The Korea Times

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Good night, Sweet Oak

WONJU, Gangwon Province — I drove out to the city of Wonju, in Gangwon Province, after I received some distressing news. The famed barbecue restaurant Sweet Oak will be going on an indefinite hiatus, starting from June 28. My wife and I have been coming here on an annual pilgrimage for the last five years, and we knew we had to come out to send it off before it closed. Gus Flores and Euna Kim opened the restaurant in 2015, and this isn't the first time it's shut down for a while. The married couple ended up in Korea in part because of Flores' Korean heritage. He previously visited in 2008 and enrolled in a language course in Seoul, before returning to the U.S. in 2013 to learn how to barbecue. He then went to culinary school in London, where he met Kim. Eventually they returned to Korea together, ending up in Wonju due to family connections on his mother’s side and the desire for something “less cramped than Seoul.” Less cramped might not fully apply to their restaurant, though, because just a short time after we were seated, Sweet Oak was 90 percent full — a good sign for an

Jun 24, 2026By Kevin Grabb

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK No bad luck at SOL Taphouse

There are fewer pleasures in life than going to Busan. The city offers up the delights of sunshine, beaches, urbanity and local cuisine such as "dwaeji-gukbap" (pork rice soup) or the myriad of "eomuk" (fish cake) producers. I’m going to hazard a guess that most people wouldn’t associate Korea’s coastal “second city” with great pizza. But they should. Enter SOL (which stands for "Slice of Life," not the other thing) Taphouse. Located on the fourth floor of a building across from Gwangalli Beach, it offers stunning views of the beach, Gwangan Bridge and the revelries that occur at street level below. The atmosphere inside is a cross between cozy, Victorian factory and neo-industrial chic, and somehow it works. This is a great date spot for these reasons alone, but let's get into the main attraction shall we? I’ve had a lot of great pizza in Korea and I even sang the praises of “Best Pizza on the Peninsula” at Spill Out in Seoul's Yeonnam-dong a few years back. SOL Taphouse is just as good. I couldn’t believe it when I’d uttered these words out loud to myself, sitting

Jun 14, 2026By Kevin Grabb

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Namsan Deli keeps reinventing itself

Something is different with the menu at Namsan Deli every time I come back. It's been a wild ride since its soft opening last October. It's always been in flux and ready to reinvent itself, and I'm starting to get the impression that that's its permanent identity: a work in progress. I was cautious at first about this deli-slash-bakery-slash-cafe, because sandwich places in Korea can be extremely hit-or-miss. But the more I've explored the menu, the more Namsan Deli has grown on me. Located at the top of a steep road leading up from the Seoul Station area into central Seoul's cozy, quiet Huam-dong neighborhood, with N Seoul Tower looming above, Namsan Deli is in a strange spot. I've had many chances while waiting for orders to observe the foot traffic passing by, and it's certainly much less lively than similar places over the hill, like Haebangchon or Itaewon. This isn't a place where many people walk — it's more of an intersection where cars race by, only stopping if they have to at a red light. The owner, who suitably goes by the English name Sandi, assures me that business is bri

Jun 9, 2026By Jon Dunbar

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Suncheon Brewery proves simple can still satisfy

Suncheon Brewery is just a hop and a skip away from Suncheon Station in... you guessed it, the city of Suncheon in South Jeolla Province. Founded in 2018, this brewpub is part of a larger Brewworks group including a cafe. The brewery serves burgers under the guise of Crane Burger, Suncheon’s local bird, the hooded crane. There are three kinds, of which we ordered two: the Suncheon Bay Burger and the Itaewon Burger. The Bay Burger is the restaurant’s signature burger, with a tteokgalbi patty. Tteokgalbi is everywhere in the Jeolla region and is half ground pork, half ground beef. This is then topped with Suncheon Bay area minari and bulgogi sauce. The minari added a distinctive “Korean” herbaceousness to the burger and balanced out the sweetness of the bulgogi sauce. The Itaewon Burger is a classic American burger: beef patty, cheese. No fuss, no muss. Like the Bay Burger, I found the taste really balanced, too. The cheddar balanced out the sweetness of the patty. My family and I really loved the buns as well: perfectly toasted with a nice crunch to keep the beef juice inside. I

Jun 2, 2026By Kevin Grabb

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Baby do the Philly dog

It's hard finding a good hot dog restaurant in Seoul. And once you do find one, there's no guarantee it will stick around. The latest place I've found is Phillydog, a small roadside storefront located in the street leading up to Yongsan District Police Station. An odd location, but not too far out of the way. The exterior is decorated with posters showing the menu items, as well as some odd artificial intelligence-generated images, plus lots of big windows so you can watch the food preparation process closely. The first sign that this place knows its hot dogs is how good it smells when food is cooking on the flat-top griddle. Food preparation takes a while, at least 10 minutes, so it's a welcome distraction to be able to watch — especially when the blowtorch comes out. The menu is surprisingly diverse, with five hot dog options. But the star attraction is the restaurant's namesake, the Philly dog. It's crowned with a thick layer of shredded beef, topped with slices of yellow and white processed cheese, similar to what you'd expect from a Philly cheesesteak sandwich, except here it's s

Mar 30, 2026By Jon Dunbar

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Say 'oui' to authentic French pastries at Titipainpain

