Gwangjang Market @ Seoul

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Gwangjang Market is another traditional market in Seoul that I like besides Tongin Market. Honestly I first knew about it through Running Man because Running Man and CNBLUE have filmed an episode here (being an avid fan of both how can I miss this heh), but apparently even the Chinese version of Running Man has been here before and thus it's becoming a tourist hot spot.  

In terms of food in Gwangjang Market, everyone has been raving about bindaetteok and mayak kimbap and so I knew exactly what I had to eat here!

Our first stop was Soon-hee Ne (순희네) where Running Man filmed previously and it has been said that Soon-hee Ne has the best bindaetteok. We quickly grabbed a seat at the stall and thankfully even with my very limited Korean, I managed to order one serving of bindaetteok which is priced at 4,000 won. 

Bindaetteok is called mung bean pancake and according to Wikipedia, it is made of ground mung beans, green onions, kimchi and peppers. I'm not really a big fan of beans so I thought I wouldn't enjoy bindaetteok that much, but the bean taste was not as strong as I've expected so it was acceptable even for someone like me and the bindaetteok was crunchy. Don't forget to eat the bindaetteok with the sauce provided! 

I'm not sure if you could tell from the photos but the portion of the bindaetteok was actually rather huge. My bro and I shared one serving of bindaetteok but we could barely finish the whole thing. There was a grandma who sat beside my bro at the stall and just when I was wondering how on earth could she finish the bindaetteok all by herself while my bro and I struggled so much, she offered us half of her bindaetteok. To my own surprise, I could understand her although she spoke completely in Korean. YESSSS years of watching Korean variety shows finally paid off wtf hahaha.

Thank you to the kind grandma too! I've heard stories about how some travelers have met friendly Koreans offering them food or drinks in Gwangjang Market and it felt great to have met one myself. Thank you :)
      

Even though we were freaking full after having 3 pieces of bindaetteok each, I insisted to buy mayak kimbap. There was no way that I was going to leave Gwangjang Market without having it! My bro and I usually bought kimbap from convenience stores and kept them in the fridge back in our hostel in Seoul so that we would have something to eat early in the morning or late at night without having to go out. I have to admit that I was getting tired of kimbap because they are sort of dry to eat? 

But mayak kimbap changed everything! Mayak kimbap translates to drug kimbap and while it contains no drug inside, it is really addictive once you start eating (so I guess that's why people call it drug kimbap). Even the shape is different from the kimbap that you buy elsewhere.   

We also tried sikhye - a traditional Korean rice beverage in Gwangjang Market. It tasted sweet and refreshing and Koreans usually serve it as dessert. If I remember correctly, it only costed 1,000 won in Gwangjang Market.

After our nom nom nom session, we walked around and decided to buy some traditional Korean snacks as souvenirs for our friends and family. Make sure to survey prices at different stalls before buying because the prices may be different for the same items. We found one stall selling snacks at a relatively cheap price and bought these.    

Gwangjang Market

Directions: Jongno 5(o)-ga Station (Line 1)

• Go out of Exit 9 and you will see the main entrance of Gwangjang Market. Jeon Alley starts here.