To describe street food in Seoul, I would use the words ‘colorful’ and ‘abundance’. Of course when I said colorful, I didn’t meant they put a lot of artificial colorings to them but because of the varieties. From meat to pancakes, japanese styled snacks like tempura and takoyaki to European styles crepes, bagels and sandwiches and the list goes on and on.

Here are some of the street foods, snacks or tidbits that I gathered along the way during my Seoul trip.

Chicken gizzard fried with pepper and onions. These little beauties (to me) taste very good and tender. Highly recommended if you’re into chicken innards.

Price : 3,000 Won.
Venue : Stalls in Nakwon Dong.
Station : Jongno-3-ga.
Time : Morning/Day

We bought these at the same stall selling chicken gizzards. At first, we thought they were cuttlefish but after paying for it, we didn’t know what to think. It was mushy, slimy and we certainly didn’t enjoy them. A Korean lady who can speak English told us they were pig skin. Yucks.

Enjoy a burning sensation to your lips with Tteokbokki, rice cake cooked with spicy sauce. I took this picture in Nakwon Dong, selling for 3,000 Won but the one I tried was in Myeongdong subway station for only 2,500 Won. Do remember to try them because they’re tasty and second, it will cost you RM30 (10,000 Won!) to eat them in Malaysia.

Traditional Rice Cakes. My regret was I didn’t buy more of these to bring home. I put them in my hand carry luggage and they still taste good on arriving home. The price range is big depending on packaging, quantity and where you buy them, so you might want to survey around first.

Price : around 3,000 Won for a pack of 13 pieces.
Venue : Small grocery shops at an intersection between Nakwon Dong and Insadong.
Time : Morning to night.

Strawberries from grocery shop in Nakwon Dong was a disappointment, albeit big and red. Hence, don’t bother unless samples are available for tryout.

Dunkin Donuts. Before you yawn at this, their doughnuts are way better than ours – soft, not too sweet with assortment of flavours to die for. Price starts from 900 Won and promotional items at 1,000 , 1,300 and 1,500 Won. Don’t worry about finding them, as Dunkin Donuts is rather …. everywhere!

Makgeolli (rice wine). Local wines are sold like soft drinks in Korea. Packed into plastic bottles, they’re available in hawker stalls, supermarkets, restaurants and convenience stores. We had tried Soju and Makgeolli and the latter is our winner because of its light sweet taste.

Price : 6,000 – 6,500 Won for 750ml.
Venue : Everywhere.

Mandu is like our dumplings and filled with the usual suspect – minced pork and vegetables. I don’t usually like dumpling but CS would tell you they rocks! The skin is thicker (but soft) which was able to keep everything together even when we bite into it. There’s another Kimchi flavor which was special, but not enough for me to forgo the original ones. We bought 12 pieces to Nami Island, and we still can’t have enough of them! The ahjuma can speak Chinese very well.

Price : 3,000 Won for 6 sizeable Mandu.

Venue : A small unremarkable shop in Nakwon Dong not far from Jongno-3-ga station exit 4. You can recognize the shop from the trays of mandu and the big steamer at the shop front. They must be making hundreds or thousands of mandu every day!

Time : Morning till late night.

 

Ediya Coffee and Beverage, a good place to have a drink.

Thumbs up for the plaited pastries with sugar coatings, taste like sugar raised doughnut, but a very good one. The round shape type was alike to sweet potato balls, but I wouldn’t recommend eating too much, or you’ll feel bloated.

Price : 3,000 Won for 7 pieces. Mix are allowed.
Venue : In front of a restaurant in Namdaemun Market.
Time : Morning/ Day.