Hanmiok Cheongdam • 한미옥 청담동

One of the Korean dish that went viral on social media last year was Hanmiok’s Chadol Gujeolpan (차돌구절판) because of its unique presentation that undoubtedly makes a good content for travelers who were visiting Seoul. And so last spring, I went to Hanmiok Cheongdam (한미옥 청담동) with @munchandsnap.jkt to try it out.

We arrived at the restaurant at 4:30 pm to avoid the dinner rush, but apparently there were 7 other groups who have the same idea as us so we still had to wait in line for our table. We put our name and phone number on the machine for the waiting list and waited around for an hour before we finally got seated at our table.

When the server came, we ordered the medium Chadol Gujeolpan (차돌구절판 中) for us to share. Now what exactly is a Chadol Gujeolpan? Gujeolpan (구절판) itself is the traditional Korean Platter of Nine Delicacies that is plated in nine divided sections in an octagon shape or the plate itself. Hanmiok’s version of this is served with Korean beef brisket (the chadolbaegi) on a black pan.

10 minutes after we placed our order, the server came back with our food and started setting up to cook the Chadol Gujeolpan. The first two ingredients were the Korean beef brisket or the chadolbaegi (차돌백이) and water parsley (미나리) that were already placed on the pan. They cooked these first before adding more ingredients to the pan.

The next six ingredients were (see photo below in clockwise direction) kimchi (김치), bean sprouts (콩나물), bracken (고사리), scallops (관자), octopus (문어), and buckwheat pancakes (메밀전병) in the middle.

After the beef brisket and water parsley were cooked, they used the oil from the beef to cook the scallops, octopus and buckwheat pancakes before adding the kimchi, bracken, and bean sprouts in.

And lastly, after all of that were cooked and neatly placed in a circle, the server pour egg (계란) from a golden aluminum teapot into the middle part of the pan to complete the ninth ingredient of the dish. The egg is then cooked with a blowtorch until it’s done with a silky smooth finish.

Chadol Gujeolpan (차돌구절판 中) ₩59,000 | 9/10

Chadolbaegi (차돌백이), Water Parsley (미나리), Kimchi (김치), Bean Sprouts (콩나물), Bracken (고사리), Scallops (관자), Octopus (문어), Buckwheat Pancakes (메밀전병), Egg (계란).

I have to say I love this kind of food. The ingredients themselves are not fancy, but each components are well-seasoned and the flavor of everything works together. For me, the best way to eat this dish is to mix up the ingredients in every bite because each combinations gave me a different flavor profile. So mix two, three, or four things in a bite. Or if your mouth could fit everything, the whole 9 things in a spoon (although that might be a bit too much honestly). But one thing that I would recommend is to at least mix one meat with one veggies and the egg. You’ll get that nice juicy bite where the meat is balanced out by the acid from the veggies and everything kind of just bursts in your mouth. So satisfying.

The portion of the medium Chadol Gujeolpan (차돌구절판 中) is more than enough for two people. Although I did order a bowl of rice just because I wanted to have the dish with rice and me and my friend were fully stuffed at the end of the meal.

Service was okay at this place. The servers weren’t the friendliest, but they weren’t rude either. The food came out pretty quickly though. But overall, the meal was really satisfying and I really like it.

If you want to come to this place, be prepared for the possibility of waiting for your table. It helps if you have a Korean phone number since you can input them into the machine and you can walk around the area while waiting (they’ll call/message you when you’re table is ready). But if you don’t have a Korean phone number, you’ll have to wait around the store at least when your turn is near.

Will I come back again to this place? I already did actually. Went back in the fall with a different group of friends, although my second visit was to their Yeouido location and the food was as good as this location.

 

Hanmiok Cheongdam • 한미옥 청담동

Address: 서울 강남구 선릉로 822 지하 1층
Telephone: 02-545-4622
Hours: Monday-Friday 11:00-22:00 (Break Time: 14:30-17:00) | Saturday & Sunday 12:00-22:00 (Break Time: 15:00-17:00)

Instagram: @hanmiok0616

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Jungsik Cafe • 정식카페

I went to Jungsik Cafe (정식카페) for an impromptu lunch during one hot summer day in June. The cafe is located near Apgujeong Rodeo station (압구정로데오역) in the same building as the two-Michelin starred restaurant, Jungsik (정식당), that is located on the second floor of the building.

Decorated with dark wooden furnitures and eclectic lamps with exposed wirings, the cafe gives off a high-end industrial vibes to anyone who stepped into the spacious space. The bakery section is located next to the entrance where you can see selections of pastries, baked goods, and cakes being displayed. And then there’s the dining area which is divided into three different sections: the main dining area, the bar area, and (what I’d like to call) the glass house area where you can sit under the sun during the day without actually being outside.

