Where to eat in Seoul ⭐ 10 good and cheap restaurants

Map with RESTAURANTS where to eat in seoul

Restaurants where to eat korean food in seoul

Seoul is a gigantic and Korean food is a source of pride for Koreans, so eating out in Seoul is almost a religion for them. You will find streets with restaurants packed with Koreans no matter what day of the week it is.

Now, We will share with you some of our favorite restaurants and the typical dish they specialize in, a safe bet if you want to try the star dishes of Korean cuisine. At the end of the article you have a List of the most typical dishes of Korea what to eat in Seoul and the most peculiar ones. Also a couple of Netflix series that we really liked and will make you learn about Korean cuisine.

ᐈᐈ Explore every corner of the city, these are the 30 best places to see in Seoul.

Insadong Hangane Bulgogi Jumak | Where to eat Bulgogi in Seoul

Insadong Hangane Bulgogi Jumak is one of the best restaurants to eat in Seoul as it offers an authentic experience of Korean cuisine. It has a varied menu of typical dishes such as Haemul Pajeon but its specialty is the Bulgogi (car(made with marinated pork or beef), a true delicacy served with rice and a wide variety of side dishes.

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The restaurant has a cozy atmosphere with a rustic which will make you feel like you are in an old Korean house. It is located in the popular neighborhood of Insadong, one of the best neighborhoods what to see in SeoulWe discovered this restaurant by chance and it is very popular with locals, a great sign that it is authentic Korean food.

The price of a Bulgogi dish for 2 people ranges from [price range] depending on the [features/items]. carThe restaurant we chose (in our case, about €20 for both of us). As it was a popular restaurant, we had to queue for a bit.

Grandma Yu's Bibimbap | Where to eat Bibimbap in Seoul

Bibimbap is one of the most recognized Korean dishes and it is said that where they are best prepared is in Jeonju CityFortunately, since it is such a popular dish, it is really easy to find in many restaurants in Seoul, although one of the best places to try it is in the Traditional restaurant Granda Yu's BibimbapThis place is run by ladies with 40 years of experience and the decor is quite traditional.

The menu is limited and relies on local dishes, but the dish that makes this restaurant famous is the Jeonju bibimbap that follows the traditional recipe. The price of the dish is 11.000 won and it is less than a 10-minute walk from Deoksugung Palace and City Hall Square.

BBQ Chicken Myeongdong Star | Where to eat fried chicken in Seoul

Although it might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Korean cuisine, fried chicken is the star dish when Koreans get together for beers with friends. There are dozens of these types of restaurants throughout the city, especially in neighborhoods with a great nightlife like the university district of Hongdae, a good place to go. stay in Seoul if you want to experience Korean nightlife.

A very good restaurant to eat in Seoul if you are looking for a fried chicken and beer plan is the BBQ Chicken Myeongdong Star, located next to Myeongdong Street, one of the most famous and liveliest streets in all of Seoul.

One of the elements carA characteristic of this restaurant is that you can choose fried chicken style «Golden olive», which means that it is fried in olive oil, although it is actually mixed, which gives it a delicious taste. The fried chicken dish for 2 people ranges from 24.000 to 29.000 won depending on the type of preparation chosen. To accompany the chicken you should choose a Korean beer that ranges from 6.500 to 9.000 won.

Yurimmyeon Noodle Restaurant

Right next to the Jeongdong Observatory from where you can enjoy privileged views of the Deoksugung Palace you will find the famous restaurant Yurimmyeon which has appeared on the Michelin list year after year since 2020.

It is an inexpensive restaurant specializing in high-quality traditional Korean noodles. Their signature dish is buckwheat noodles.with a dark color and a very strong flavor carcharacteristic.

The dish is only in Korean and all of its dishes cost 10.000 won so it's hard to know which one to choose. We recommend using Google Lens to translate it.

Ungteori Saenggogi | Where to eat Korean BBQ in Seoul

If there's one Korean dish that has crossed borders and reached almost every country in the world, it's Korean barbecue. When you travel around the country, you'll notice it's very common in every food area, from street stalls to high-end restaurants with diverse menus. carbones and cuts of carne premium.

Our first experience with Korean BBQ was at the Ungeteori Saenggogi restaurantLocated in the heart of Hongdae's university district, this buffet-style restaurant is incredibly cheap, costing 16.000 won per person—a very low price compared to typical Korean barbecue restaurants. The quality isn't the best, and there are only two types of food available. carThey are available, apart from many vegetables, to accompany them.

