Must-see restaurants in Seoul

Lively KoMex restaurant specialising in 'skizzles' (essentially fusion fajitas) served on tabletop skillets in epic sharing portions. Tacos come in pairs;…

Little has changed at ‘Second Best Place in Seoul’, a tiny tea and dessert cafe, since it opened in 1976. Apart from the medicinal teas, it serves…

One of the first in Seoul to catch on to the healthy-food trend, Bad Farmers is the place for your daily dose of green eats. Recognisable for its bright…

Open all day, everyday, this diner-like burger joint takes its interior-design cues from 1950s America, soundtracked by the likes of 2010s Wu-Tang Clan…

Nestled in K-Pop paradise (between entertainment companies JYP and SMTown), Jilhal Bros has managed to capture the hearts of sunglasses-adorned…

This stripped-back canteen space ladles up huge plastic bowlfuls of pho dense with tender beef brisket and ribbons of rice noodles. The dark, deeply…

One of the few places in Seoul where you can get a square, deep-dish, Detroit-style slice is aptly-named Motor City. The tomato-sauce base is good enough…

This alleyway cafe-bakery claims to be the originator of a bizarre trend that spread through Seoul circa 2017, namely, modelling your venue on a…

It didn't take Itaewon long to get on the food-bowl trend. Step up Root, serving zesty salad and poke bowls with a Korean twist from its sunny 2nd-floor…

This wildly popular upstairs kitchen bakes an authentic range of New York–style pies along with appetisers like garlic knots, wings and messy fries. The…

Foodies queue daily for the much lauded burgers here, painstakingly assembled (with Instagram in mind) and wrapped in cute zebra-striped paper. Pimp up…

Keep your eyes peeled for those 'za-loving Ninja Turtles at this hip alleyway pizzeria serving jumbo-sized New York slices on paper plates. Choose from…

Le Ferme (French for 'the farm') packs them in for superfood-rich detox dining with a French twist. Quinoa, tofu, avocado and mango feature in the…

Crowds come to Ikseon-dong to be transported to old Seoul, and half of them seem to queue at Chang Hwa Dang, where the furniture and decor hark to a lost…

For a fun lunch, buy 10 brass coins (₩5000) at the cafe about halfway along this old-school covered market. You'll be given a plastic tray with which you…

This family-run Uz­bekistan restaurant is a part of Dongdaemun's 'Little Silk Road', an intriguing district behind Lotte Fitin that's home to a community…

'Tamra' is an old name for Jeju and this restaurant specialises in Jeju-style cuisine – even using ingredients brought over from the southern island. The…

Get your hot wings basted a dozen different ways at this alleyway eatery, from classic buffalo to Korean-inspired 'Amazinger' (spicy ginger), soy wasabi…

In the basement of Ssamziegil is this smart and stylish restaurant, specialising in Jeonju (capital of Jeollabuk province) bibimbap, which is fresh and…

Run by Italian couple Enrico and Fiore, the tasty and unusual – for Seoul – specialities here hail from Sicily, such as arancine (saffron-flavoured…