17 restaurants in Seoul, editor-picked for sunday dinner. Where to eat a sit-down dinner on sunday. All restaurants in Seoul.
Legume ★ 4.7
Gangnam-gu · 652 Gangnam-daero, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Hours: Tue-Sun dinner service
Legume is Asia's first Michelin-starred vegan restaurant, chef Sung Si-woo's one-star room in Gangnam delivering a plant-based tasting menu built.
Tip: Book 4 to 6 weeks ahead; the room is small and evening reservations fill within hours of opening.
Byeokje Galbi ★ 4.5
Seocho-gu · 89 Donggwang-ro, Seocho-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily lunch and dinner
In the Michelin Guide and on 50Best Discovery, Byeokje Galbi has served premium charcoal-grilled hanwoo short ribs since 1986, handling its own butchery.
Tip: Book the private room for groups; the galbi course includes side dishes and a naengmyeon to close.
Woo Lae Oak ★ 4.4
Jung-gu · 62-29 Changgyeonggung-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 11:30-21:00
Open since 1946, Woo Lae Oak is Seoul's canonical address for Pyongyang-style naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles), the broth made from hanwoo foreshank.
Tip: The broth is clear and mild; if you want spice ask for bibim naengmyeon. Bulgogi is the other order.
Imun Seolnongtang ★ 4.4
Jongno and Insadong · 38-13 Ujeongguk-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 08:00-21:00, Sun until 20:00
Korea's first registered restaurant, open since 1904 in Jongno, still serving a single dish: 17-hour ox bone seolleongtang with sliced brisket.
Tip: Season the broth yourself with the salt provided; adding too much at once is the only mistake you can make.
Tosokchon Samgyetang ★ 4.3
Bukchon and Samcheong · 5 Jahamun-ro 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 10:00-22:00
The most visited samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) restaurant in Seoul, set in a cluster of traditional hanok buildings near Gyeongbokgung Palace.
Tip: Come at 10:00 on a weekday to walk straight in; the broth is identical morning and night.
Hadongkwan ★ 4.3
Jung-gu and Myeongdong · 12 Myeongdong 9-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 07:00-15:30
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.
Tip: The kitchen closes at 15:30 sharp; arrive for an early lunch to guarantee a bowl.
Insa Dodam ★ 4.2
Insadong · 5-1 Insadong 16-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 11:00-15:00 and 17:30-21:00 (bibimbap until 15:00, kitchen break 15:30-17:30)
Insa Dodam is a renovated hanok off Insadong-gil that runs a lunch-only bibimbap programme, capping bowls per day to lock in same-morning vegetable delivery from contract farms.
Tip: Bibimbap is lunch-only; arrive before 14:00 to be sure of a dolsot order, and ask for the vegan build if you want the no-egg version.
Ojangdong Hamheung Naengmyeon ★ 4.2
Jung-gu · 108 Mareunnae-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 11:00-21:00
Family-run since 1953, Ojangdong serves Hamheung-style cold noodles: the noodles are made from potato starch and are notably chewier than Pyongyang-style.
Tip: Cut the noodles with scissors if you prefer shorter strands; the kitchen leaves them long by tradition.
Bukchon Son Mandu ★ 4.2
Bukchon and Samcheong · 84-1 Gyedong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 11:00-21:00, closed Tuesdays
A hanok courtyard dumpling kitchen in Bukchon, selling hand-formed mandu (dumplings) by the basket to a patient queue of Seoulites who find the 20-minute.
Tip: The mandu guk (dumpling soup) is only slightly more expensive and adds a clear anchovy broth that makes it a meal.
Maple Tree House Samcheong ★ 4.1
Samcheong-dong · 129-24 Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 11:30-22:00
The original Maple Tree House, in a restored hillside house in Samcheong-dong, with a more intimate setting than the Itaewon branch and a view of the old.
Tip: The Samcheong branch has fewer tourist crowds than Itaewon on weekday lunchtimes.
Dongdaemun Bonga Seolleongtang ★ 4.1
Dongdaemun · 6-1 Majang-ro 43-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 24 hours
Near Dongdaemun Fashion Market, Bonga cooks its seolleongtang in a traditional gamasot (iron cauldron) from ten beef cuts for 24 hours straight.
Tip: The 24-hour schedule means this is Seoul's best post-midnight beef broth bowl.
EID Halal Korean Food ★ 4.1
Itaewon and Hannam · 15 Usadan-ro 10-gil, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily
EID Halal Korean Food on Usadan-ro is one of Seoul's most respected halal restaurants, operated by a Korean Muslim family serving authentic Korean cuisine.
Tip: The Itaewon mosque area on Usadan-ro has the densest concentration of halal restaurants in South Korea.
Vegan Kitchen ★ 4.1
Jung-gu · 21 Toegye-ro 20-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily
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.
Tip: Temple food avoids garlic and spring onions; ask whether the kitchen follows this convention or not before ordering.
Hongik Sutbul Galbi ★ 4.0
Hongdae · 331-1 Seogyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily 11:30-23:00
Hongik Sutbul Galbi runs a charcoal-grill galbi room a block from Hongik University's main gate, with thick-cut marinated short rib and pork belly cooked over binchotan rather than gas burners.
Tip: Ask for both yangnyeom (marinated) and saeng (fresh-cut) galbi to taste the marinade contrast; the kitchen sets the grill to the right charcoal heat.
ByTOFU ★ 4.0
Itaewon and Hannam · 18 Itaewon-ro 49-gil, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily
ByTOFU is a vegan cafe and bakery in Yongsan serving Western-style pastries and cafe food without any animal products, rated among Seoul's top vegan spots.
Tip: Popular on weekends; arrive mid-morning for the full pastry range before sellout.
Alt.a ★ 4.0
Itaewon · 109 Bogwang-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily
Alt.a between Itaewon and Hannam-dong delivers a vegan Korean-Chinese menu playing off jjajangmyeon and mapo traditions without meat, fish or dairy.
Tip: The set lunch is significantly cheaper than ordering a la carte.
Makan Halal Restaurant ★ 3.9
Itaewon · 52 Usadan-ro 10-gil, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
Hours: Daily
Makan serves Malaysian and Indonesian halal-certified food on the Usadan-ro mosque strip of Itaewon, with nasi lemak, rendang and satay that draw a devout.
Tip: The area around Seoul Central Mosque is walkable from Itaewon Station; Makan is on the main food alley running up to the mosque.