If you’re visiting Seoul for the first time, Gwangjang Market is going to be on your itinerary. The market can be quite intimidating due to its size and crowd, so to avoid being overwhelmed, here are 5 recommended places to try out in Gwangjang Market!
We’ve included the Naver Maps and Kakao Maps links to each of these spots, so make sure to save them before heading down.
Gwangjang Market Kkwabaegi (광장시장 찹쌀꽈배기)
Start your journey with one of the most affordable street foods available at Gwangjang Market. This particular stall is known for its glutinous rice kkwabaegi, which is a traditional Korean twisted donut.
We highly recommend queuing the moment the stall opens at 11 am for the freshest batch of deep-fried twisted donuts. The queue moves pretty quickly, so don’t be intimidated by it.
The Kkwabaegi only goes for 1,000won each, and it doesn’t matter if you’re planning to eat loads at the market. Each person needs to have one whole kkwabaegi no matter what. It’s that good.
They also have other items such as Black Bean Donuts (1,000won) and Red Bean Donuts (1,500won).
They’re closed every first Sunday of the month.
Buchon Yukhoe (부촌육회 본점)
Having been on the Michelin guide for many years, the original outlet of Buchon Yukhoe is one of the best places to try Yukhoe, which is raw marinated beef.
Each plate of Yukhoe (200g) is priced at 21,000won, topped with a raw egg yolk. This coats the beef and makes it creamy, while having a delightful sesame fragrance. There’s also an upgraded version of the Yukhoe served with raw octopus for the daredevils.
If not, you can get it a la carte as well!
Chonggak’s Bungeoppang (총각네붕어빵)
Bungeoppang is a classic Korean winter street food, but what if we told you, you can get it all year round at this spot in Gwangjang Market?
Apart from the classic red bean and custard cream filling, Chonggak’s Bungeoppang has a pizza version (2,000won) topped with lots of cheese! The cheese pull you get from this is so satisfying. Sweet tooths can also go for the Sweet Potato Cream Cheese (2,000won) that’s slightly different from the usual flavours you find.
They’re closed every Monday & Friday, so make sure to take that into account when planning a trip to Gwangjang Market!
Cafe Onion Gwangjang Market
If you’ve never heard of Cafe Onion, it’s a cafe that’s popular on social media, particularly its Seongsu and Anguk outlets. The Gwangjang Market outlet is rather special as they only serve one food item – a crispy, buttery, flaky Strawberry Pie (4,000won).
The coffee menu is also scaled down, with options like your classic Americano, Latte, etc.
If you’re considering paying a visit to the other outlets, check out our article here where we compare the different Cafe Onion outlets!
Bindaetteok
Last but not least, a trip to Gwangjang Market is never complete without trying Bindaetteok, also known as Mung Bean Pancakes. You cannot miss this as most stalls here offer them.
We tried ordering from a few different stalls during our multiple visits there, but to be very honest, they all taste similar. However, there is a particular stall that we always end up visiting.
You can get their platter that consists of 2 Bindaetteok and 1 Gogi Pancake (13,000won), which is an equally delicious meat pancake.
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