Seoul's most international corner, and its nightlife
The old US army base left Itaewon the most international patch of Seoul — food, music, and bar scenes that grew up outside the Korean mainstream — and it's still the city's nightlife capital, clubs to dive bars to 4am noodles. Up the hill, Haebangchon is the quieter residential side, all small kitchens and one-off shops. Between them, the city's freest, most mixed corner.
No photos, no star ratings — just what I'd tell a friend. I live in Seoul and these are the places I actually go, 59 of them here.
Open it in the appOr follow the route: how I'd walk Itaewon · Haebangchon.
Haven't been, but it's the vegan spot travelers hit first in Itaewon, plant-based since 2013.
Haven't been, but it's a long-running Haebangchon vegan kitchen, known for its lentil burger.
One of my favorite Itaewon clubs. Dance till dawn, when sunrise pours through the ceiling windows.
The Haebangchon taco counter I'd rather stand at: small, casual, and my pick for tacos.
The Korean-Mexican taco spot everyone knows. Fun and loud — I'd rather get my tacos up in Haebangchon.
The pub every guidebook sends you to behind the Hamilton. I'd just wander the alley, and dance elsewhere.
Mirrors, a DJ booth, a bit of cabaret. Winey and chill early; a dance floor by the weekend.
Korea's serious techno club, with a sound system in a class of its own.
The other club I'd send you to, with Faust. On a clear night, dance on the rooftop.
The best specialty coffee near Itaewon station, to my taste.
Haven't been — a fully vegan Chinese-leaning spot, a Michelin Bib pick two years running.
An old, easygoing Itaewon bar: records, a small floor, dancing late.
Big, proper New York-style pizza, by the slice or the whole pie.
Haven't been, but it's a small dessert cafe people rate for its gorgonzola cheesecake and home-style bakes.
A Thai place I've gone to for years; one of my easy, no-fuss favorites.
An Itaewon coffee old-timer. Order something with milk in it.
Haven't been — a fifth-floor LP bar, whisky and vinyl with a Namsan view.
Haven't been — a bagel-and-brunch cafe, build-your-own sandwiches the draw.
A brunch cafe and natural-wine bar, three floors up, looking out over Itaewon.
A long-running Itaewon dessert cafe that doubles as a homeware shop.
A curated art, design and photography bookshop, with brand pop-ups on rotation.
The Itaewon outpost of Myeongdong's famous kalguksu house, where locals skip the crowds.
An architect's cafe in an old bathhouse; a bit out of the way, but worth the detour.
Haven't been, but it's a fresh-pasta Italian and wine bar, with vegetarian pastas in the mix.
Smashed burgers, and one of the first places I think of when I want one.
Proper Mexican tacos on fresh-pressed corn tortillas; my go-to, alongside Itaewon Taco Stand.
A small cafe-bar with more care in it than its size suggests; the cocktails match the coffee.
My favorite fried-chicken burger in the city. For me, that's just what it is.
Half the reason to come to Itaewon lately. For ceramics and kitchen things, the best in Seoul.
Yemeni specialty coffee, genuinely good, and the owner loves talking you through it.
The Seoul branch of a sharp Jeju brunch cafe; it's where the tasteful crowd goes now.
A comics-and-art-book shop where you pay in and read anything you like, drink in hand.
A Korean-liquor tasting bar: a hundred-plus makgeolli, cheongju and spirits by the glass.
Korean steamed fish that used to be a local secret; now everyone's heard of it.
A cafe by day, a cocktail bar with DJ nights, at the mouth of Gyeongnidan.
Haven't been. A new Noksapyeong cafe that hasn't left much of a trail yet.
A dining bar I come to for the food, not the drink; the spice-driven Asian fusion is why.
Haven't been — a small Italian-leaning wine bar people rate for its pasta.
One of the places that set the HBC dining-wine-bar trend, and few are as known. A warm, clued-in crew.
WILDDUCK & CANTEEN's sister record bar, walls of LPs, and the music's the thing.
The naengsam (frozen thin-sliced pork belly) place, grilled for you with a generous spread of sides.
Haven't been. A small coffee-and-cocktail place in the Haebangchon backstreets.
Haven't been — an HBC cafe with a terrace, the kind you can settle into.
Haven't been — a just-opened bar up on the Haebangchon row; I'm curious.
A small Haebangchon bakery, clean and pared-back inside, with bread worth the uphill walk.
A neighborhood chimaek (chicken-and-beer) joint people here love; the picante is the one.
The coffee I rate most in Haebangchon; the milk drinks and the 'the' menu are the ones.
Natural-ingredient gelato, nothing artificial — gentle flavors I make a point of in summer.
The best brunch in Haebangchon, and the salt bread is Seoul-top-tier — it sells out, so go early.
Opato's bakery-only shop; come straight here if you just want the salt bread.
A warm little wine bistro down an HBC alley, and every plate I had landed.
Haven't been. A Spanish-leaning natural-wine bar, tapas built for the bottle.
The place that kicked off Korea's smash-burger craze. Treated as the original, and it earns it.
One of HBC's trendiest brunch-and-wine bars; I come for the room and the wine, and eat nearby.
A small, quiet cafe on the way up to Sinheung Market; the coffee comes in collector's cups.
A Korean ceramics brand's showroom where the attached cafe pours your coffee into the cups you're looking at.
HBC's old covered market, reborn: cafes and little shops under a glowing canopy roof.
Wood-fired pizza with combos you won't see elsewhere, a seasonal-namul (wild greens) one among them.
The view cafe under Namsan from the Grandhand people; go for a clear afternoon, sunset, or the night lights.
What to order and how to get in — the queue windows, the door moves, the booking that needs a Korean phone number — is in the app.
Bukchon is free, in full, so you can see whether you trust me before paying.