Korean Food Buffet at Igane Hof 한식뷔페 이가네 호프 - Sinchon 신촌

The name of this restaurant is Igane Hof because in the evenings it is a Korean style hof bar where you can go to drink beer, but at lunch time this place is a Korean food buffet.  This is a place I discovered very recently and today was the first time that I actually got to go and try the food and I was pleasantly surprised.  I wish I had known about this place a long time ago.

The two things that make this place such a hidden gem is the fact that the food is good and healthy combined with the price being so low.  This is an all you can eat buffet for only 5000 won, one of the lowest prices I have ever seen for an all you can eat buffet.

Not surprisingly, this place is quite popular and you will see a ton of Korean people walking in and out all the time while you are eating your food.  There are a ton of different sides at this place.  I am not exactly sure how much things change from day to day, but the time that I went there, there was a plate of fish, spinach, bean spouts, kimchi, japchae (a noodle dish), dduk (rice cakes), salad, squid, radish, seaweed and other things as well.  There were two different types of rice, one which included black rice and the other was barley rice.  There was a soup that was made from dwenjang (a Korean fermented bean paste similar to Japanese miso) and seaweed, noodles and jaeyuk which is a spicy pork dish.

This is an immense amount of food which includes tons of different types of vegetables, various grains, fish and meat.  I was really surprised to see all of this at such a low price.  All the food seemed to be fresh and good quality as well.  There is a girl and her mother there constantly cooking, refilling things and washing the dishes the whole time you are eating.

This is one of my new favorites in Sinchon and I will for sure be eating here quite often from now on.

Hof Sign

Buffet Sign

Banchan/Sides

Jaeyuk/Spicy Pork

My First Plate

My Second Plate

Old Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 노고산동 54-28 2층

New Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 신촌로16길 20

Igane Hof on Google Maps

Igane Hof on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about the Korean Food Buffet at Igane Hof

Pics of Food and Interior

Blog with Great Food Pics

Some Additional Food Pics

Gordes - Chain Cake Place

Gordes is a chain cake restaurant that has locations at least in Sinchon and Myeongdong.  Their cakes are quite a bit better than a lot of the other big places like this and that is how Gordes made it onto this blog.  I recommend looking for the Gordes in your area and going over and giving them a try.

I have had several of the cakes in this place and I have enjoyed all of them.  The one that I used to get all the time was the banana cake which was kind of like banana bread with cream between the layers.  This was always my favorite, but I haven't seen it in a while so I think it may have gotten replaced with another type of cake.

There are also several fruit tarts which are all great.  The two that really stick out in my mind are covered in either grapes or berries and have a cream base and a pie crust.  This last cake that I had was a mix of chocolate and cream with pieces of black cherry in the center.  It was a great mix and absolutely delicious.

The final thing that is really cool about this place is that it is a cake cafe which means that you can order only cake and no drink is required as it is at several other cafes which saves a bit of money.  They also have a bread section, but I have never tried any of it, so I cannot comment on its quality.

Storefront

Bread

Cake

Chocolate Black Cherry Cream Cake

Sinchon Location

Old Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 창천동 31-15

New Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 연세로 32

Gordes Sinchon Location on Google Maps

Gordes Sinchon Location on Naver Maps

Myeongdong Location

Old Address System: 서울특별시 중구 을지로2가 199-39 명동아르누보센텀 107호

New Address System: 서울특별시 중구 명동7길 21 명동아르누보센텀

Gordes Myeongdon Location on Google Maps

Gordes Myeongdong Location on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about Gordes

Extensive Pics of Cafe, Bread, Cakes, Etc.

Lots of Pics of Cafe, Cakes, Drinks

Pics of Bread

Jyoti Indian Restaurant 죠티인도식당 - Sinchon 신촌

There are several Indian restaurants in Sinchon, and I have eaten at nearly all of them.  There really is nothing all that special apart from Jyoti which is an excellent restaurant in an area with not all that many foreign restaurants especially Indian food.

