Irresistible Places to go on an Empty Stomach in Seoul

Programs for this blog post

Summer Korean Studies

Authored By:

Mariam L.

I love food.

I love Korean food especially.

I do enjoy the occasional American food, but I like to keep my palette open to new and foreign things! Even though Seoul has a wide variety of many different country's foods, they like putting their own twists on everything!

My favorite place to get food is probably Itaewon due to their unique tastes and aesthetic appeals. Even though these dishes are a little pricey at times, it is totally worth every cent. Itaewon appeals more to foreigners since its location is right next the Yongsan Garrison US Army base that contains a community of American soldiers and their families. There are tons of great burger places, cafés, Chinese places, European places, and not to mention some lit bars and clubs within the Itaewon area. There is also a great vegan place (one of the few in Korea) called Plant in the same district, and they sell meals, smoothies, and dessert. Plant even sells their own T-shirts with cute little plants on them.

My second favorite place to get food is probably Myeongdong. If you like street food, then this is definitely the place to go! Street food vendors sell everything from traditional Korean street food such as tteokbokgi (떡볶이), soondae (순대), and odeng (오뎅) to fried cheese, halal, pomegranate juice, potato on a stick, and Oreo churros. It's also a great place to go night shopping since most of the places are open until and past midnight.

Another fantastic place to go grab some food is Sinchon (which is right downtown from Yonsei University!). The area consists of several Korean BBQ places, cafés (including dog ones!), chicken and beer establishments, and the classic McDonald's, Burger King, and Taco Bell. My favorite place to eat in Sinchon has got to be either Mom's Touch (chicken) or a 10,000 won all-you-can-eat pork belly restaurant.

Attached are some images, and I hope they look appealing enough to visit and enjoy!