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Food & Drink

What to order, where Koreans actually eat, and how drinking, delivery and spice levels really work.

2026-09-24

Pojangmacha in Seoul: Fewer Than Half Have a Permit, and Jongno 3-ga Is the Street the City Kept

That number changes how I think about the orange tents. The ones you see in films feel like part of the pavement, as if they have always been there and always…

2026-09-04

Vegetarian Food in Korea: The Broth Is the Problem, Not the Menu

Most guides to vegetarian food in Korea start from the wrong place. They hand you a list of dishes that look plant-based and tell you to point at them.

2026-09-04

Is Korean Food Spicy? There Is a Number on the Tub, and Most of the Famous Dishes Are Not

There are five grades, and the scale exists because Koreans do not agree with each other about heat either.

2026-08-31

Korean BBQ in Seoul: The Three Koreans Name, and Why No App Will Get You In

You have already seen the list. Every guide to Korean BBQ in Seoul names the same three places: Geumdwaeji Sikdang in Yaksu, Namyeongdon in Namyeong-dong, and…

2026-08-30

Gangneung Jungang Market: The Queue Is for Fried Chicken, and the Locals Are 700 Metres Away

The chicken is good and the queue is real. It is also, as far as I can tell, the only part of this market that has crossed into English at all, which means…

2026-08-18

Korean Drinking Culture: The Rules Are Real, and So Is the Way Out

Korean drinking culture is also changing faster than its reputation, in ways that are now written into labour law.

2026-08-15

Galbi in Seoul: The All-You-Can-Eat Chain, and the One I Save Up For

Those are two different restaurants. They are both galbi. One of them costs about twenty-two thousand won and you can stay until you cannot move.

2026-08-14

Korean Hangover Soup: Which Bowl to Order (From Someone Who Needs It Often)

So I have a routine, and it is not the one the guides describe. Most mornings after, I want kongnamul-guk, a clear bean sprout soup.

2026-08-11

Kkotgedang, Sinsa: A Korean's Review of the Ganjang Gejang Place Only Foreigners Know

A Japanese friend told me once that there was a famous gejang restaurant in Sinsa, and said it the way you say something the other person obviously already…

2026-08-10

Soy Marinated Crab in Seoul (Ganjang Gejang): What It Is, and Where to Eat It

Raw crab. Uncooked, cured in soy sauce, eaten cold with a bowl of hot rice.

2026-08-09

Korean Fried Chicken in Korea: What to Order, and How Delivery Actually Works

At the same time, one bird has crept up toward 28,000 won. That is not a small amount of money for a takeaway dinner, and Koreans complain about it constantly.

2026-07-31

What Is Silbi Kimchi? Korea's Spiciest Kimchi — and the Local Hack You Need to Know

You don't.