The people who own this place are from Nepal so expect Northern Indian food which is probably the type of food that you are used to if you are from the West as it is pretty much the only food that is popular over there.

There is a wide variety of food that is served at Jyoti ranging from all different kinds of soups and appetizers to curry, vegetable dishes, nan and Indian rice.  I have tried a good number of items on the menu and I have never been disappointed.  I quite honestly believe that this is one of the best Indian places in all of Seoul.

The curries are large and meaty and they get the spicing just perfect.  A lot of the vegetable dishes are also very heavily spiced just like they are at the Indian restaurants that I am used to.  When I say this, I am from America and I have never been to India, but I did take a girl who was from India to this restaurant once and she enjoyed the food as well.

The one issue with Jyoti is price.  Expect to pay a bit of premium for this good quality foreign food.  You can purchase individual items which mostly range from 9,000 - 14,000 won and then rice and nan on top of that, or an even better option are their set menus.  The single person set is 15,000 and comes with salad, desert, potatoes, and a choice of nan, curry and another appetizer dish as well as lassi and desert.  This is a great option.  The lunch set is even cheaper, but offered only on weekdays.

Jyoti Set

Old Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 노고산동 31-4 3층

New Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 신촌로20길 6

Jyoti on Google Maps

Jyoti on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about Jyoti

Extensive Pics of Restaurant, Menu and Food

Good Pics of Menu and Food

Nice Set Pics

Seolleim Samgyupsal 설레임 삼겹살 - Sinchon 신촌

Seolleim Samgyupsal is a small meat place in Sinchon that has a lot to offer in all areas of a restaurant.  It has a great atmosphere and excellent food and is definitely a step above all the rest of the meat places in Sinchon.

This is a great place for a weekend night out with friends.  It has a fun night time type of atmosphere and feels a bit like a bar.  It would be a great night to go out with a group to drink a bit while enjoy the delicious meat that is served at Seolleim Samgyupsal.

The meat in this place is some fresh thick pieces of samgyupsal of excellent quality and it is served with a sauce that is heavy in garlic which I am a sucker for.  I have been here several times and had the samgyupsal and it is always to die for.  This past time I went with a friend and in addition to the samgyupsal we also had a few orders of the moksal.  This was the first time that I had eaten it and it was also nice big fresh pieces of meat, but I would recommend the samgyupsal which is the specialty of the restaurant.

There is not a ton of sides that come at this place, but there are a few types of kimchi that can be grilled with the meat and radish which is one of my favorites as a complement to the meat.  There is also of course lettuce for making ssam.  The sides have a self service bar where you can go to load up on as many as you would like to eat.

I usually order the dwenjangjjigae and rice which is always very good and quite standard, but this time we mixed it up a little bit and got the kimchi kalgugsu.  This was a reasonably spicy dish that came with quite a bit of kimchi and of course the standard noodles that always come in kalgugsu.  Both the soup and the kalgugsu are great but I'd recommend the soup over the noodles if you are not up for something pretty spicy.

Finally, the price is right at this place being only around 5000 won per an order of meat, but there is one drawback.  Despite the low price, many of the orders of meat are only around 150 grams of meat which means that often times one person can easily eat more than one order.

This is easily my favorite out of the small meat places in Sinchon and I recommend anyone in the area to give it a try.

Raw Samgyupsal

Samgyupsal on the Grill

Cooking Samgyupsal

Raw Moksal

Cooking Moksal

Kalgugsu

Kalgugsu

Old Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 창천동 57-40 1층

New Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 연세로5가길 31 낙원빌딩

Seolleim Samgyupsal on Google Maps

Seolleim Samgyupsal on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about Seolleim Samgyupsal

Great Meat Pics

Pics of Storefront, Meat, Soups, Etc.

Tons of Pics of the Restaurant and Pics of Meat, Etc.

