72 Hours in Seoul: A Korean Food Tour Itinerary

This Seoul food tour started as a family trip and turned into one of our favourite eating experiences in Asia. 72 hours, three neighbourhoods, and meals we still talk about months later. Below is the exact itinerary: where we went, what we ordered, and what made each stop worth it.

Seoul has one of the best food scenes in Asia and it rewards travelers who plan ahead. This Seoul food tour spans Gangnam, Myeongdong, Seongsu, Jamsil, and Gasandong, hitting everything from ox bone broth at breakfast to premium Korean beef at dinner and one of Seoul’s most famous cafes to close it out. Every address below has a Google Maps link so you can navigate straight to the door.

Seoul Food Tour Day 1: Korean Comfort Food and Hanwoo BBQ

Breakfast: Seolleongtang at Seonneung Seolleongtang
Seolleongtang is how Koreans start serious days. Ox bones simmered for hours until the broth turns milky white and rich. It arrives plain at the table and you season it yourself with salt, pepper, and green onions. The restraint in the preparation is the point: the flavor comes entirely from time and quality bones. Pair it with kkakdugi radish kimchi and baechu kimchi on the side. This is not a flashy meal. It is a deeply satisfying one, and it sets the right pace for a full day of eating across the city.

📍 Address: 18 Teheran-ro 51-gil, Gangnam District, Seoul, South Korea

Lunch: Lotte Department Store Food Court, Myeongdong
The Lotte food court in Myeongdong is a proper meal stop, not just a convenience. We ordered jjajangmyeon (black bean noodles), bibim naengmyeon (cold spicy buckwheat noodles), and a full Korean course set with banchan spread across the table. The variety is the appeal: you can work through multiple dishes in one sitting without bouncing between restaurants. Good value, huge selection, and no waiting for a table on a weekday afternoon. If you are doing a Seoul food tour on a budget, the food court is one of the best uses of your lunch break.

📍 Address: 81 Namdaemun-ro, Jung District, Seoul, South Korea

Dinner: Hanwoo BBQ at Just Butchers
Hanwoo is Korea’s premium domestic beef, bred specifically for flavor, and Just Butchers is the right place to try it. The servers grill it tableside, slow and careful, no rushing. You wrap each piece in lettuce or perilla with raw garlic, sliced chili, and ssamjang paste. The marbling on Hanwoo rivals Japanese Wagyu at a fraction of the price you’d pay back home. If you’re a meat eater doing a Seoul food tour, this is a non-negotiable dinner. Budget around 70,000 to 100,000 won per person for a full spread with drinks.

📍 Address: 110 Teheran-ro, Gangnam District, Seoul, South Korea

Seoul Food Tour Day 2: Fermented Stew and Fresh Korean Sashimi

Lunch: Doenjang Jjigae at Jin Soy, Gasandong
This is the doenjang jjigae we keep recommending to everyone who visits Seoul. Jin Soy ferments their soybeans in massive traditional onggi jars out front and you smell it the moment you arrive on the street. The stew comes to your table still bubbling: tofu, mushrooms, zucchini, onions, and that deep fermented paste flavor underneath everything. At the end of the meal they pull fresh ramyeon noodles into the remaining broth. Then they finish with bokkeum bap fried rice from whatever is left at the bottom of the pot. Ian had two rounds of noodles. You will understand immediately why this place has tens of thousands of Naver reviews and a line out the door most days.

📍 Address: Gasandong, Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Dinner: Korean Sashimi at Haewoori, Jamsil
Korean sashimi (hoe) is not Japanese sashimi. It is chewier, sometimes crunchy, and you wrap it in leafy greens with spicy chojang sauce rather than eating it straight with soy and wasabi. Haewoori in Jamsil had the full spread: Korean oysters, fresh abalone, peeled shrimp, marinated jellyfish, sea pineapple, and raw crab with ganjang sauce. The oysters with chojang were the standout of the night. They have private dining rooms, which made it an excellent choice for a family dinner with Jenny’s parents. Arrive ready to commit: Korean raw seafood meals run long and the banchan keeps coming.

