Where to eat in Seochon & Bukchon
The old hanok neighborhoods on either side of Gyeongbokgung Palace. Seochon has Tongin Market and tiny noodle and chicken shops, Bukchon has dumpling and noodle houses, and Samcheong-dong keeps some of Seoul's best-loved bowls of soup and sweet red bean porridge.
12 places our guide covers in Seochon & Bukchon, with what to order, how long the wait is and how to eat each dish.
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Halmaejip 할매집
Jokbal & bossam · Seochon & Bukchon · Since 1975
"Grandma's place", a 1975 alley restaurant near Gyeongbokgung Palace that serves just two things: jokbal (braised pig's trotters) with a spicy chili-oil kick, and gamjatang, a hearty stew of pork backbones. A Michelin Bib Gourmand pick that still feels like an old neighborhood eatery.
Try: Jokbal (braised pig's trotters)
30-60 min wait - 🥟
Kkangtong Mandu 깡통만두
Street snacks · Seochon & Bukchon · Since 1988
A dumpling house in the Bukchon lanes near Anguk Station, in the same spot since 1988 and often named among Seoul's three best for mandu. Order dumpling soup, or the noodle and dumpling combination, and expect a wait.
Try: Manduguk (dumpling soup)
1 hr+ wait - 🍜
Samcheongdong Sujebi 삼청동수제비
Noodles · Seochon & Bukchon · Since 1982
The busiest door on Samcheong-dong's main street since 1982: hand-torn dough soup (sujebi) in a light anchovy broth, served in a little pot, with crispy potato pancakes on the side. A Michelin Bib Gourmand pick near Bukchon and the palaces.
Try: Sujebi (hand-torn dough soup)
30-60 min wait - 🥣
The Second Best Place in Seoul 서울서둘째로잘하는집
Home-style meals · Seochon & Bukchon · Since 1976
A tiny Samcheong-dong teahouse with a famously modest name, serving sweet red bean porridge (danpatjuk) and traditional herbal teas since 1976. A warm bowl here is a classic stop on a walk through Bukchon and Samcheong-dong, especially on a cold day.
Try: Sweet red bean porridge (danpatjuk)
Short wait - 🍲
Tosokchon Samgyetang 토속촌삼계탕
Soups & stews · Seochon & Bukchon · Since 1983
A Seoul institution for samgyetang, a whole young chicken stuffed with rice and simmered with ginseng. It sits in a rambling hanok a few minutes from Gyeongbokgung Palace, which makes it an easy lunch before or after a palace visit.
Try: Tosokchon samgyetang
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Yeonggwang Tongdak 영광통닭
Fried chicken · Seochon & Bukchon · Since 1984
Seochon's neighborhood fried chicken shop since 1984: crisp, old-fashioned chicken with cold draft beer, now with a second branch nearby. Order half fried, half sauced, plus spicy whelk salad.
Try: Fried chicken
Locals' pickShort wait - 🐟
Anju Maeul 안주마을
Pubs · Seochon & Bukchon
One of Seochon's hardest tables: a drinking house known for seasonal seafood dishes, from sweet shrimp sashimi to salted herring roe, near Gyeongbokgung Station. Locals plan their evening around the wait.
Try: Seasonal seafood dishes
Locals' pick1 hr+ wait - 🍜
Chebu-dong Janchijip 체부동잔치집
Noodles · Seochon & Bukchon
A cheap, cheerful noodle house at the start of the Sejong Village food street near Gyeongbokgung. Bowls of janchi-guksu (banquet noodles), perilla sujebi and kalguksu are remarkably affordable, and a pancake with makgeolli turns it into a long afternoon.
Try: Janchi-guksu (noodles in anchovy broth)
Short wait - 🍜
Hwangsaengga Kalguksu 황생가칼국수
Noodles · Seochon & Bukchon
A Bukchon noodle house known for kalguksu in a milky beef-bone broth and fist-sized handmade dumplings. Right across from the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, it is a favorite lunch stop between galleries and palaces.
Try: Beef bone broth kalguksu
30-60 min wait - 🍞
Hyoja Bakery 효자베이커리
Desserts · Seochon & Bukchon
Seochon's old neighborhood bakery at the entrance to Tongin Market, open since the mid-1980s and once a supplier to the Blue House. Its warm cornbread is the reason to come. It's takeout only, so grab one and eat it on the way through the market.
Try: Cornbread
Locals' pick - 🍜
Nunnamujip 눈나무집
Noodles · Seochon & Bukchon
An old Samcheong-dong favorite up the road toward Samcheong Park, famous for kimchi-mari guksu: thin noodles in icy, tangy kimchi broth. Grilled tteokgalbi (beef patty) and mung bean pancakes make it a full meal, and prices are gentle for the area.
Try: Kimchi-mari guksu (cold noodles in kimchi broth)
Short wait - 🥩
Onmigwan (Anguk) 온미관 안국점
Korean BBQ · Seochon & Bukchon
A Korean restaurant by Bukchon, popular for Seoul-style beef bulgogi set meals, clear beef soup and eobok-jaengban. The food is mild rather than spicy and the menu has photos, so it's an easy choice for visitors after walking the hanok lanes.
Try: Seoul-style beef bulgogi
Short wait