Wangno 왕노 - Hanu in Yatap Bundang 본당 야탑 한우집

I have been working in Bundang near Yatap station for about the past year and so I have tried just about every single restaurant in the area.  There is one that has a lunch menu that trumps just about every other lunch menu in the area and that restaurant is of course Wangno.

The entire staff in this place is super friendly and the owner always greets by name and with a smile as I walk into this place.  This place is always super crowded around lunch time and despite it being quite big, there is still sometimes even a line.  The place has the atmosphere of a large busy and bustling restaurant, but is still clean and classy.  It is the type of place you might go with your coworkers during your lunch break.

Every single item on the lunch menu is fantastic in every way imaginable.  The food is excellent, it comes with tons of sides and the price is right as well.  I have tried everything on the menu and I have never been disappointed, but there are a few items that I would like to highlight.  The gugbap is some of the best I have ever had.  It comes with generous portions of hanu and is filled with fresh vegetables.  This is one of my favorite items.

Another great item is the dwenjangjjigae which also comes with generous portions of hanu making it stand out from other places that I have gone that serve a similar dish.  If you end up going with multiple people one of the best things to order is the jaeyuk.  This pork dish is unlimited refill at Wangno and they will also bring you as much salad (쌈/ssam) as you want.  It is covered in a delicious sauce that can sometimes be very spicy but it is not overpowering here at Wangno.

Also there are usually about six sides that come with anything that you order.  All of which are usually fresh vegetables.  Some times I have an issue with too much pepper which is a complaint that I often have in Korean restaurants particularly in Seoul.  However, Wangno's veggies are usually so fresh that it makes up for excessive use of peppers if it is indeed a day that there are many peppers are used.  Often times extremely good sides are made here including things like jeon (Korean pancakes), odeng (fish cakes) or real fish.

Wangno is actually a hanu place that serves meat, but as I have only ever eaten lunch at this place, I have no idea was the meat is like.  Since the lunch menu is so good I'd still recommend giving it a try and I'd like to myself if I had the opportunity.

Storefront

Lunch Menu

Banchan/Sides

Gugbap

Old Address System: 경기도 성남시 분당구 야탑동 375-16

New Address System: 경기도 성남시 분당구 장미로100번길 20

Wangno on Google Maps

Wangno on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about Wangno

Tons of Pics of Restaurant, Meat, Sides, Etc.

Pics of Menu, Hanu, Etc.

Pics of Restaurant, Meat, Sides

Cochon Tonkatsu 꼬숑돈까스 - 3000 Won Tonkatsu in Sinchon 신촌에 있는 3000원 돈까스집

Sometime around summer last year there was a huge advertisement placed in Sinchon for this incredibly cheap tonkatsu place, but I didn't pay too much attention due to the fact that the price was so low.  My reasoning was that something sold at that low of price could not possibly be of any amount of quality, but boy was I mistaken.

Despite the unbelievably low price that Cockon Tonkatsu is able to offer, this is perhaps the most authentic tonkatsu place in the area.  The meat is a nice big piece of meat surrounded by the typical breading that you would find in Japan.  It is served with rice, soup and some other salad and sides, all of which are great as well.  This is a very basic meal and there is not all that much to say about it except that you should try this place yourself and you will be amazed.

The authenticity of this place even extends to the tiny portions that are typical of restaurants in Japan, but this is made up for by the extremely low price.  You can get extra rice for 500 won or if you are big eater, you may need to just order two raising the price a bit, but still putting at one of the cheaper options in the area.

Sign

Storefront

Flag Ad

Full Meal

Tonkatsu

Old Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 창천동 31-26

New Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 명물1길 2

Cochon Tonkatsu on Google Maps

Cochon Tonkatsu on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about Tonkatsu

Pics of Directions, Storefront, Food

Go Thai 고타이 - Thai Food in Sinchon 신촌 태국 음식전

Go Thai is the last of the Thai places that I know of in the Sinchon area.  Although I wrote about it last, it is definitely not the least.  It has a very unique atmosphere and serves some really good quality food, so I recommend it to anyone who lives in the area and likes Thai food.

