Day 7 of Seoul was much relaxed and focused on sightseeing. Kick started the day with brunch at Butterfinger Pancakes, another popular place mentioned in blogs I read. This brunch place has more than one outlet so when I tried goggling the address and directions given, they were incoherent. In the end I decided to follow the directions to take me there instead

If you find yourself on this street, you know you are at the right place

The first table we spot when we went in was a group of Singaporeans. I guess this is another place made popular by tourists

Menu

Brunch 🙂

Butterfinger’s Favourite with ‘I can’t believe it’s not butter’ Butter ₩16,400

I was intrigued by the name of the butter which is why I chose it. The pancakes were fluffy, light and tasted delicious even on its own. The butter substitute is lightly salted so when you eat it together with the pancakes, you get a different combination and flavor which was delightful as well. The rosti, even though has no colour to it, tasted light and flavourful and were cooked well

Waffle Lover’s Special with ‘I can’t believe it’s not butter’ Butter ₩16,800

I think the waffles were a little disappointing. They were a little dry and lack the fragrance of the pancakes.  Just go for the pancakes and forget these waffles

Butterfinger serves some decent pancakes. If you need some variety for breakfast while in Seoul, you can consider giving Butterfinger’s pancakes a try

Address: 13 Gangnam-daero 61-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Directions: Gangnam station exit 10. Walk straight and turn left at Body Shop/first intersection and continue walking. You will see Butterfinger’s Pancakes next to Burger King

Next marks our 1.5 hours journey up to Cheongpyeong station where we spent bulk of the day at Le Petit France and Garden of Morning Calm. I opted out of Nami island given it’s winter and 2/3 outdoor locations is enough, and also, we could spend more time at Le Petit France instead

The rather empty train station

You can get all information and maps of the attractions at the tourist booth near exit 1 and then catch the shuttle bus at the bus stop near exit 2

Bus schedules in both directions

The city tour bus! The bus fare has gone up to ₩6,000 per pax

And they changed the ticket to a wristband, which is rather thoughtful given you don’t have to worry about it being lost

The bus ride was rather bumpy given the really windy roads and I’m glad we were finally at Le Petit France. The place saw quite a crowd with the tour buses coming in periodically, especially in early afternoon. I guess this place is getting really popular. Admission for the place is at ₩8,000 (for adults), ₩6,000 (for youths) and ₩5,000 (for children)

Showtime of the performances

Hello Le Petit France 🙂

I thought this was rather funny. Do Min Joon and Cheong Song Yi for a day, anyone?

Le Petit France is really pretty. You will have so much fun here exploring the place and taking pictures that time passes so fast without you realizing. It’s like any spot can be a perfect ootd spot

There’s also a stamp collection activity where you can purchase this cloth from them at ₩500 and go around collecting all the stamps they have. Well, you can also choose to save that ₩500 and chop on any random piece of paper you brought along

Address: 1063 Hoban-ro, Cheongpyeong-myeon, Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do

We left Le Petit France in the evening to catch the bus to Garden of Morning Calm, where you can catch the light-up which only happens during winter season. The garden will be lit at around 5.30pm so plan wisely so that you won’t need to stand in the cold and wait. Admission for the place is at ₩8,000 (for adults), ₩6,000 (for youths) and ₩5,000 (for children)

And we were very lucky the lights came on 10 minutes after we reached

It does feel magical when the lights came on but after staring at these lights for some time, my eyes were beginning to hurt. Lol so we caught the 6.30pm bus back to Seoul, which begins our 1.5 hours journey back. I was rather glad this marks our last outskirt trip

Address: 432 Sumogwon-ro, Sang-myeon, Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea

Dinner was at some random roadside stall in Hongdae cos the cousin wanted to eat tteokbokki and sundae. So we ordered some kimbap, tteokbokki and sundae and to experience standing at a roadside stall to eat

Tteokbokki ₩2,500

Kimbap ₩2,500

Sundae ₩3,000

I think I’m just not a fan of all 3. Ha. The sundae has a rather strong intestine taste, the tteokbokki was normal and the kimbap was forgettable

Spicy Chicken Skewers ₩2,500

And I passed this stall selling chicken skewers, a street snack popular in Hongdae so I gave it a try. I must say, I preferred the chicken skewer to the tteokbokki, sundae and kimbap though =/

Went to Lotte mart to do some snacks shopping to bring back home and there are sure many people who think alike. The mart is just packed with tourists, and more tourists. You can also buy your masks and cosmetics here

And after you made payment for your purchases, you packed your snacks into boxes so that you can hand carry them back. It was an eye opener for me

Snacks for the people back home!

