food trip in korea

Jalppajin Memil, a restaurant serving Korean dishes made with buckwheat, is best known for its three types of buckwheat noodles: Buckwheat noodles, which come in cool and refreshing soup; spicy buckwheat noodles, tossed with a spicy sauce; and buckwheat noodles with perilla oil, seasoned with perilla oil and propriety soy sauce.

In general, buckwheat noodles on the market tend to contain flour, but this restaurant serves buckwheat noodles purely made with buckwheat, which amplifies the fragrance of the buckwheat even further. Another popular menu, jumbo buckwheat mandu, goes perfectly with the light taste of buckwheat noodles. These dumplings are filled with plenty of minced meat and vegetables and come in steamed and deep-fried varieties. The restaurant is also known for its winter menu, "buckwheat mandu hot pot set menu."

Deep-fried Jumbo Buckwheat Mandu

Rinse the buckwheat noodles with traditional sweets and beverages at SASA, a hanok café located about 5 min on foot from Jalppajin Memil that serves desserts and beverages, reinterpreting traditional and contemporary culture. For the most Korean dish of all desserts, we recommend the "SASA set menu," which includes grilled rice cake sticks and makgeolli (unrefined rice wine), a traditional Korean liquor. Grilled rice cake sticks boast a chewy texture that goes well with malt syrup and powdered soybeans served alongside. Makgeolli served at SASA is nonalcoholic, making it ideal for even those who don’t like the taste of alcohol to taste the deep flavors of makgeolli.

For a more refreshing but no less Korean dessert, we recommend gwapyeon (fruit jelly). Gwapyeon is a jelly-like dessert made by mixing fruit juice from seasonal fruits with mung bean starch, sugar, and honey. It is somewhat like sherbet or fruit jelly. SASA is named after the sound of trees swaying in the wind, and just like its name, it is a great place to enjoy a tranquil rest in hanok with the sound of the wind. First-floor seats have a front-row seat to Seosulla Street’s stone walls, while the second-floor window seats overlook the Jongmyo Shrine’s stone walls and the nearby hanok buildings.

Gwapyeon (fruit jelly) made with seasonal fruits

Terrace seats

A question comes to mind when one walks down Seosulla Street: What lies beyond these stone walls? The answer can naturally be found across the wall at Jongmyo Shrine. Jongmyo Shrine houses "sinju," which are tablets engraved with the names of Joseon kings and queens, for ancestral rituals. It was burned down during the Japanese invasion of Korea* but was rebuilt to its present form. What makes Jongmyo Shrine so special is the fact that rituals are still being held there.

Ancestral rites are held on the first Sunday of May and the first Saturday of November and are led by members of the Jeonju Yi clan, the descendants of Joseon’s royal family. In recognition of its historical value, Jongmyo Shrine was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage in 1995.

One can find a different face of Korea right across from Jongmyo Shrine, only 3 min away by foot: Sewoon Arcade, the first mixed-use apartment building in Korea and the center of Korea’s electric and electronic industries in the 1970s and the 80s. It is pretty enough on its own thanks to the years of history that had accumulated in its space, but what elevated Sewoon Arcade to fame once more are the retro yet stylish spaces like the Horangi Café and the philosophy bookstore Soyoseoga. Today’s Sewoon Arcade was given a new life through an urban regeneration project, establishing the arcade as a place to see Seoul’s past and present.

Fans of K-dramas will recognize Sewoon Arcade from the popular series Vincenzo, featuring Song Joong-ki. The popularity of Vincenzo was such that it took the first place in Netflix charts in Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and the Philippines during its run. Sewoon Arcade doubled as the "Geumga Plaza," the main setting of the show, so if you enjoyed the show, make sure to visit the Sewoon Arcade and relive the moments!

Retro-style shop in Sewoon Arcade

Now that you’ve followed the water, it’s time to take a walk along the historical walls of Seoul: Hanyangdoseong, the Seoul City Wall. These fortifications were built to protect Hanyang, the royal capital of Joseon. Despite the many years that had passed since then, the fortress still retains much of its old appearance. There are six trails included in Hanyangdoseong. The Naksan Mountain Trail connects Heunginjimun Gate, the city’s eastern gate, to Hyehwamun Gate. It takes about 10 min by foot to reach the Heunginjimun Gate from the Cheonggyecheon Secondhand Book Street, so it connects seamlessly into the itinerary.

Heunginjimun Gate

Take a breather and look over your shoulders to find an expansive view of the Heunginjimun Gate and the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP), Seoul’s premier cultural complex.

Gwangjang Market is a market with 110 years of history. It is also known for its vibrant street food scene, featuring dishes like mung bean pancakes, gimbap, and beef tartare. The nearby Chicken Alley offers whole chicken soup, which features a clear chicken broth boiled from a whole chicken.

Chicken Alley

Whole Chicken Soup

One can find a stream flowing beneath a transparent deck while walking near Sewoon Arcade, which is none other than the Cheonggyecheon Stream, a slice of nature at the heart of Seoul. Today, the Cheonggyecheon Stream houses a waterside park extending for about 5.8 km from Cheonggye Plaza, where the people of Seoul go to take a breather or enjoy slow walks. It also serves as a venue for yearly events and festivals, particularly at the end and the beginning of the year. It is a place where culture flows like a stream. Start at the front of the Sewoon Arcade and walk along the stream eastward to find many different facets of Seoul, such as Gwangjang Market, Dongdaemun Dak Hanmari (Whole Chicken) Alley, and Cheonggyecheon Secondhand Book Street.