sample breads out, but I went late so there wasn't much left.

The bread-bag shot everyone takes!!!

Tasting the Munhwa Bakery breads at home

Back home for a taste test of Munhwa Bakery, the Ikseon-dong favorite.

What the coffee bread tastes like

First up, the deep coffee-colored one — the coffee bread. Let's try it first.

A white-roll-style bread with coffee mixed in, plus a coffee cream. The coffee flavor wasn't very strong, a little disappointing, but the subtle coffee aroma and taste is nice — coffee lovers who pair it with a cup of coffee will probably enjoy how coffee-on-coffee it feels.

Next-day garlic bread in the air fryer: the best one yet

And now, the long-awaited one: the garlic bread, said to be one of Seoul's top 3 bakeries.

Not a crispy-style garlic bread — this is the thick, rich garlic sauce kind, packed generously. Same style as the garlic bread I had once from Mandong Bakery.

The garlic-and-sauce combo is insane. I was too full that day and had leftovers, so I reheated them in the air fryer the next day — and it became my life-changing garlic bread!!! Buying a bunch of these, freezing them, and reheating in the air fryer whenever — that's true love.

What the white bean paste bread tastes like

An old-lady's-palate pick, packed with white bean paste. Eating it reminded me of sangtu (traditional topknot-shaped) confections, and it's designed to be pulled apart piece by piece, so before you know it the plate is empty.

Ugh, why did I only buy one of these?! Seoul has so much to see and so many fall festivals going on lately, I should deliberately plan another outing and go again. Next time maybe I'll bring a suitcase and really lean into the traveler vibe, haha.