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DELICIOUS DONUTS at Cafe Knotted, Busan, South Korea
Knotted is a popular donut chain in South Korea with many different types of uniques flavors in a cute cafe setting. This particular branch in Haeundae is quite new.
I definitely had a tough time choosing which ones to try since they all sounded so interesting. I went with the classic vanilla and the lemon sugar donuts. I wanted to get more but was still pretty full from a big lunch so had to settle for “just” two.
The donuts are so light and fluffy with sugar sprinkled over the outside. I could have eaten a couple more of them since they were so light to be honest. Looking back I’m disappointed I didn’t!
The donuts are chalk full of flavored vanilla and lemon cream. I was surprised after taking my first bite. Sweet, rich, and very flavorful, the vanilla and lemon cream filling were very satisfying.
Something else that makes the donuts so delicious is that they aren’t overly sweet, which it being a donut filled with flavored cream you would think it would be VERY sweet but it’s not at all.
I would definitely recommend stopping by and giving Knotted a try if you come across it during your travels through South Korea for some unique flavored donuts!
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Jagalchi Fish Market – Busan, South Korea
The largest fish market in South Korea, Jalgachi Market is a massive, bustling market place with stalls galore, restuarants, and an insane amount and variety of seafood.
There are two large buildings housing aisle after aisle of tanks / bins of various live seafood. You can buy any of the live seafood from one of these seafood stalls and then go upstairs to a correlating restuarant (each stall has a restuarant upstairs) and they will prepare the seafood for you. There’s so many different types of live fish, sea crustaceans, squid, crabs, octopus, it’s really mind boggling.
The entire surrounding area is very similar to what is housed within these buildings with shop after shop having an abundance of live seafood that can be purchased and then prepared / eaten all at the same spot.
Jagalchi area 
Shop in the Jagalchi area 
Shop in the Jagalchi area 
Shop in the Jagalchi area After walking through one of the buildings and being amazed by the sheer volume of stalls and endless aisles of aquatic tanks and bins filled with quite the assortment of aquatic wildlife, I decided that I had zero idea of what most of these creatures were, let alone how they would be prepared and what it would taste like, I wandered upstairs to where the restuarants were located to make things less complicated on myself.
I was quickly flagged down by one of the first restaurant patrons that noticed me who asked what I was looking for. They had a large fish tank with a few species of fish in it and the patron went over what kind of fish they were and how much they cost. They were fairly good sized fish. I really had no idea what they were or what they would taste like but chose one of them and got half of it sashimi style and the other half grilled.
This came with the usual side dishes that accompany pretty much all South Korean meals, kimchi, radish, etc. It also came with a few massive shrimps that were incredibly sweet.
The fish I ended up getting didn’t turn out well sashimi style. Very rubbery and chewy it wasn’t very enjoyable. I’m used to sashimi that melts in your mouth and this was certainly not that type.
The grilled fish on the other hand was very good. Freshly grilled and salted the fish was moist and had great char taste. All in all it was a ton of food that definitely left me quite full.
Walking around Jalgachi market and seeing all the different types of seafood in the market, then being able to eat such fresh fish was certainly a memorable experience. If ever visiting Busan it’s certainly a place to check out since it’s such a busy area with a lot going on!
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Sweet and Savory Coin Bread with Gooey Mozzarella Cheese In Gyeongju, South Korea
A popular snack in Gyeongju is coin bread which is a sweet and savory baked snack on a stick. There’s a fair amount of stalls that I came across selling this tasty treat.
Coin Bread stall in Gyeongju Flavor wise and consistency wise, I’d say it’s a cross between a pancake and waffle but with the huge difference it has gooey, melted mozzarella cheese in the middle and is given to you on a stick. You can never really go wrong with food on a stick right?
Coin bread! You wouldn’t necessarily think that this combination pancake / waffle with mozzarella in the middle would be the most appetizing food but the sweet and savory combo really works with this.
The pancake / waffle is soft on the inside, yet has a light, crisp, outer crunch and a solid sweetness. When you take a bite and get some of that savory, melted, stringy, mozzarella, it’s a perfect blend of flavors. I definitely could have eaten a few of these in one sitting, they’re that good!
This is definitely a unique, tasty treat in Gyeongju which I highly recommend giving a try!
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Experiencing Myeongdong Street Food in Seoul Is A MUST
Myeongdong Street Food
Myeongdong is a popular tourist destination in Seoul and is known primarily for it’s robust shopping which offers many international name brands and a ton of department stores packed in the area.
There’s also plenty of food options with restaurants and food vendors lining a major street running through the heart of Myeondgdong.
A few of the many, many restaurants in the area 
View of the strip in Myeongdong with lots of food vendors 
View of the strip in Myeongdong with lots of food vendors The draw for me was the aforementioned food stalls which I’d seen plenty of vloggers try so I was fairly familiar with the type of food found here and was excited to try some of the items!
There’s so many Myeongdong street food items to try here but with me traveling solo I really had to be selective on what I chose since I can only eat so much! I’ll update this article when I return to Myeongdong someday and am able to try new items.
A prominent item not only in Myeondong but I feel throughout South Korea is the chicken skewer (dakkochi). Pieces of tender, grilled chicken lathered in a sweet, slightly spicy sauce, delicious. The sauce takes the cake here. A great balance of sweet and spicy.
Egg bread (gyeran) is something I definitely wanted to try since it sounded and looked so interesting. It doesn’t taste how you would think it would since it seems like it would more of a savory item but the bread portion of it is actually sweet. Not overly sweet though. The egg adds the savory element to it and goes well with the bread creating a tasty snack.
Waffles in South Korea are dessert items with various toppings and fillings. The texture is different then what would be deemed a “breakfast” waffle as well. It’s firmer due to a sugar glaze on the outside. This particular waffle was topped with shredded Norwegian cheese. I wouldn’t think waffle and shredded cheese would ever go well together but this absolutely does. It may look and sound strange but the cheese pairs really well with the sweetness of the waffle and is very delicious.
Probably my favorite street food in all of South Korea – Hotteok. It’s like a deep fried pancake that can have either a savory or sweet middle. I always opted for the sweet variety which was usually brown sugar, cinnamon, honey in the middle. The dough has a satisfying crunch on the outside and the inside is nice and doughy and chewy and full of sweetness. It’s an unbelievable snack that I never passed up when walking through a food market while in South Korea.
There’s many more options when it comes to Myeongdong street food. This is just a sampler of what this street and area have to offer. What are some of your favorite Korean street food items?
Related Links
More eating adventures in Seoul, South Korea!
I detail my delicious food experiences in Gyeongju and Busan, South Korea
Jeju Island Night Market and more food adventures in Seoul, South Korea