Go Thai is a tiny little shop with just a few seats at a bar like table that looks over the kitchen which has about three burners on it.  So just like at Benihanas you can watch as the owner prepares your food and washes the dishes as well.  This places is obviously not for big groups, but it has a really nice relaxed atmosphere and would be a great place to go with a friend or on a date.

Since the place is so small the lady can only cook one or two things at a time, but our food came out pretty quickly anyway.  We ordered the Pad Thai and the crab.  All of the ingredients were fresh and she cooked everything from scratch right in front of us.  The Pad Thai had a ton of veggies, not too heavy on the peanut sauce and a bit of spice to it, but the thing that made it really taste so good was the freshness of the food.

The crab was also very good, but it was one of those tiny little Korean crabs and it was boiled whole so there were two issues I had with this.  One is the Korean crabs are so small there is not much crab meat, secondly you have to pick through this tiny little thing to get the small amount of meat that there is.  I don't think I would order this again, but it actually was very good anyways.  The sauce, and the eggs were excellent and the crab was boiled fresh.  The flavor was spot on, but I was disappointed with the size.

This is a really good and fresh place and I look forward to going back there and trying out a few more dishes on my next visit.

Storefront

Pad Thai

Crab

Crab Closeup

Old Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 노고산동 56-43

New Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 신촌로12다길 6

Go Thai on Google Maps

Go Thai on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about Go Thai

Tons of Pics of Restaurant, Menu, Food

Pics of Full Menu, Restaurant, Food

The Bread Blue 더브레드블루 - Sinchon's Very Own Vegan Bakery 신촌 채식빵집

There used to be two vegan restaurants in Sinchon, The Bread Blue being one of them and the other being Loving Hut.  However, Loving Hut closed down and only The Bread Blue remains.  Rather than being a full on restaurant though, The Bread Blue is a bakery.

Let me begin by saying the bread that you find in Korea tends be a little bit different than what you find in the west.  The bread over here tends to be a quite a bit sweeter and extremely light and airy which is fine, but sometimes you crave your good old western bread that we westerners grew up with.  Although the bread and The Bread Blue is not exactly like the bread that you are going to find at your local bakery in the west, it is a whole lot closer than the stuff that you'll find at almost any other bakery.

The bread in this place is absolutely delicious.  It is think and there are all different kinds of cookies and cakes to focaccia.  Moreover, a lot of the breads at this place are also unique.  There are some that are made with actual vegetables, vegetable pastes, beans, olives or other types of things that you wouldn't expect to see at a bakery in Korea.

This is probably my favorite bakery in the area, and I frequent it for my morning snack, something to eat or to go with meals.  In addition to the excellent quality of the bread, this place also has a pretty reasonably sized cafe that has a nice and quiet atmosphere that would be good go with a friend or to study.  They also make a variety of drinks, but I have never tried any of them so I cannot comment on their quality.

Storefront

Bread

Old Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 노고산동 54-58 1층

New Address System: 서울특별시 마포구 신촌로12다길 3 1층

The Bread Blue on Google Maps

The Bread Blue on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about The Bread Blue

Blog With Extensive Pics of the Bread

Tons of Pics of Bread and Cakes

Pics of Menu, Drinks, Bread

YinYa Chinese Tea House 인야 전통 중국 찻집 - Sinchon 신촌

YinYa is a Chinese tea place located in Sinchon that I have known about for quite a while but have never had the opportunity to go to until very recently.  This is a nice little hidden gem in the middle of Sinchon that I would recommend to anyone who is a fan of Chinese tea.

The atmosphere in this place is not so different from any other quiet cafe.  There are a spread of tables, quiet music and of course Chinese tea.  The menu appears as if it is a book and is filled with extensive explanations about each of the different varieties of teas.  If your Korean is not good enough to read about tea, it may be helpful to bring a Korean speaker in order to read all of these explanations.