Obok Korean BBQ

If you prefer a higher quality Korean barbecue, then carta and with carFor absolutely delicious food, you can visit Obok Korean BBQ, in the same Hongdae neighborhood. This place is one of the most famous in this area and very friendly to tourists since the owner even speaks Spanish.

At the tables of this restaurant there is a screen where you can see the different types of cuts of meat. carGo ahead and choose the one that convinces you the most, keep in mind that each order comes with 200g and is always accompanied by vegetables, it's very visual, simple and delicious!

Gwangjang Market | Where to eat street food in Seoul

Ok, this isn't a restaurant per se, but we couldn't forget about Street Food on this list of where to eat in Seoul. At Gwangjang Market you can try all kinds of traditional Korean dishes.

ᐈ Don't miss our guide to Visit Seoul in 3 days, where we recommend the best places to see in the city.

The star stall of this market is the hand-cut noodle stand, as it was featured in a street food episode on Netflix. You won't have any trouble finding it, as it is the most crowded stall in the market.

Apart from noodles, in Gwangjang you can find many typical Korean market dishes at good prices. Some examples are: gimbap, tteokbokki or bindaetteok, which is a fried pancake similar to the traditional pajeon. If you want something sweet there is also hottok, a sweet cinnamon-based omelette and walnut-shaped buns filled with cream and walnuts that were incredible.

Yoogane Chicken Galbi

This is a restaurant specializing in Dak Galbi, which is chicken galbi. Its most popular dish is spicy marinated chicken, cooked right at the table along with vegetables, rice, noodles or cheese.

There are several locations in the Myeongdong district and the experience of having the waiters help you cook the dish on the grill on the table is very interesting. The chicken galbi also tastes very good, but we also recommend trying the beef galbi at another restaurant if you have the chance.

Gaeseong Traditional Dumpling House

This traditional restaurant is one of the most famous in Seoul for its mandu (Korean dumplings) made in the style of the Gaeseong region, which is an area of ​​North Korea. This business is Manages a family of North Korean origin and their dumplings carThey are characterized by their unique flavor. It's very popular because it's featured in the Michelin Guide, and it's common to see a queue at the entrance. If you want to try these delicious mandu, you'll have to go to the Insadong district.

Another good alternative to try Korean dumplings in Seoul is the restaurant Myeongdong Kyoja, also with a Michelin star and very affordable prices, between 8 and 10 euros per dish.

Ikseon-dong Cafes | The Best Cafes in Seoul

In South Korea, specialty coffee is very popular. There are several coffee shops on almost every street, whether they are from large Korean chains or themed cafes of all kinds. These cafes not only serve coffee, but it is common to accompany it with delicious pastries of all kinds.

The best example of the high level that exists in Korea in terms of themed cafes It refers to the Ikseon-dong district, an area of ​​beautiful old hanok houses. There are so many beautiful cafes in this district that you will have a hard time choosing one. To help you out, we are sharing the three cafes that we personally tried:

• Cheese Industry, famous for its incredibly creamy cheesecake.
• Soha Salt PondThis cafe specializes in typical savory rolls that are filled with different sweets.
• Nakwon Coffee Shop, a very striking place because it has train tracks inside!

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⪼ Ikseon-dong is a perfect neighborhood to stay in Seoul. We stayed in the Hotel Goodstay Saewha and we couldn't recommend it more highly. Perfect location, simple, clean and very economical.

Where to eat in Seoul non korean food

One of the things we loved about Seoul is that you can find a huge variety of cuisine from other countries and the quality is almost always impeccable. Chinese and Japanese cuisine have a lot of influence on Korean recipes and it is also very common to find restaurants specializing in these two cuisines. If you want to take advantage of being in this part of the world to try delicious Chinese or Japanese dishes, take note of our next recommendations.

Hong Kong BanJum 0410 | Chinese food in Seoul

This restaurant is a chain specialized in Chinese food that you can find in the main cities of the country, for example we visited it several times during our days in Busan.

It specializes in various typical noodle dishes, although one of the most original and The one we liked the most was the jjajangwhich are noodles served with black bean sauce to which you can also add carpork. The prices at this restaurant are economical; all their dishes range from 6.000 to 9.000 won.

Jungdon | Where to eat Japanese food in Seoul

Taking advantage of the fact that we are talking about non-Korean oriental food, we are going to recommend the Jungdon restaurant, Specializing in delicious tonkatsu, a dish of Japanese origin consisting of a breaded and fried pork fillet, served with various sauces, rice and coleslaw.

