Order Pyongyang naengmyeon: hand-pulled buckwheat noodles in cold hanwoo bone broth.
Open since 1946, Woo Lae Oak is Seoul's canonical address for Pyongyang-style naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles), the broth made from hanwoo foreshank.
Order Bibim naengmyeon: chewy starch noodles in a sweet-spicy sauce with cold beef slices and a halved boiled egg.
Family-run since 1953, Ojangdong serves Hamheung-style cold noodles: the noodles are made from potato starch and are notably chewier than Pyongyang-style.
Order Seolleongtang: ox-bone broth cooked until milky-white without additives.
Hadongkwan has been open since 1939 in Myeongdong and is in the Michelin Guide for a bowl of seolleongtang that has not changed: slow-cooked ox bone.
Order Vegan Korean set meal: the full spread of plant-based banchan with rice and a warming jjigae (stew) made.
Vegan Kitchen in Jung-gu serves Korean cuisine free of meat, fish and dairy in the temple food tradition, rated 4.5 stars across over 400 HappyCow reviews.
Also on this listHadongkwan
Also on this listWoo Lae OakHadongkwanOjangdong Hamheung NaengmyeonVegan Kitchen
Drink Nature-elements omakase cocktails with botanicals and fresh herbs
M29 occupies the 29th floor of the Fairmont Ambassador in Yeouido, with an indoor cocktail bar and outdoor terrace overlooking the Han River and the Yeouido.
Drink Soju and beer (somaek bomb)
The pojangmacha tent alleys of Euljiro are old Seoul's most genuine late-night drinking: somaek and dried seafood under orange awnings since the 1970s.
Try Tteokbokki, corn dogs, egg bread (gyeran-ppang)
The Myeongdong pedestrian strip turns into one of the densest street food corridors in Asia after 16:00, with stalls selling tteokbokki (spicy rice.
Try Hotteok (sugar-filled fried pancakes) and kalguksu
Namdaemun Market hotteok stalls fry thick dough discs filled with brown sugar, cinnamon and crushed peanuts on flat irons in the market's main food lane.
Try Tteokbokki (various styles: original, cheese, rabokki)
Sindang-dong Tteokbokki Town is the origin neighbourhood of the modern spicy tteokbokki -- Ma Bok-rim developed gochujang-seasoned rice cakes here in 1953.
Magpie Near Mint in Euljiro occupies a renovated building in the old print-trade district, with the full Magpie tap list and a terrace facing the pocha tents.
Namdaemun is the largest traditional market in Korea, adjacent to Sungnyemun Gate, with hotteok stalls, kalguksu counters and 24-hour food lanes.
Korean Gourmet Hunters (formerly Gastro Tour Seoul) walks Namdaemun Market and Myeongdong along the Seoullo 7017 skywalk, tasting up to ten dishes including kalguksu knife-cut noodles.
Try Kalguksu (knife-cut noodles in anchovy broth)
The kalguksu stalls inside Namdaemun Market serve knife-cut wheat noodles in a clean anchovy-and-kelp broth with zucchini and green onion for ₩7,000-8,000.
Try Tteokbokki, fish cake skewers, gyeran-ppang
Myeongdong pedestrian strip has dense street food carts: tteokbokki, gyeran-ppang (egg bread), and fish cake skewers from 2,000 won in central Seoul.
Try Jjajangmyeon (black bean sauce noodles) and jjamppong (spicy seafood noodles)
The Euljiro industrial backstreets have a cluster of Chinese-Korean (jungshik) restaurants serving jjajangmyeon (wheat noodles in black bean paste sauce).
Also on this listHadongkwan
The 63 Building's observation bar offers the most famous Han River panorama in Seoul, from the 63rd floor. The drinks programme is secondary to the view -- standard hotel-bar fare at elevated prices -- but the cityscape at dusk is unmatched.
