Essentials
Money in Korea
Best exchange rates, ATMs & how to pay
Read guide →Korean cuisine (hansik) is built around balance — fermented sides (banchan), a steaming bowl of rice, and a main dish that changes with the season. Meals are served all at once rather than in courses, and sharing dishes at the table is the norm. The depth of flavor comes from slow-fermented pastes like doenjang (soybean) and gochujang (chili), which form the backbone of soups, stews, and marinades across the country.
Dongjak-gu spans the southern bank of the Han River, with Noryangjin Fish Market — one of Seoul's largest wholesale and retail seafood markets — as its defining food landmark. Eating fresh sashimi at the market itself, surrounded by tanks of live seafood, is a quintessential Seoul experience available around the clock.
This is a restaurant famous for its hearty stir-fried octopus. It's delicious and spicy, and you can choose between rice or barley for the rice! You can also grab ingredients from the self-service bar and make your own bibimbap. If you enjoy the taste of plain rice, this is a must-visit!
This is a decent codfish restaurant. It's a typical old-style codfish restaurant, not spicy, and just the right codfish flavor. Would older people like it? Perhaps that's why there are a lot of older customers. The side dishes are good and not bad either. It's an old building, so it's a bit messy, but that's okay.
Korean blogger posts. Links open original posts on Naver.
great food very local, great Banchan
