Sinchon, located in western part of Seoul, is a place of youth. In the heart of Sinchon you can find Yonsei University, surrounded by other famous schools such as Ewha Womans University, Sogang University, and Hongik University. The area is youthful and full of energy. You can find everything here, including Sinchon Hyundai Department Store, discount marts, innumerable trendy stores to shop at, and every kind of restaurant and bar that you can imagine. For these reasons, wherever you choose to dine, you cannot go wrong and your restaurants will be among the best restaurants. Among the best, Kookmin Review recommends Saemauel sikdang, Palsaik samgyeopsal and Ewha Andong Jjimdak.

Palsaik samgyeopsal (팔색 삼겹살)
Palsaik is a hot new BBQ restaurant showcasing Samgyeopsal (the Korean pork belly). The restaurant’s name is pronounced “pahl-sehk” (eight colors). It meant to represent its eight “colorful” flavor variants of pork — wine, original, ginseng, garlic, herb, curry, miso paste, and red pepper paste. Original refers to marinated pork. Interior is motivated from Korean traditional mood, so it is very impressive. Wide tables are provided in the first floor, and the private rooms are provided in the second one. Despite the wideness, it is always filled with many people, so it is hard to visit in weekends. You can order each color of pork belly, but those who visit Korea from other countries might want to try the set menu, “8 Colors Pork Belly.” Try each color, and order more if you want a particular color! Also, the meats are all from Korea and the quality is really good. Refilling vegetables and side dishes is self-service. It may be even more comfortable for those who do not want to bother staff. Feel free to have more. The sets are only limited to 40, so you might want to come early and have enough time to enjoy. The hot seafood soup simmering over the table’s burner is delicious. It is included in the set menu for Palsaik set (30,000 won)

Saemaul sikdang (새마을 식당)
“Saemaeul sikdang” is written in red texts on a yellow roof. “Saemaeul” means a new village in Korean, and the name of the restaurant is originated from “Saemaeul Woondong”, the new village campaign in the 1970’s of Korea. There are approximately 170 chain restaurants all over the Korea, and the restaurants are always crowded with customers since its opening in 2002. Located on the main strip of Sinchon Station, near Gate 3, this restaurant is large, spacious, modern and popular. The rather inexpensive menu is quite simple, just a few choices of meat and a number of side dishes. When you travel in Korea, it can be challenging to order, but luckily their menu is written in both Korean and English so placing an order is pretty straightforward.
Yuntan Bulgogi and 7 Minutes Kimchi Jjigae are the best no matter what people say. By far the restaurant is most famous for their Pork Bulgogi. Although Bulgogi can be made by boiling marinated meat with soy sauce and sugar, Saemaeul sikdang has totally redone theirs by cooking it on a grill with their unique special sauce. The sauce is magical. Spicy, but not too much and slightly tangy! It has that unique sauce quality that is very flavorful and you can eat for hours. It’s important to note that when ordering at Korean barbecue restaurants you have to order 2 portions of the same kind of meat. Not sure why, but I had to do that at every barbecue restaurant in Seoul. In other words, one plate of pork is 8,000 won, and you have to order 2 plates (or more or the same kind of meat). Along with the Korean barbecued pork at Saemaeul sikdang, they also make a killer Kimchi Jiggae (김치찌개). Though it has most often served in a scorching earthenware dish, this is being served in a pot, but boasted intensely with delicious flavor. Kimchi Jjigae is commonly found in Korea, but ‘7 minutes of waiting’ is the point of this menu. The manager said ‘7 Minutes’ is the best time for Kimchi and pork to be done. A stopwatch is provided beforehand, and it alarms when 7 minutes passes. The price is 5000 won.

Ewha Andong Jjimdak (이화 안동 찜닭)
Some people don’t understand what Jjimdak is. Jjimdak became very famous in Korea after 2000. It is a traditional food from Andong area; sliced chicken, glass noodle, green onion, and other vegetables are boiled with a special sauce. Some people may think this dish would be spicy like other general Korean dishes, but the dish is soy sauce based. Therefore, people who are not comfortable with spicy food can easily taste it! There are lots of Jjimdak restaurants in Korea, but not many provide choice of flavors. Customers may select a flavor from tender, gochujang and curry. The curry flavor is the original flavor developed by the owner of the restaurant who studied in Japan for 5 years. The owner was impressed with the taste of Japanese curry, so now he imports curry powder from Japan to use at the restaurant. Degree of spicy can be adjusted upon a request for people who enjoy spicy food or people who can’t eat spicy food. Jjimdak contains various kinds of vegetables, such as spinach, carrot, jujube, and chili and so on. Jjimdak is boiled at high heat, therefore hot and spicy sauce well pervades into each ingredient. Even the choice of the least spicy “tender” flavor, its moderate spicy flavor is well harmonized with sweet flavor. Jjimdak is one of the representatives of Korea’s delicious soy sauce based cuisines. The secret of Ehwa Andong Jjimdak’s popularity is the excellently harmonizing sweet and spicy taste. Visit Ehwa Andong Jjimdak to experience this unique and special taste of Korea.

dalbon86@kookmin.ac.kr