📍 Address: Songpa District, Sincheon-dong, Seoul, South Korea

Seoul Food Tour Day 3: Pork Bone Stew and Cafe Onion in Seongsu

Lunch: Gamjatang at Somunnan Seongsu Gamjatang
Gamjatang is pork neck bones cooked in a bold, spicy broth with potatoes and perilla leaves. Somunnan in Seongsu has earned tens of thousands of Naver reviews and the line outside confirms why. The pork bone falls clean off after the long simmer and the broth hits hard: earthy, spicy, and deeply savory from the bone collagen. But the reason to come is the end of the meal: fresh sujebi dough pulled directly into your remaining broth and cooked table-side, followed by bokkeum bap fried rice made from whatever is left at the bottom. Ian had two rounds of the noodles. We were full for the rest of the day. Budget about 15,000 to 20,000 won per person.

📍 Address: 45 Yeonmujang-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Coffee and Pastries: Cafe Onion Seongsu
Cafe Onion is one of Seoul’s most photographed cafes right now and it earns every bit of the attention. The building is a converted industrial space with exposed concrete, an open rooftop patio, and queues that move fast despite looking intimidating. We ordered the Pandoro (buttery Italian-style bread, dusted with sugar, and lighter than it looks), the dark chocolate sogeumppang (salt bread with a chocolate coating where the savory and sweet contrast works perfectly), and the fig tart with rosemary on a crunchy pastry base. Everything was better than expected. Seongsu is worth the trip on its own as Seoul’s most interesting neighborhood right now, and Cafe Onion is the right place to end a long morning there.

📍 Address: 8 Achasan-ro 9-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Planning Your Seoul Food Tour: Practical Tips

Seoul is a large city and the restaurants on this Seoul food tour are spread across multiple neighborhoods. Getting around is easy thanks to Seoul’s subway system, one of the best in Asia. A T-money card (available at any convenience store) lets you tap on and off subway and bus without buying tickets each time. Most of these restaurants are within a 10 to 15 minute walk from a subway stop. Download Naver Maps before you go: it handles Korean addresses better than Google Maps and shows real-time transit times.

For popular spots like Somunnan Gamjatang and Jin Soy, arrive at opening or go during off-peak hours (before noon or after 2pm for lunch, before 6pm for dinner). Most restaurants on this list do not take reservations except for group dinners. Having Papago or Naver Translate on your phone helps with menus, though many spots in tourist-friendly areas now have photo menus or English options available.

Budget-wise, this Seoul food tour is remarkably affordable by international standards. Breakfast and lunch at most stops runs 10,000 to 20,000 won per person. Dinner at Hanwoo BBQ is the splurge, but it is the kind of meal you’ll talk about for months. For the full official guide to Seoul’s food districts and seasonal festivals, the Visit Seoul tourism site has regularly updated listings by neighborhood.

More Seoul Adventures

Seoul has a lot going on beyond restaurants. If you want to add a sports experience to your trip, our guide to watching a Korean Basketball League game in Seoul covers everything you need to know about one of the most entertaining live sports events in Asia. And for a full day of exploring the city’s highlights, neighborhoods, and hidden gems, check out our Seoul in one day itinerary for a packed route across the city.

Seoul rewards repeat visits. Every neighborhood has its own food identity and the city moves fast enough that new places worth visiting open constantly. This Seoul food tour covers what stood out across 72 focused hours of eating, and every single stop delivered.

Quick Reference: Seoul Food Tour Stops

• Seonneung Seolleongtang — ox bone broth breakfast in Gangnam, best with kimchi on the side
• Lotte Food Court, Myeongdong — jjajangmyeon, naengmyeon, Korean course sets, great value for lunch
• Just Butchers — Hanwoo premium Korean beef BBQ in Gangnam, the dinner splurge of the trip
• Jin Soy, Gasandong — doenjang jjigae with house-fermented paste, fresh noodles, bokkeum bap finish
• Haewoori, Jamsil — Korean raw seafood (hoe) with private dining rooms, perfect for group dinners
• Somunnan Gamjatang, Seongsu — spicy pork bone stew with the best sujebi noodle and fried rice finish in Seoul
• Cafe Onion, Seongsu — award-winning pastries in a converted industrial space, worth the queue

One thing this Seoul food tour confirmed: eating well in Seoul does not require a high budget, insider knowledge, or a guide. Most of these spots are busy because locals eat there regularly. That is the best signal a restaurant can have in any city. Follow the lines, arrive early at the busiest spots, and come hungry. Seoul will take care of the rest.