Top 5 Gimbap Spots Across Korea You Can’t Miss!

Gimbap is delicious whenever you eat it. These days, many gimbap use various ingredients. Let’s delve into some of the longstanding gimbap restaurants cherished nationwide.

Eegong Gimbap, located near Anam Station, is counted among Seoul’s top three gimbap places. Its specialty, the Tuna BoSeoul’sGimbap, is widely celebrated for its generous filling of tuna. Brimming with ingredients, this substantial roll hardly reveals the rice beneath, making it a satisfying meal.

In addition to tuna, Eegong Gimbap offers diverse options, including stir-fried pork, pork cutlets, kimchi, and chili.

• Address: 1st floor, 61-6 Anam-ro, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul
• Business hours: 09:30 – 21:30, Break time 15:00 – 16:00
• Menu: Eegong Gimbap $3, Chili Gimbap $5, Tuna Bomb Gimbap $6.50

Dashi Rice, located in Hongje-dong, is a gimbap restaurant that’s become popular through word of mouth. It is the first home meal project by Kim Soo-Kyung, a food stylist, living stylist, and cooking researcher. Although it’s located in a back alley of Hongje-dong, it’s always a popular spot.

The signature menu of Dashi Rice is Crab Meat Keto Gimbap, a limited menu item with only 40 available daily. The Crab Meat Keto Gimbap consists of crab meat mayonnaise, egg omelet, cucumber, carrot, burdock, and pickled radish. Once you try Dashi Rice’s signature menu, you’ll keep thinking about it.

• Address : 1st floor, 43 Tongil-ro 39-gil, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul
• Business hours: 09:00 – 20:00, Break time 15:30 – 17:00
• Menu : Soboro Inari Sushi $3.50, Gochujang Pickles + Tuna Gimbap $5.50, Crab Meat Keto Gimbap $7

Myeongmun Gimbap is a gimbap place located near Jagalchi Station in Busan. This store has been featured twice on “Master of Living,” a Korean TV show introducing masters in each field. With a rich tradition spanning three decades, they only use domestic rice and even extract their own sesame oil. They do not use any chemical seasoning at all.

What sets Myeongmun Gimbap apart is the harmony of fluffy rice and ingredients. Myeongmun Gimbap offers menus such as Yubu (fried tofu), Ttangyu (chili and fried tofu), and Ilmi Gimbap. Ttangyu Gimbap is a spicy Yubu Gimbap. Given its popularity, you may not taste it, as it often sells out of ingredients by the afternoon.

• Address : 16-1 Geumjeong-gu, Busan
• Business hours : 07:00 – 13:00
• Menu : Original Gimbap $2, Yubu Gimbap $2.50, Ilmi Gimbap $3

‘Bobe Gimbap’ is a gimbap restaurant in Seongdong Market, Gyeongju. It’s a long-established gimbap restaurant with a signature menu of Burdock Gimbap. The unique feature is that you eat braised burdock with gimbap. Simmered with syrup, the braised burdock offers a delectable balance of sweetness and saltiness, enhancing the overall taste. Bobe Gimbap was even featured on a TV entertainment program, Huh Young Man’s Food Travel. Additionally, you can only buy the braised burdock.

• Address: 11 Seongdong Market, Wononly hwa-ro 281-gil, Gyeongjeongsangbuk-do
• Menu: Gimbap for 1 person $6, Burdock Simmered 450g $30

There’s a famous gimbap restaurant in Seogwipo Olle Market. Dajeong’s Olle Market Main Branch is a hot spot along with Oneunjeong Gimbap. Since its establishment in 2010, it has offered a plain and savory taste of gimbap.

Dajeong makes all the sauces, including the ssamjang and tartar sauce, that go into the gimbap. With a commitment to freshness, all ingredients are cooked within a swift 30-minute timeframe. As it’s famous as one of the top three gimbap in Jeju, phone reservations never stop, and it mainly operates for takeout. This means you need to make a reservation first to visit.

• Address: 59-1 Dongmun-ro, Seogwipo, Jeju
• Business hours: 08:00 – 20:00
• Menu: Dajeong’s Gimbap $3.50, Spicy Anchovy Chili Gimbap $4.50, Homemade Dipping Sauce $1