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Fancy for some handmade Kalguksu (칼국수)? One of the best that I had tried would be Myeongdong Kyoja (명동교자) which is located near Myeongdong Cathedral. This restaurant is said to have been in business for over 40 years and is a very popular restaurant to Korean and tourists.

The restaurant is strategically located within the popular tourist and shopping area of Myeondong. We were lucky to be able to grab a seat within minutes upon arriving at the restaurant. We heard that there were queue usually there, but I guess going there for an early dinner helps in securing seats. However, must say that although it is early evening, the restaurant is packed.

The details on the restaurant as below :

• Address : 29, Myeongdong 10-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul (Myeong-dong 2-ga) 서울특별시 중구 명동10길 29 (명동2가)
• Homepage : http://www.mdkj.co.kr/en/
• Operation Hours : 10:30 till 21:30

Direction on how to get there (note – both restaurant are located not far from each other :

Main Branch
[Subway]
Myeongdong Station (Seoul Subway Line 4), Exit 8.
Upon exiting the station, turn left onto Myeongdong 10-gil Road.
Go straight about 150m to arrive at Myeongdong Kyoja (명동교자) on the right.

Myeongdong Kyoja Branch No. 1
[Subway]
From Myeongdong Station (Exit 8), turn left onto Myeongdong 10-gil Road.
Go straight about 280m to arrive at the restaurant on the left.

One point to note is that, upon placing orders, we will be given the bill in advance as the restaurant is a very fast paced and turn-over of tables are quick. This is to reduce the waiting time for those waiting to grab a seat.

Some of the recommended dishes in the popular restaurant :

• Kal-guksu (noodle soup)
• Bibim-guksu (spicy noodle soup)
• Mandu (dumplings)
• Kong-guksu (noodles in cold soybean soup)

As there were 4 of us, we were fortunate to be able to order more, hence we had the opportunity to try Kal-guksu, Mandu as well as Bibim-guksu.

Kal-guksu (칼국수) is also known as knife noodles, noddle soup that uses homemade knife-cut noddles served in chicken broth. The dish is served with mandu, zucchini, mushrooms and seasoned ground beefs. The broth is rich in flavour and has a thick consistency. The ground beef complemented the soup and noddle well while the mandu are a perfect treat.

Mandu (만두) is korean steamed dumplings filled with minced pork and vegetables wrapped in handmade dough.Each order comes in a portion of 10 mandu. Thin mandu wrapping which is able to enclosed the juices of the filling inside, this pork and vegetable mandu were outstanding and is highly recommended.

Bibim-guksu (비빔국수) is cold noodles served with kimchi, vegetables and red hot pepper paste. A flavourful and cool naengmyeon noddles, this dish is the mixed noodle version of bibimbap. Perfect dish for the hot summer day!

 

Lastly, I must share that the kimchi served in Myeongdong Kyoja is indeed one of the best I had so far as well. I understand from the “adjumma” that was serving us, the kimchi are made by the restaurant on regular basis hence the freshness.

 

From all the past experience in various places trying out the same dishes, I must say that this is the best that I ever had to date. The taste were amazing. From the flavours to the quality, the meal was truly awesome. To add to the super friendly services from the crew in the restaurant despite busy, this is highly recommended restaurant when one is in the area. Oh did I mentioned that the crew in the restaurant are able to speak Mandarin, perfect for those whom are non-korean speaking tourist.