Euljiro's food street, decades before "newtro"
Euljiro's printing shops, hardware stores, and steel workshops have been getting written up as a "newtro" nightlife district since the late 2010s — young crowds drinking on plastic stools between working machine shops. That framing is recent. The food underneath it mostly isn't: Mugyodong Bugeo Gukjip (무교동북어국집), a dried-pollack hangover soup shop in nearby Da-dong, has been open since 1978. Bokgukjip Bbokjji (복국집뽁찌), a pufferfish soup specialist in Ojang-dong, opened in 1992. Mongdorine (몽돌이네), a pork belly grill, in 2007; Mapo Jjukkumi (마포쭈꾸미), a griddled octopus-and-pork-belly counter, in 2005.
The 8 listings here run across that timeline and across sub-neighborhoods — Euljiro 3-ga, Inhyeon-dong, Ojang-dong, and Da-dong. Kim Three Meals accounts for most of the credits: Mongdorine, Mugyodong Bugeo Gukjip, Bokgukjip Bbokjji, Mapo Jjukkumi, and Buyeo Sikpum. Ddoganjip credits two of the soup-and-offal shops — Cheongwaok (청와옥, sundae blood-sausage soup) and Hwayukgye (화육계, chicken feet and pork trotter). Sung Si-kyung's Muktende credits Munhwaok (문화옥), a seolleongtang counter in Jugyo-dong.
One of these is a recent opening inside an older neighborhood: Buyeo Sikpum (부여식품), a Daegu-style makchang grill, opened in 2019 — a new business in a food street whose identity is otherwise older than most of its current customers.
18▶ source videoMongdorine 몽돌이네
An outdoor-seating (yajang) pork belly grill tucked in a narrow Euljiro alley near the Nogari-golmok drinking district, with a distant view of Namsan Tower from its patio tables.
₩15–40k1 trusted mention📈 RisingShort waits at peak
53▶ source videoMugyodong Bugeo Gukjip 무교동북어국집
A single-dish dried-pollack hangover soup counter near Gwanghwamun that has run since a 1978 registered opening, popular with nearby office workers for its consistent 10,000-won bowl and self-serve side dishes.
under ₩15k1 trusted mentionExpect lines
102▶ source videoCheongwaok 청와옥
An Euljiro sundaeguk shop pairing the soup with pyeonbaek-jjim, cypress-steamed pork — waits are common even on weekdays, and the Tabling app at the door lets you queue remotely instead of standing in line.
under ₩15k1 trusted mentionExpect lines- 103▶ source video
Hwayukgye 화육계
Hwayukgye is an Euljiro 3-ga chicken-feet-and-trotter bar where reviewers highlight the mubbyeo-dakbal (boneless spicy chicken feet) and a flying-fish-roe rice ball, with a wait considered a near-permanent fixture of the place.
₩15–40k1 trusted mentionExpect lines 
131▶ source videoMapo Jjukkumi 마포쭈꾸미
A no-frills Euljiro-3(sam)-ga spot built around a single hero dish: cheolpan jju-sam, baby octopus and pork belly stir-fried together on a hot griddle.
under ₩15k1 trusted mentionShort waits at peak
142▶ source videoBuyeo Sikpum 부여식품
A grilled-intestine (makchang) spot in Jung-gu's Inhyeon-dong printing-shop alley, known for Daegu-style pork makchang grilled at the table over an open-air (yajang) setup, alongside a spicy pork-and-kimchi jjaglagi stew.
₩15–40k1 trusted mentionShort waits at peak
235▶ source videoMunhwaok 문화옥
An Euljiro seolleongtang shop serving the milky ox-bone soup side by side with jok-tang, ox-foot soup — a straightforward walk-in operation open since morning, with most of the confusion travelers report actually belonging to the popular naengmyeon shop next door.
under ₩15k1 trusted mentionWalk right in
303▶ source videoBokgukjip Bbokjji (Ojang-dong) 복국집뽁찌(오장동점)
A pufferfish (bok-eo) specialty restaurant in Ojang-dong, Jung-gu, serving bok-jiri (clear pufferfish soup), bok-bulgogi, and a multi-dish bbokjji course set — an accessibly priced way into a fish often treated as a special-occasion splurge elsewhere in Seoul.
under ₩15k1 trusted mentionWalk right in
Questions
Why does Euljiro keep getting called a "hip" neighborhood if the restaurants are decades old?
The renovated bars and cafés that opened inside old workshop buildings in the late 2010s are genuinely new — that's the "newtro" part. But most of the restaurants on this list predate that shift by decades: Mugyodong Bugeo Gukjip since 1978, Bokgukjip Bbokjji since 1992, Mapo Jjukkumi since 2005. The neighborhood's nightlife got younger; its food street mostly didn't change owners.
Is Euljiro cheap or expensive to eat in?
Cheap, mostly — 5 of the 8 listings here are price band ₩ (roughly ₩15,000 or under per person): Munhwaok, Cheongwaok, Mugyodong Bugeo Gukjip, Bokgukjip Bbokjji, and Mapo Jjukkumi. The other three (Hwayukgye, Mongdorine, Buyeo Sikpum) sit in the ₩₩ band, grilled-meat-by-the-portion places.
Do I need a reservation for any of these?
No — all 8 Euljiro listings are walk-in. That's unusual for a neighborhood this associated with nightlife crowds, and it's part of why these particular shops made the list: no app, no Korean phone number, no minimum lead time.
How were these Euljiro picks actually sourced?
Each has at least one independent video credit from a tracked Korean food YouTuber — Kim Three Meals, Ddoganjip, or Sung Si-kyung's Muktende — and each is checked against Seoul's public restaurant registry to confirm it's still operating. No restaurant can pay to be on this list; the full ranking formula is public.
Ranked by trusted Korean curator mentions, not paid placement — how it works. Every listing is checked against Seoul's official business registry. Looking for what's closest right now? Places near you →