The cousin loves palaces so we paid a visit to the famous Gyeongbokgung palace the next morning. We were just in time to catch the free guided tour in Mandarin and the whole tour took about an hour

It was a cold, windy morning and I was freezing in the wind. Admission for the place is at ₩3,000 (for adults) and ₩1,500 (for children)

I feel like I was brought back to Joseon dynasty. Haha #watchtoomuchdrama

I wanted to do a re-enactment of bubujingxing. Ha me and my nonsense

Just in time to catch the guard changing ceremony!

There were very little pictures of the palaces cos I was too cold to take out my camera. Half the time I was hoping this tour could end soon, and the other half I was thinking about my ginseng chicken lunch already #toocoldtoohungry

Address: 161 Sajik-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea

And how can you not visit Tosokchon when you go to Gyeongbokgung palace. We went by the subway underground route to lead us to the restaurant. I was half worried we would meet with the lunch crowd cos it was 12.30pm then. And I read that the queue can be quite long. We were lucky we got a table once we enter and the food comes out amazingly fast

Haemul Pajeon (Seafood Pancake) ₩15,000

The seafood pancake has a good balance of flavor and texture with the dough just right and outer layer crisp. Add a little pancake sauce and your seafood pancake is complete

Tosokchon Ginseng Chicken Soup w Wild Ginseng ₩21,000

Tosokchon Ginseng Korean Black Chicken Soup ₩22,000

There is nothing to ask for when you get a bowl of piping hot soup in cold weather. I preferred the black fowl to the white chicken as the meat of the former is much more tender as compared. Both broth tasted somewhat similar, infused with herbs with a sweet aftertaste though the broth of the white chicken has a deeper flavour

You can taste the ginseng flavour in the rice and if you are up for something more exciting, you can pour the ginseng wine into the soup. But cos all of us were so hungry, we didn’t actually see the wine and so I drank the wine on its own

The shock we got when we stepped out of the restaurant at 1.15pm. I can only say we were so fortunate

Address: 5 Jahamun-ro 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul

I ventured samcheongdong alone cos the companions wanted to do some shopping elsewhere. I think samcheongdong is a pretty good place to explore given they retain some of the historical architecture and there are abundance of cafes there. And there is a good mix of retail and food choices

I had actually wanted to go to Woodside Coffee but I just couldn’t find it so I gave up and venture into some random café instead. And by stroke of luck, they served some of the best chocolate cake. Read here on my review of café Yeom

So we met up for dinner at some spicy chicken restaurant (신미경 홍대닭갈비) in Hongdae recommended by a Taiwan blogger. I don’t think there’s an English name for this restaurant, but I can try to provide some directions to that place for you to try. We were hit with dinner crowd and waited about 20 minutes before we were given a table. The place is one that is popular with the locals and there are posters saying Hong Kong TVB has visited this place and recommended it as well

While waiting for your meal to be served, they provided you eggs so that you won’t be starved. I find it rather cute you fry and eat the eggs separately, rather than add it on to your spicy chicken meal

Yuzu Flavoured Soju ₩3,500

Light, fruity soju which goes easy on the throat

The joy when the server brought our food over

Even happier when he cooked for us

With the addition of cheese

Spicy Chicken Cheese Fondue with Additional Ramen ₩13,000 (+₩2,000)

There are only 2 options; either with cheese or without cheese fondue

Happily cooking

I like the marinate on the chicken but I think it can afford to be spicier. Taking it with the cheese fondue was delicious as you slowly savour the creaminess of the cheese together with the sweetness of the chicken. I personally think the ramen tasted somewhat spicier than the chicken itself

Rice ₩2,000

Order the rice for roast and eat it like a local. You get a different flavor with the remains of the chicken and cheese

I think this place is worth a try if you enjoy something like Yoogane. I have personally never tried Yoogane before but I think this spicy chicken place serves some pretty decent food

Address: 2F, 357-2 Seogyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Directions: Come out of Hongik University station exit 9 and walk straight. Turn left at first intersection and walk till you see Tony Moly and make a right. Walk about 500m before you come to all the spicy chicken restaurants. Make a right at the first turn and you will see the building

Ventured Hongdae to walk off our filling dinner and this place is sure packed with the young crowd. It feels like our version of Bugis

So many people!

 If you are sick of shopping, you can find street performances here on weekends. Just stand around to enjoy what these talents have to offer, or if not pop into one of those many cafes you will find along the way. I think Hongdae is one place with no lack of food options and even though it may get a little too noisy at night, I still think it is a good option to stay around here

Click below to read on other entries on Seoul:

Seoul – A Trip to Phoenix Park Ski Resort and Everland

Seoul – Myeongdong, Le Alaska Café, Buchon Hanok Village, Ewha Women’s University