8 Best Restaurants in Insa-dong, Ikseon-dong, and Bukchon Village, Seoul

A neighborhood institution, Tteuran—meaning inner garden—opened its doors in 2009 long before Ikseon-dong became the tourist hot spot it is today. The traditional teahouse inside a hanok is owned by Kim Ae-ran, a woman who personally worked on the building's renovation and still runs the cafe’s register on a daily basis. In addition to Korean teas, Tteuran has traditional Korean treats such as danpatjuk (sweet red bean porridge) and patbingsu (shaved ice topped with sweet red beans). While you'll find many variations around the city, few establishments excel in the beloved summertime dessert like Tteuran. Take a seat facing the garden, left of the main entrance, and enjoy its vibrant colors over authentic Korean flavors.

The Beautiful Tea Museum offers guests a chance to not only sample a variety of Korean teas, but learn the history and properties of them as well. The interior is designed to look like a traditional Korean courtyard, albeit one lined with Western-style tables. The staff can also help customers decide which of the 130-some teas on offer is best for them. The museum part of the name comes from a gallery exhibiting ceramic works and a display about the traditional teas of Korea, which were once made from flowers rather than tea leaves.

Located in the Bukchon Hanok Village, this traditional teahouse and hanok offers seating that looks out onto Bugaksan mountain and serves an extensive menu of Korean teas. The staff, accustomed to tourists, can answer any questions you might have about the beverages and can recommend drinks based on your preferences. While the view outwards is undoubtedly the draw, and many prefer to sit on that end of the house, don’t be too disappointed to be seated elsewhere as all seats have a view of the charming little garden in the hanok’s madang (courtyard). Avoid early afternoons, especially on the weekends, as the teahouse fills up quickly. If you’re not too fussy about the hour you have tea, your best bet will be after 6 pm when most tourists are out for dinner.

A restaurant with an eco-friendly ethos, this Insa-dong hot spot uses GMO-free and organic ingredients to create its signature bibimbap. While typical bibimbaps are made of rice and seasoned vegetables served in a bowl and mixed with gochujang (fermented red pepper paste) at the table, the restaurant's \"bojagi bibimbap\" is a play on traditional Korean bojagi (wrapping cloth); it's hidden inside a thinly cooked yellow egg and wrapped with a seaweed bow. The restaurant is reservation only, vegan-friendly, and has course menus available for lunch and dinner. Visitors here should keep in mind that flavors here, while great for your health, are incredibly subtle, even compared to other organic restaurants in the city.

Founded by a pastry chef, barista, and designer trio, Fritz Coffee is a bakery and café with three locations in Seoul. This one, Fritz Wonseo, is aptly located in Wonseo-dong, on the first floor of the Arario Museum, a contemporary art museum founded by world-famous collector Kim Chang-il. Fritz visitors can order coffee and sweets from an addendum to the main building then choose from seats either in the courtyard or in a modern hanok that’s been built inside the courtyard. The brand is well-known for their single-origin coffee as well as their red-bean-and-butter baked goods, but also make sure to check out the official Fritz goods. The brand’s signature baby seal logo is a favorite among many Seoulites. 

At this eight-table contemporary Korean fusion restaurant near Changgyeonggung Palace, expect small, artfully presented plates with a focus on seasonal, locally produced ingredients. There's a nice selection of natural wines to pair with the dishes. For a table near the window, the restaurant recommends making a reservation three to four weeks in advance.

This Samcheong-dong institution serves one of the best gimbaps (seaweed rice rolls) in the country. Although most gimbap restaurants cater to younger demographics with fillings like tonkatsu (fried porklet) and tuna-mayonnaise, this small eatery serves dishes that adhere to more traditional recipes from Joseon kingdom times, including two types of gimbap, kongbiji (ground soybean stew) and Joseon guksi (warm noodles with a soybean-paste soup). Both gimbaps have the typical pickled, yellow radish, ham, and sliced carrot fillings but the Joseon gimbap throws ugeoji namul (seasoned cabbage leaves) into the mix while the Odeng gimbap has an entire sheet of fish cake at its center. These dishes are more of an acquired taste, but the fresh ingredients and the neat ambience of the restaurant set Joseon Gimbap apart from other gimbap joints.

While the name of this restaurant means “good year for a rice harvest,” locals often refer to it as the corner place with delicious tteokbokki (spicy stir-fried rice cakes). Eat inside the bare-bones restaurant which is also a functioning rice mill, and pair the tteokbokki with one of its popular sides: soondae (blood sausage), twigim (deep-fried meats and vegetables), or eomuk (fish cakes). Those looking for a quick bite can also get a tteok-kkochi, a fried rice cake skewer dipped in a sweet and spicy sauce, by far the best ₩1,500 snack in the city.