Seoul, Shortlisted
Hi all,
Je vous souhaite une bonne rentrée and a lovely September so far. This year has been full of travel to some very special places and this month I’m taking Shortlisted to one of my favorite favorite cities I’ve had the honor to visit in 2024 so far: Seoul. Earlier this year, my partner and I flew from Paris direct and even before we left, both the city + exploring more of the country moved straight to the top of the list of return trips. The below shortlist includes the places I loved in Seoul during this first visit + a few spots I can’t wait to head to next time. It is also in no way definitive. I very much hope to have the chance to update it again and again (and if you’ve been / when you go, please leave your own recommendations in the comments!)
There’s food (the food!), drink (the drinks!!), shopping (the shopping!!!), as well the absolutely perfect place we stayed that I (nearly) don’t want to share because I don’t want it to be booked up when we go back (plus a few other stay recommendations)
A quick logistics FYI for when you visit: both google + apple maps have limited functionality in the country so I pinned everywhere we wanted to visit on google maps in advance for reference, then downloaded Kakao Map to use during our time in Seoul. Kakao also has a taxi app and I’ve also heard Naver map works well too. With all this in mind, I’ve included—where I could—addresses in both English and Korean in the shortlist to help you navigate as the addresses in Korean may prove more helpful when searching / asking for directions on the ground. The Papago app is also great for translations.
Thank you as always for being here, I’ll see you again next month!
xR
ps I’m sending this shortlist from Arles so expect updates/additions to that list in the very near future!
[restaurants | wine | cocktail bars]
Bar Cham | excellent cocktails made with Korean ingredients and spirits. Make a reservation or if you didn’t have time to, go right right when they open at 6p. Either way, ask for a seat at the long bar so you can watch the drinks be made (it’s a true art). We loved asking for a small separate taste of the principle spirit used in each drinks to really understand the cocktail. (If they have the Cheongnyang Refresh (Sonbi gin/fino sherry/Korean Spice Tonic/fig leaves) on the menu, get it. There are also incredible non-alcoholic drink options and snacks || 34 Jahamun-ro 7-gil, Jongno District || 서울특별시 종로구 자하문로7길 34
Gwangjang Market | the food alley at this market’s center has, in no particular order (they’re all amazing): bindae-tteok (mung bean pancakes) at Park's Mung Bean Pancake 박가네빈대떡 (we also got a few mayak kimbap here to take as a snack for later), kalguksu (hand-cut noodles in broth) at Gohyang Kalguksu, yukhoe (beef tartare) at Buchon Yukhoe 부촌육회 본점, and soy-marinated crab at Honglim Sanghoe 홍림상회. Be sure to stop for a coffee at Onion Café right outside the market || 88 Changgyeonggung-ro, Jongno District || 서울특별시 종로구 창경궁로 88