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Seoul lives up to its reputation as a 24-hour city with a wealth of bars and pubs, clubs, and live music and performance. Each neighborhood has its own character at night—Itaewon is international, Gangnam brimming with class, and Insadong home to cozy local makgeolli bars.
A local institution for craft beer, Magpie was founded in 2011 and kicked off South Korea’s craft beer revolution. Their signature beers include the Magpie IPA, Porter, and Stout, but in recent years, they’ve become well-known for their more experimental drinks made with ingredients from Jeju Island, where one of their bases is located. While Magpie beer is sold at bars and restaurants across the country, this original location is a neighborhood institution.
With scores of great craft beers on tap and a full menu of Italian food, Beer Room is one of Gangnam's best spots for a pint and a bite. The decor of the two-story space adds to the ambience, with concrete floors, acres of glass, and outdoor tables where you can sip a hearty ale and watch the night unfold. They also play music of the mellow techno and jazz variety, which is a rarity in an otherwise sea of K-pop.
This Chicago-based company was one of the first foreign brands to make headway into Korea's emerging craft beer scene, and their Gangnam location is their mothership. It's an ultra-modern, immaculate complex with myriad beers on tap and a full food menu featuring Western pub favorites such as pork ribs and Buffalo wings. It also houses a brewery with stainless steel tanks, tubes, and valves visible right behind the long bar. The net result is a shiny piece of the United States in the midst of Seoul, so if you're homesick, perhaps this will cure it. Just don't don't expect too much in the way of service.
If you're exploring the hanoks of the Bukchon Village and need a crisp brew, head to this quiet, atmospheric craft beer taproom for a self-serve pale ale, IPA, or saison. Its traditional setting is enchanting, whether you're here during the day and light streams in from the roof or you're on the illuminated patio at night. Bar snacks like chicken wings and fries are also available.
