Insadong Korean restaurant with kids after craft museum: Wolhadong

Wolhadong basics and parking

Wolhadong Address: 16-1 Insadong 8-gil, 1st floor, Jongno-gu, Seoul Hours: 11:00 ~ 21:00 * Break time 15:00 ~ 17:00 * Last order 20:30

Parking tip! There's no dedicated lot, so you have to find your own spot — I found the nearby Annyeong Insadong parking garage through the 'Modoo Parking' app and walked over. It's underground and spacious, so parking was easy.

A hungry kid after the Seoul Museum of Craft Art

My kid loves running around outside but also loves making things by hand, so I frantically clicked to book a spot in the museum's kids' program, 'My Little Artist,' and we went.

The chair my kid made! From design to construction — a precious experience being a real artist for a day. (We could've left it at the museum or brought it home... we ended up lugging it back, haha 🥹)

Our hardworking little artist! As soon as the program ended, of course, my kid said they were hungry and wanted to eat something. After two hours of focused work, it made sense to be hungry.

Looking for somewhere to eat nearby, we slowly walked toward the Insadong alleys and decided on gomtang (Korean bone soup). It was nice that it was close to Insadong from the museum, near Exit 5 of Anguk Station. The place I'd scouted in advance and gotten my kid's 'approval' for was a gomtang restaurant called Wolhadong.

A hanok restaurant tucked in an Insadong alley: Wolhadong

A little way off the main Insadong street, into the alley, I spotted a hanok (traditional Korean house) building topped with tiled roofing. Inside, the wooden pillars, latticed windows, and eaves kept the full hanok feel, and it truly felt like Insadong.

A good vibe for kids, plus a solo bar for dining alone

When I go to a restaurant with my kid, I care about the food but also whether the space feels too busy or chaotic. Overall, it was clean and calm, which I liked. There's a solo bar seat for dining alone too, which would be great for a solo meal. I took a table for two so we could sit facing each other.

What we ordered and the prices

Once seated, we ordered the signature Wolha gomtang and a half plate of cold pork. Wolha gomtang was ₩12,000 and the cold pork half plate was ₩10,000.

While waiting for the food, I looked around and noticed they make their broth with house-fermented cheonggukjang (fermented soybean paste), and even run their own fermentation room for storing and aging ingredients.

And you can't have gomtang without kimchi and kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi)! Wolhadong makes its own kimchi using 100% domestic ingredients — not just the cabbage and radish, but even the chili powder — which made me feel a bit better feeding it to my kid.

How does Wolha gomtang taste? Clear and mild broth

The gomtang, cold pork, and side dishes were all neatly arranged. Unlike the typical pale, thick pork gomtang, the broth here was clear and transparent. I thought a pork-based soup might feel heavy, but it was much milder than expected. I tried the broth first — subtle yet quietly savory, with a clean finish. There was no gamey pork smell at all.

The thinly sliced meat on top was tender, not chewy, so it worked well for my kid too. My kid is usually a picky eater and I have to repeat myself to get them to eat when we're out, but that day, without me nagging, they picked up the spoon on their own — I was so proud.

What about the cold pork half plate?

Then there was the cold pork we also ordered. It's boiled pork chilled and sliced thin, with a texture clearly different from the meat in the warm gomtang. Cold meat felt a bit unfamiliar at first, but dipping one piece lightly in sauce and taking a bite, it was delicious! My kid gobbled it up happily too. It's not very fatty and has a chewy quality that gets more delicious the more you chew.

A spoonful of rice with gomtang, then a piece of cold pork — pure bliss. We both had a hearty, early dinner.

How was it for dining out with a kid in Insadong?

When eating out with a kid, I tend to look for dishes to eat with rice rather than spicy, sweet, or salty food, and gomtang fits that bill perfectly. This clean, deep-flavored gomtang seems to be loved by everyone, young and old. The kkakdugi served alongside was also delicious and paired really well with the soup.

As we left, my kid said it was delicious. If you're out with your kid at the Seoul Museum of Craft Art or Insadong and looking for a hearty, non-spicy Korean meal, I'd recommend a bowl of gomtang at Wolhadong.