17 editor picks in Seoul.
17 restaurants in Seoul, editor-picked for restaurants open sunday. Where to eat a sit-down dinner on sunday. All restaurants in Seoul.
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.
OrderSeasonal vegan tasting menu: the only fully vegan restaurant in Korea to receive a Michelin star.
TipBook 4 to 6 weeks ahead; the room is small and evening reservations fill within hours of opening.
In the Michelin Guide and on 50Best Discovery, Byeokje Galbi has served premium charcoal-grilled hanwoo short ribs since 1986, handling its own butchery.
OrderGalbi (short ribs) over charcoal.
TipBook the private room for groups; the galbi course includes side dishes and a naengmyeon to close.
Open since 1946, Woo Lae Oak is Seoul's canonical address for Pyongyang-style naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles), the broth made from hanwoo foreshank.
OrderPyongyang naengmyeon: hand-pulled buckwheat noodles in cold hanwoo bone broth.
TipThe broth is clear and mild; if you want spice ask for bibim naengmyeon. Bulgogi is the other order.
Korea's first registered restaurant, open since 1904 in Jongno, still serving a single dish: 17-hour ox bone seolleongtang with sliced brisket.
OrderSeolleongtang: 17-hour ox bone broth poured over sliced beef and soft wheat noodles.
TipSeason the broth yourself with the salt provided; adding too much at once is the only mistake you can make.
The most visited samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) restaurant in Seoul, set in a cluster of traditional hanok buildings near Gyeongbokgung Palace.
OrderClassic samgyetang: whole young chicken stuffed with glutinous rice.
TipCome at 10:00 on a weekday to walk straight in; the broth is identical morning and night.
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.
OrderSeolleongtang: ox-bone broth cooked until milky-white without additives.
TipThe kitchen closes at 15:30 sharp; arrive for an early lunch to guarantee a bowl.
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.
OrderDodam warm-steamed bibimbap: farm-direct vegetables on rice in the house build.
TipBibimbap 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.
Family-run since 1953, Ojangdong serves Hamheung-style cold noodles: the noodles are made from potato starch and are notably chewier than Pyongyang-style.
OrderBibim naengmyeon: chewy starch noodles in a sweet-spicy sauce with cold beef slices and a halved boiled egg.
TipCut the noodles with scissors if you prefer shorter strands; the kitchen leaves them long by tradition.
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.
OrderSteamed mandu (dumplings) with kimchi and pork filling, thin pleated skin.
TipThe mandu guk (dumpling soup) is only slightly more expensive and adds a clear anchovy broth that makes it a meal.
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.
OrderHanwoo beef tasting set: three cuts of heritage Korean cattle served in the original house that started the Maple Tree brand.
TipThe Samcheong branch has fewer tourist crowds than Itaewon on weekday lunchtimes.
Near Dongdaemun Fashion Market, Bonga cooks its seolleongtang in a traditional gamasot (iron cauldron) from ten beef cuts for 24 hours straight.
OrderGamasot seolleongtang: broth from ten different beef cuts.
TipThe 24-hour schedule means this is Seoul's best post-midnight beef broth bowl.
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.
OrderHalal Korean BBQ platter: marinated beef and chicken prepared according to Islamic dietary law by a Korean.
TipThe Itaewon mosque area on Usadan-ro has the densest concentration of halal restaurants in South Korea.
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.
OrderVegan Korean set meal: the full spread of plant-based banchan with rice and a warming jjigae (stew) made.
TipTemple food avoids garlic and spring onions; ask whether the kitchen follows this convention or not before ordering.
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.
OrderCharcoal-grilled yangnyeom galbi (marinated short rib).
TipAsk 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 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.
OrderSeasonal plant-based baked goods.
TipPopular on weekends; arrive mid-morning for the full pastry range before sellout.
Alt.a between Itaewon and Hannam-dong delivers a vegan Korean-Chinese menu playing off jjajangmyeon and mapo traditions without meat, fish or dairy.
OrderVegan mapo tofu: soft silken tofu in an intensely flavoured gochugaru and doubanjiang sauce.
TipThe set lunch is significantly cheaper than ordering a la carte.
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.
OrderNasi lemak: fragrant coconut rice with sambal, fried anchovies and hard-boiled egg.
TipThe area around Seoul Central Mosque is walkable from Itaewon Station; Makan is on the main food alley running up to the mosque.