Craving croissants and baguettes but not planning a trip to France anytime soon? In the heart of Apgujeong, Titipainpain brings a slice of Paris to Seoul with handcrafted pastries that transport you straight to a charming French boulangerie. From Paris to Seoul Titipainpain is owned by Maxime Rossetto, a pastry chef born and raised in Paris. Baking has always been more than a profession for Rossetto — it is also a source of comfort. During his university years, he often turned to pastry-making to cope with academic stress and anxiety. What began as a form of solace eventually took on greater meaning. In July 2023, he opened Titipainpain in Seoul to share his love for French baking with the local community. A bakery that draws you in The scent of freshly baked bread drifts onto the street, drawing pedestrians into the shop. Inside, pastries line the counter in neat rows. They include flaky croissants that shatter at first bite, sugar-dusted cinnamon buns and savory turnovers crimped at the edges. Among the most popular savory offerings are classic sourdough loaves and croissants. Rossetto

Mar 4, 2026By Kim Sur-hyun

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Guatemala's shucos redefine the hot dog

When it comes to Latin American food, Mexican restaurants tend to dominate the spotlight, with many well-known taco spots across the city. However, Central American cuisine has yet to fully establish itself in Korea — and that is exactly why Shucos feels so exciting. Guatemala, the most populous country in Central America, has now joined Seoul’s diverse culinary landscape through this small but vibrant restaurant dedicated to one of its most beloved street foods, the shuco. A taste of Guatemala with a view Located next to Mount Nam in central Seoul’s multicultural Haebangchon neighborhood, Shucos is perfectly situated where the city meets nature, much like Guatemala itself. As soon as I stepped inside, I was greeted by a warm and rustic atmosphere, the space filled with Spanish music. The restaurant spans four floors, each with its own unique design yet maintaining a cohesive feel. Whether you prefer a quiet corner, a lively table by the window or a rooftop view, the thoughtfully arranged seating, window-facing chairs and cozy sofas create intimate spaces throughout. The outdoor sea

Feb 25, 2026By Kim Sur-hyun

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK I pity the fool who doesn't try Grandma Piie

Seoul has a lot of great pizzerias, many of which have been highlighted in this Restaurant of the Week column, but one of the most unique would have to be Grandma Piie in Sindorim Station. "The extra i is for extra flavor," says a Reddit reviewer. For those who pass through Sindorim as part of their daily commute, it is widely considered one of the worst stations on the Seoul Metro map. No one can be faulted for having low expectations for a pizza place right here. But this little focaccia bakery defies all preconceptions. When you walk in, right off the platform for Line 1 trains headed north into the city, there's an armada of focaccia pizzas under a display case. The pizza toppings range from traditional — the three-cheese Grandma Piie, the Meat Bonkers! which is basically a meat lover's, a delectable mushroom medley — to slightly more inventive. There's a bacon, egg and cheese breakfast variety, a creamy spinach alfredo, and a jalapeno Hawaiian pizza featuring an almost delicate relish-style pepper topping and a generous smear of Grandma's marinara sauce. For the dip and drizzle

Jan 12, 2026By Jon Dunbar and Emerald Gao

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK This bar's Puerto Rican-style pulled pork will lift you up

So many people have been talking up the pulled pork sandwich at Uplift Seoul, a bar until now known mainly for its social events and stage performances, including burlesque, drag and live music, but not for its food. Curious, I stopped by on a Sunday evening to sample the culinary work of Rob Hernandez, one of the people running the bar that opened early this year. It turns out that, yes, the place has a menu with four items: two soups and two sandwiches. When I inquired about the pulled pork avocado sandwich, another customer sitting nearby remarked that it was very good. Hernandez himself whipped up the sandwich, which was served in a soup bowl on a bed of ruffled potato chips and a single cornichon, or mini pickled cucumber. He explained that this version is Puerto Rican-style pulled pork, not as sweet as the U.S.-style pulled pork you might be more familiar with. It certainly was savory, its richness soaking into the bread, delivering a delicious burst of flavor with every bite. Although the sandwich contains avocado spread and a few other toppings, the one that stood out the most to m

Dec 16, 2025By Jon Dunbar

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Busan's Beer Shop offers so much more

BUSAN — Tucked away down an alleyway in Jeonpo-dong, Busan’s hippest neighborhood, is Beer Shop, a restaurant serving one of Korea’s best sandwiches. Owned by Gorilla Brewing co-founder Andy Green and Park Ju-hee, Beer Shop originally opened in Gorilla’s (now defunct) Gwangalli taproom location on the first floor. It functioned as a bottle shop for many different breweries and had some food for guests, too. This eventually morphed into leaving the seaside district entirely and setting up shop in Jeonpo, with the intention of opening “a place similar to back home," according to Green, "a trendy, modern pub that catered to craft drinkers and regular drinkers, too.” In 2021, Green watched Jeonpo becoming more trendy and, with its proximity to Seomyeon’s nightlife, he decided to pull the trigger and open a restaurant here in what used to be someone’s house. With the redesign work done, it’s completely impossible to tell that a family used to live here. Beer Shop’s signature dish is the pastrami sandwich. What makes good pastrami? “Good meat, good bread, good sauce," Gr

Dec 4, 2025By Kevin Grabb

Restaurant of the Week

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Good night, Sweet Oak

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK No bad luck at SOL Taphouse

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Namsan Deli keeps reinventing itself

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Suncheon Brewery proves simple can still satisfy

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Baby do the Philly dog

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Say 'oui' to authentic French pastries at Titipainpain

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Guatemala's shucos redefine the hot dog

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK I pity the fool who doesn't try Grandma Piie

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK This bar's Puerto Rican-style pulled pork will lift you up

RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK Busan's Beer Shop offers so much more

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