Their food menu focuses mainly on western cuisines, ranging from salads, tapas, pastas, tacos to fish and chips with brunch options that are served until 4 pm everyday. I ordered their Cheese Pasta (치즈 파스타), which was okay. The pasta was cooked right, lightly seasoned and the cheese is not too cheesy (if you know what I mean) which I like because it left me with the feeling of being full without being too overwhelming. 

They also have quite a selection of dessert options, one of the most famous one being the Dol-hareubang Bingsu (돋하르방 빙수) which is shaved ice with milk, chocolate ‘dol-hareubang’ ice cream, black sesame cream, and green tea brownie. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to try it because I was there alone and looking at the portion, I don’t think I can finish it all by myself. But for my next visit with a friend, I definitely want to try the Dol-hareubang Bingsu. 

Note: These photos were taken before the pandemic.

 

Jungsik Cafe • 정식카페

Address: 서울 강남구 선릉로158길 11 1F
Telephone: 02-517-4650
Hours: Everyday 10:00-23:00

Instagram: @jungsikcafe_
Menu: Food | Drinks

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1LDK Seoul Cafe: Taste and Sense • 테이스트 앤드 센스

Taste and Sense (테이스트 앤드 센스) cafe is a pop-up cafe located inside the 1LDK Seoul store in Cheongdamdong (청담동) area, close to the Apgujeong Rodeo subway station (압구정로데오역). Accidentally found this place out when I was visiting the boutique store that carries various local and international lifestyle designer brands. The wooden furniture combined with the green plants that are placed around the space and natural lighting that came through the glass ceiling made me feel like I’m stepping into a greenhouse. A well air-conditioned greenhouse that is. Had a little break at this quiet space enjoying a pot of iced rose jasmine tea before I carried on with my day.

Note: These pictures were taken before the pandemic.

 

1LDK Seoul Cafe: Taste and Sense (테이스트 앤드 센스)

Address: 서울 강남구 선릉로162길 5 1LDK 2층
Telephone: 02-3446-4789
Hours: Everyday 11:00 - 20:00

Instagram: @10meals_official

UPDATE:

4 years after its opening, 1LDK Seoul announced on their Instagram that they’ve decided to rebrand 1LDK Seoul store and come back as 10department (Instagram: @10department_official) for their new store concept in September 2020 at the same location.

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Following the rebranding of the store, Taste and Sense was also rebranded into 10meals, occupying the same space but with different menu concept and decor.

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Seoul Day 2: Garosu-gil, Apgujeong, & Gangnam

After we got our stomach full, we headed to the subway station to go to Gangnam. The subway station is quite different than the ones we’ve been to. And we got lost this time. I wasn’t quite sure where we were, but we were definitely not at the place that we intended to visit. It was pretty funny because we wandered off to a fairly quite area. But, we made the best of it and just laughed it off. What is traveling without getting a little lost right?

On our way back to the subway station, we went through what probably the longest escalator we encountered yet in subway station. I’m amazed on how deep underground the subway system goes in Korea.

Also, I saw this interesting advertisement. Not sure what it’s for or what it means, but it looked intriguing.

After that, we arrived at the famous Garosu-Gil (가로수 길). We were sweating bullets from the hot sun and decided to make a quick pit stop at Caffe Bene for some cold treats.

Mango Bingsu

The area is filled with restaurants, shops, cafes, studios, and galleries that are pretty upscale. So we just started strolling down the street and walked in to some of the shops that interest us.

We saw something that’s totally unexpected: a couple of guys walking donkeys on the other side of the street. Seeing something new everyday here.

After Garosu-gil, we headed to Apgujeong (압구정) also known as the Rodeo Street. The area has a lot of foreign brand shops that are very familiar to us. We just took a quick look around the area since the brands we saw are available in the States.

Afterwards, we took two taxis to Gangnam because our feet kinda gave up on us from all the long walks in the past 7 hours. I have to say Gangnam has some pretty cool and interesting buildings. Tall buildings here and there and kinda reminded me of financial districts in the States.

We were meeting Bella’s college friend for dinner since he worked around the area. He took us to this one awesome samgyeopsal place that I forgot to pay attention to the name of the restaurant, partly because I was tired AND hungry. So as soon as we arrived, we just walked in and sat down on the tables that have been prepared for us. The meat was excellent and we also tried some makgeolli. We also ordered their naengmyeon and ate until we were stuffed.