The wait staff is also extremely helpful and will teach you how to make the tea if you are beginner with Chinese tea.  They even provided me with a stopwatch to tell me when to remove the tea from the leaves, and explained the entire process of how to make the tea.

In addition to Chinese tea, this place also makes traditional Chinese desserts, but I did not try any of them so I cannot tell you how any of them are.

Storefront

Entrance

Tea

More Tea

Even More Tea

Dessert Menu

Tea

Closeup

Old Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 창천동 52-155 2층

New Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 연세로11길 20

YinYa on Google Maps

YinYa on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about YinYa

Great Tea and Dessert Pics

Pics of Drinks, Menu, Dessert

Sinchon Rest 신촌 레스트 - A Sauna, Spa and Jjimjilbang in Sinchon 신촌에 있는 사우나, 스파, 찜질방

Sinchon Rest is a jjimjilbang (spa and sauna) that is right next to the station in Sinchon.  I have been to the vast majority of jjimjilbangs in Sinchon, and each have their good points and bad points.  Sinchon Rest has some really strong points that I'd like to share with you here.

Sinchon Rest is quite possibly the largest jjimjilbang at least in the main center part of Sinchon.  Spanning at least 4 floors, this place has a huge locker area and the spa and shower area is also relatively large.  There are two huge spas.  One is a green tea spa that is hot, but not scalding and the other is a scalding hot.  There is also a small cold pool that is ice cold.

There are also two saunas and both of these are also very spacious as well.  One of them is dry and the other is humid.  Next to the saunas, there is a massage table area where you can pay extra for either a massage from an old man or for him to rub the dirt and dead skin off of you with a scrub brush.  Beyond that there is a large shower area with both seated and standing showers.

The one thing that should be noted about this place is the extremity of the temperatures.  This place is for hardcore people only.  The cold pool is freezing cold and the saunas are very hot.  They are so hot that I cannot personally stand staying in them for very long and they are much hotter than most of the other places I have been to.

My favorite part about this place is the spa area.  The spas are large and the temperatures are not so extreme.  There is one that is more extreme and one that is less.  If I am looking to use mainly the spa, then Sinchon Rest is usually my place of choice.

Outside the Building

Entrance

Sign

Pricing

Help Desk

Old Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 창천동 13-52

New Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 연세로4길 22

Sinchon Rest on Google Maps

Sinchon Rest on Naver Maps

Cocoon Crepe Cake 코쿤 - Sinchon Idae 신촌 이대

Cocoon is a small cafe located essentially directly between Idae and Sinchon that serves a variety of different kinds of crepe cakes.  The interior is clean and modern, and it is extremely open.  This is a very classy looking cafe and is a great place to go either with a friend or a significant other.

I have had a variety of the cakes at this place and all of them have been very good.  The cakes are layers of crepe that have cake, chocolate or some other type of filling between the layers.  This last time that I went there we had the chocolate cake which I had never had before and I was pleasantly surprised.  The chocolate cake has an excellent blend of chocolate and crepe that can be found nowhere else.

They told me that their most popular cake is the banana chocolate crepe cake which is what I had the first few times I went to this place with no regrets.  The mix of banana and chocolate provides a unique mix of flavors that really stand out from any other place that I have been to.  The banana is cut incredibly thinly so you can just cut right through it with a fork and eat it like normal cake, but still provides the flavor that it is supposed to.

Cocoon also has a variety of other unique cake flavors such as sweet potato, earl grey and green tea.  They also serve berry, tiramisu and strawberry crepe cakes.

Storefront

Cakes

More Cakes

Interior

Wrapped Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Cake

Old Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 대현동 104-5 프루지오시티 101호

New Address System: 서울특별시 서대문구 신촌역로 7

Cocoon on Google Maps

Cocoon on Naver Maps

Additional Blogs about Cocoon

Tons of Pics of Cakes and Interior

Berry Cake Breakdown

Nice Cake Pics