Location: Gyeongju
Top Restaurants in Gyeongju
Where to Eat in Gyeongju: The Best Restaurants and Bars
Gyeongju (Korean: 경주, pronounced [kjʌŋ.dʑu]), historically known as "Seorabeol" (Korean: 서라벌, pronounced [sʌ.ɾa.bʌl]), is a coastal city in the far southeastern corner of North Gyeongsang Province in South Korea. It is the second largest city by area in the province after Andong, covering 1,324 km (511 sq mi) with a population of 264,091 people (as of December 2012.) Gyeongju is 370 km (230 mi) southeast of Seoul, and 55 km (34 mi) east of Daegu. The city borders Cheongdo and Yeongcheon to the west, Ulsan to the south and Pohang to the north, while to the east lies the coast of the East Sea. Numerous low mountains—outliers of the Taebaek range—are scattered around the city.
Things to do in Gyeongju
1. Yosukgung
Overall Ratings
4 based on 46 reviews
Reviewed By Baboon_cheeky - Hong Kong, China
Yosukgung served tradional Korean cuisine and the restaurant was nice. Guests have their own room and private server. Customer service was good but no one spoke English. We actually had to get help from our host at Pension Polaris to make this booking. The menu was also in Korean only so if there is anything you do not eat, like beef, pork or any innards, be sure to translate that into Korean first and tell/show them. We tried the KRW60,000 menu and asked them to substitude the beef and innard dishes with something else, which they were willing to do. The meal included at least a dozen of small vegetarian appetizers and salads, the often seen green onion pancake, fried vermicelli, etc. Other delicacies included abalone and shrimp, ginseng tempura, grilled fish, stewed beef (substituted by a tofu stew for us), finished off with korean pears and sweet cinimon tea.
2. Baru
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 21 reviews
http://www.sherwinvjones.com/gyeongjublog/2010/03/restaurant-review-9-baru-vegetarian-restaurant/
Reviewed By Anders M - Hamburg, Germany
Baru is a vegan restaurant in Gyeongju serving so called ‘temple food’.
The food is among the best vegan food I ever had and I do not eat meat, which means that I frequently eat vegetarian food and have a bit of knowledge in that area. Vegan food is always under the suspicion of tasting a bit boring and actually my experience is that this judgement is not always entirely wrong. The food being served here however is anything but boring. For a mere 18.000 Won which is about 14 Euro you get an enormous amount and variety of different foods, I think it must have been 18 plates with different specialties. The ingredients are fresh. The combinations of the different flavours of the ingredients along with the different spices are very impressive and the food tastes really good. When you keep in mind that this is a small, rather cheap restaurant, I dare say it’s almost beyond comprehension. A very good example is the tempura, which they serve among the dishes. Tempura is a good indicator when trying to distinguish ordinary restaurants from very good restaurants, as it is always a challenge to create a tempura where the contents of the dough are cooked but still firm and the dough does not drip with oil. Here, they excel at the task of creating tempura almost as in Japan. My guess would be that in large cities in Germany, where I am from, you would have to pay three times as much here and the restaurant would be classified as ‘haute cuisine’. Only flaw I have to mention was the dessert, which was a water melon but tasted a bit too watery. But this is really a minor note for the sake of completeness.
The interior of the restaurant is traditional, which is very nice. Though be aware that traditional also means that there are no chairs instead you sit on the floor.
The restaurant is a not directly situated in the center of the city but you can easily go there by bus or taxi. Do not let this small inconvenience prevent you from going to Baru, I absolutely recommend going there.
3. Gyeongju Wonjo Kongguk
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 15 reviews
Reviewed By vjgoobee - Santa Clara, California
Loved the cold soy bean soup with agar agar and noodles. Very refreshing. Friendly family style restaurant.
4. Metdol Sundubu
Overall Ratings
4 based on 57 reviews
Reviewed By Ernawati P
We had both the spicy & not spicy Sundubu soup. We all loved the spicy version. Good, tasty, smooth tofu. The pancake was delicious. The Grilled Pork salad was refreshing. The grilled sanma fish that came with the soup was perfect. We had a lovely & hearty meal that didn't burn our pocket.
5. Dosol Maeul
Overall Ratings
4 based on 53 reviews
Reviewed By sarahflokl - Bangkok, Thailand
This restaurant has a nice setting - we got our diner in one of the rooms which is also heated from the floor - it was confy and quiet. Perfect for an authentic and couple time.
The quantity of food is just too much. It is impossible to finish and it could feed really for people at least. We took the diner set for two with the fried assortments. All was delicious and interesting to eat.
Price wise I found it affordable for the quantity.
6. Byeolchaeban Gyodong Ssambap
Overall Ratings
4 based on 47 reviews
Reviewed By Liz K - Hong Kong
For those who loves korea beef must try out this restaurant. Foods over in Gyeongju usualy comes with variety of fresh vegetable and this was one of the reason why we love visiting Gyeongju (I have been to Gyeongju twice within 3 months!). Since there are always lot of visitors so you have to be patient -- we spent 15 mins to wait for our foods. Suggested to make reservation. Tel : (054) 773-3322 address 780-080 경북 경주시 첨성로 77. there are few branches over at Gyeongju but the most popular is the one in front of royal tomb.
Must easy way to find the local is via http://map.daum.net/ and key in telephone number.
7. Hamyangjip
Overall Ratings
4 based on 44 reviews
Reviewed By Yoorim H - Seoul, South Korea
This place is the best place to have delicious meal in Gyeongju! It is really tasty. I wasn't waiting at all because I went there really early. However, it's definately worth waiting for hours!
8. Hongsi Hanjungsik
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 122 reviews
Reviewed By KK-Yeo - Singapore, Singapore
A traditional Korean restaurant located within a traditional Korean house settings. The 17 course meal is serve in three phases. Each course is tastefully made preserving the original flavour of the ingredients. The signature desert is the frozen persimmon which the restaurant derived her name.
9. Sukyoung Sikdang
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 85 reviews
Enjoy traditional Korean foods with homemade Dongdong-ju(sweet and crisp rice liquor) at Sukyoung!<br><br>**Closed - Every 2nd, 4th Tuesday<br>**Break time - PM 3:00 ~ 5:00<br>**Last order - PM 8:30
Reviewed By Taco N - Utrecht, The Netherlands
Fantastic food and super friendly and super helpful staff. Probably the best place I had dinner during my whole trip to South Korea. Simple menu from which I chose the bibimbap and it was excellent from start to finish. Don't forget to order the additional smoked fish (trout?).
10. Hawa Dhaba
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 20 reviews
Reviewed By Cobblaz - Oxford
I have eaten here three times, and thats enough. once was chicken thali, which was OK so I returned again but was only shrimp thali available, not so nice (same sauce) so the third time I returned it was again shrimp thali, so I decide that having pot luck at a restaurant was not for me. Being a solo business traveller I do not like the idea of the shared Seating at a big table and find it invasive. There are two cooks, so again pot luck on which one is serving as they work alternate days..
So you pay your money and have no choice of whats served.
