Olive oil gimbap with topping removal option in Gyodae: Halls

Does everyone love gimbap? I love it so much I've toured all kinds of Seoul gimbap spots, like Auto Gimbap and Kitchen Bomnal. But lately I've been dieting, so I've been holding back on gimbap.. :(

Did you know that the ingredients in gimbap are usually stir-fried in cooking oil, which makes it fairly high in calories and spikes blood sugar quickly?

So here's a gimbap that's at least a bit better for a diet!! Made with olive oil and unrefined cane sugar instead of regular cooking oil, for a healthier version — let me introduce Halls Gimbap, a gimbap restaurant in Gyodae.

Getting to Halls Gimbap from Gyodae Station and hours

Halls Gimbap, a gimbap spot in Gyodae, is a 4-minute walk from Gyodae Station Exit 1, so it's very well located whether you're walking or taking transit.

🅿️ Parking — Available

Halls Gimbap Main Branch Location: 90 Seochojungang-ro 22-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea Hours: 08:30–20:00 Break time: 15:00–16:00 Sat: 08:00–15:00 Closed Sunday

Gimbap made with olive oil and unrefined cane sugar

Halls Gimbap, formerly Auto Gimbap Seocho branch, has been running steadily in the same spot for over 8 years. Unlike typical gimbap shops, it cooks the egg omelette and fish cake with high-quality olive oil, and uses olive oil and unrefined cane sugar to make gimbap that's tastier and healthier.

🌞 Morning hours — Opens at 8:30am (8:00am on Saturday), good for a quick breakfast for nearby office workers and residents

👦 Good Neighbor Store — Partners with Good Neighbors to share warmth with children in need

Seating that works for solo dining too

The interior is a clean, tidy white-toned space with solo seats and 4-person tables, good for solo diners as well as small groups of two, three or four.

• 🪑 Terrace — Nice for eating outside while looking at the view on good-weather days
• 🪑 Solo seats — Comfortable seats for solo dining
• 🪑 4-person tables — Available for groups of 3–4

Order by kiosk ~! *Cash payments go through the counter

Menu lineup at Halls Gimbap

• Sets: Halls + Fried Chicken / Wasabi + Fried Chicken / Spam + Fried Chicken / Konjac Water Dropwort Gimbap + Fried Chicken / Cheese Egg + Fried Chicken, etc.
• Gimbap: Halls Gimbap / Wasabi Gimbap / Spam Gimbap / Double Cheese Egg Gimbap / Konjac Water Dropwort Gimbap / Jindo Green Onion Tuna Gimbap / Halls Half + Spam Half
• Chicken: Halls Fried Chicken S / Halls Fried Chicken L
• Tteokbokki: Seocho-dong Scorched Rice Tteokbokki / Cabbage Protein Bokki
• Drinks: Coca-Cola / Coca-Cola Zero / Coca-Cola Zero Lemon / Coca-Cola Zero Cherry / Sprite / Sprite Zero, etc.

✔️ Country of origin labeling — Ingredients like seaweed, black rice, white rice, water dropwort and spam all have their origins labeled, which is good for hygiene peace of mind.

🍜 A wide variety of instant noodles — Shrimp Tang, Jin Ramen, Sesame Ramen, Buldak Bokkeum Myeon and more are available, so you can pick according to your taste.

Isn't ramen basically required with gimbap~? With so many instant noodle options, pairing one with gimbap makes for an even more filling meal :>

Half-and-half gimbap and the topping removal option

Ever been dining solo and struggled to choose from so many gimbap options? Want to try this.. want to try that.. At Halls Gimbap, there's a half-and-half roll with two flavors in one roll, so no need to worry about that!!

✔️ Topping removal option — You can remove ingredients like green onion, perilla leaf, or pickled radish for allergies or personal taste, good for enjoying it your way.