Of all the restaurants on this list, this is the one that is furthest from the touristy streets, although it has exit 3 of the Hyehwa subway stop right next to it. If you want to enjoy its tonkatsu, we recommend you take advantage of visiting the nearby Changgyeonggung Palace.

What is the food like? Korean

Korean cuisine is a reflection of the country's culture and traditions, with some carcharacteristics that showcase the historical cultural exchange with neighboring countries like Japan and China. Another thing that surprised us a lot is that most dishes come with a lots of small dishes that complement and accompany the main dish with very different flavors.

Their dishes carThey are characterized by having intense flavors, striking colors, and a balance between the Spicy, sweet, salty and fermentedIt can be very spicy, but in general terms it is not exaggerated in most dishes, since they usually add flavor once served.

The most common ingredients are rice, kimchi, ginger, soybean paste (doenjang), chili paste (gochujang) and sesame oil. Beef, pork and seafood are also star ingredients in Korean cuisine.

The best typical Korean dishes

Taking into account the above ingredients, the most representative dishes of Korean cuisine are:

• Kimchi: Slightly spicy fermented cabbage is the most iconic side dish and staple of the Korean diet.
• bibimbapThe literal translation means mixed rice, so you can imagine what kind of dish it is. It consists of a bowl of rice topped with vegetables, egg, carNe and chili paste. When mixed together, they create a delicious flavor.
• Bulgogi: Beef or pork marinated in a sweet soy and garlic sauce and accompanied by many other dishes.
• ManduKorean dumplings, similar to ravioli or gyoza, filled with ingredients such as carNe, tofu, vegetables, and sweet potato noodles. They can be steamed, boiled, fried, or added to soups. Simply delicious.
• teokbokki: Soft rice dough in a spicy and sweet gochujang sauce. Typical street food dish.
• Galby: A traditional dish made mainly from marinated beef or pork ribs. Galbi is grilled directly at the table.
• Haemul Pajeon: Fried omelette with seafood and spring onion. It is also cooked with many other ingredients.
• Gimbap: For us, it is the best Korean snack because of its price, its flavour and how easy it is to find in convenience stores and street food. It is made up of rice rolled in seaweed and filled with all kinds of fillings, usually vegetables, egg or tuna accompanied by some sauce.
• Korean barbecue: Different cuts of carmeat and vegetables cooked on an electric grill or grill carbone in the middle of the table.
• Korean Fried Chicken: Crispy fried chicken, usually eaten in bars accompanied by beer and Korean rice wine.

Korean cooking series to watch before going out to eat in Seoul

If you are passionate about culinary culture and would like to discover the recipes that best represent South Korea We recommend you watch a couple of series before traveling.

One of them is the chapter dedicated to Seoul in the documentary Street Food: Asia on Netflix. The other show we loved is Spoon Wars (Culinary Class Wars in English), also on Netflix, where 100 Korean chefs compete in cooking all kinds of recipes.

After watching both, you will have learned a lot about Korean dishes and ingredients and your experience in Korea will be completely different. And of course, you will be able to write down a long list of restaurants that are worth a visit.

“Strange” Korean dishes

The gastronomy of each culture is full of surprises, and what for some is a delicacy, for others may seem strange. In South Korea There are dishes that challenge the most daring palates, with ingredients and preparations that are out of the ordinary in Western cuisine. Some of the most famous examples are:

• Sannakji: Is about freshly cut live octopus, served with the tentacles still moving. It is served with oil and sesame seeds, accompanied by rice or vegetables. Although it is a traditional and popular dish, its consumption can be shocking when seeing the octopus still moving. For those who want to know where to eat a plate of sannakji in Seoul, they should go to the Gwangjang market.
• Beondegi: This is a snack made from boiled or steamed silkworm pupae and seasoned with spices. It is a very popular snack at markets and festivals.
• Hongeo: This is a fermented skate dish that gives off a very strong ammonia-like smell. It is served raw and is often accompanied by kimchi and boiled pork. Its taste and smell are a challenge even for some Koreans.
• naengmyeon: This soup, originally from North Korea, is also consumed in South Korea and is made up of noodles, beef, egg and vegetables. What's so strange about this dish? The soup is served very cold, and in some restaurants the broth is even served partially frozen. It's not the typical Korean comfort soup you might expect.

Up to this point 10 Restaurants to eat in Seoul and enjoy every biteIf you have any other recommendations, please leave them in the comments so other travelers can read them.

To continue organizing your trip you can read our Guides for traveling to South Korea, full of Tips, amazing places and delicious restaurants.

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