Street food at Gwanjang Market Seoul Korea

Gwanjang Market is a covered (but sort of open-air) market in Seoul that includes numerous food stalls, restaurants, produce, and more. Our good friend (who is Korean) recommended it to us. Many many blogs online also mentioned this place because there are several must-try famous foods at this market.

Seoul Korea — We had booked a private tour guide to take us on a walking tour around Seoul for a day. This market was our first stop for a "snack" before our next food destination.

Stop 1: Mochi Doughnut Twists Chapssal Kkwabaegi

We saw this place the moment we walked up to the market. The line was long, but it moved super fast.

Gwanjang Market Seoul Korea Chapssal Kkwabaegi — These "mochi" doughnuts, called *Chapssal Kkwabaegi,* look like a normal doughnut from the outside, but the moment you bite into it, you know it's different. Soft and chewy, not too sweet, and hot from the fryer, these doughnuts were FANTASTIC. I'm not even a doughnut person (though I do love mochi), and I ate the whole thing!

At first I wondered why our tour guide was ordering THREE doughnuts for the three of us.

I get it now. It's so delicious you really want your own. Plus, it's light and fluffy, and surprisingly didn't feel crazy heavy.

Stop 2: Korean Fishcake Skewers

These streetside fishcakes were flavorful seemed reasonably healthy. They reminded me a bit of the streetside fishballs + sticks that we get in Hong Kong.

3: Mandu and Noodles

Gwanjang Market was featured in a Netflix show called Streetfood Asia, and Cho Yonsoon and her homemade dumplings (mandu) plus knife cut noodles were featured in the show.

She's a huge celebrity now, and her shop inside the market was packed full of diners.

The line was quite long, so we didn't actually eat at her place. After all, we'd already had one of the best noodles and dumplings at another shop.

4: Beef Tartare with a Raw Egg (!)

Some people may be squeamish at the idea of eating a whole plate of raw beef, but I absolutely LOVED this dish. Korean beef is already very famous. Served raw with some sesame oil, pickles, and a raw egg was soooooooo good.

I honestly wasn't even that hungry, but I just couldn't stop eating the beef.

I wouldn't hesitate to order this again if I went to the market.

5: Kim Bap

Simple, healthy, and fresh, we enjoyed some kim bap, which is very similar to the Japanese maki rolls. These rolls were small and filled with just vegetables.

6. The Market Itself

Aside from famous food stalls, the market is just fun to wander. It'll blow your mind just how many different varieties of kim chi / picked vegetables exist. So many things are marinated in a spicy red sauce, because Korean's love their chili!