Green onion tuna + cheese egg gimbap (₩7,800) Spam fried chicken set (₩11,000)

MSG-free bonito broth self-serve bar

Self-serve bar — Water dispenser / bonito broth / instant noodle hot water

Unlike a typical udon broth loaded with seasoning, Halls Gimbap's bonito broth has no added MSG, so it's clean and healthy — great that you can drink it without guilt even while on a diet :)

I personally prefer keto-style gimbap packed with fillings over ones heavy on rice. Halls Gimbap's rolls don't drown the fillings in rice — the rice portion is light and the fillings, like cucumber, carrot, egg and pickled radish, are generous, so each ingredient's flavor comes through clearly and you really get to enjoy the natural taste of the ingredients.

Packaging condition

Packed up :) They included chopsticks matching the order count without me even asking, so on a nice day you could totally take this on a picnic :>

Each container had a sticker labeling the menu item, so there was zero chance of mixing anything up.

Green onion tuna + cheese egg gimbap (₩7,800)

The green onion tuna + cheese egg gimbap is a set combining Jindo green onion tuna gimbap and cheese egg gimbap.

Jindo green onion tuna gimbap

Savory, mild tuna is generous, mayonnaise is light, and fragrant Jindo green onion is added on top. At snack shops, tuna gimbap often disappoints with mayo-drenched rolls that skimp on tuna, but Halls Gimbap's version cuts back on mayo and loads up on tuna — the look of it alone said this would be delicious.. haha

With so much savory, mild tuna, it could get greasy after a while, but the crunchy cabbage and fragrant green onion cut through the richness completely, keeping it clean and light enough to eat endlessly without getting tired of it! I usually avoid tuna gimbap because I don't like greasy mayo, but with less mayo and more tuna, the savory tuna flavor stays intact while the crunchy veggie texture is added, so I kept reaching for more without any guilt haha

Filled generously with thick spam even down to the tail end, plus cucumber and pickled radish — happiness level +10000 throughout eating

Double cheese egg gimbap

A savory, high-protein gimbap with 2 slices of cheese and 5 eggs, packed with rich flavor — the double cheese egg gimbap.

Fluffy, soft egg blends with crunchy pickled radish and carrot, plus the savory richness of cheese, for an overall mild, savory flavor. The cheese-and-egg combo could easily get greasy, but the subtle fragrance of perilla leaf cuts through it cleanly, so it stays enjoyable and guilt-free to the last bite.

Spam fried chicken set (₩11,000)

The spam fried chicken set combines spam gimbap with thick slices of spam and sweet-spicy fried chicken in one set.

Composition — Tuna gimbap / Fried chicken

Spam gimbap

A hearty spam gimbap where the salty, savory flavor of thick spam shines. The thick spam gives a satisfying bite, and the salty, savory spam paired with soft, savory egg and crunchy cucumber and pickled radish cuts through what could otherwise be a heavy flavor — each roll has its own distinct appeal :)

Fried chicken (set portion, S size 1/2)

Not the sticky-sweet kind made with corn syrup — this has a crispy outside and moist inside, coated in a sweet-and-salty soy-based sauce that everyone, young and old, would love! To put it simply, it's like Kyochon's Red Combo vibe..?

Sometimes fried chicken can be dry when you buy it out, but Halls Gimbap's fried chicken is 100% thigh meat, so it's nice and moist :)

Try adding some cheongyang chili pepper on top for a spicy kick that adds another layer of flavor — definitely worth trying!

Who this is for

• ✔️ Looking for a good gimbap spot in Gyodae?
• ✔️ Looking for a solo dining spot in Gyodae?
• ✔️ Looking for a high-quality, tasty gimbap spot in Seoul?
• ✔️ Looking for good fried chicken in Gyodae?
• ✔️ Want something simple but filling in Gyodae?
• ✔️ Looking for a unique gimbap spot in Seoul?

If you check even one of these boxes, I recommend Halls Gimbap, a gimbap restaurant in Gyodae.