Right after viewing on The Guard Changing Ceremony, it takes us about 10 minutes walk from Deoksugung Palace to reach this famous and largest traditional market in Korea known as Nandaemun Market that located in the heart of Seoul, not only that as this make them one of the oldest market too as they started since 1964. In this market, you can find alot of variety of selling items such as Children’s Clothing, Men & womens, daily groceries, kitchenware, local products and most of the shops here do have their own factories and make the product themselves that offer both wholesale and retail price.
For traveller like us, do not worry about it as they have 3 Tourist Booth area to guide us and you will see roaming Tourist info Guide with red vest ready to help us. They are equip with English,Japanese and Chinese speaking guide.
A traveller like me, I am impress with the friendly people around this area and of course I am hunting for food more than shopping. In here you will get a variety of food products, from Japanese items like gim (seaweed), gimchi, and ginseng, while the Chinese are into clothing trade and others. This market is rather big and you can spend at least half a day here if you were to slowly walk and stroll around.
manage to find a translation map as below: (source from Visit Korea)
The first thing I am here is to hunt for their local food and went to food street first. Its so pack as it was lunch time and many working people are here to hunt for their favourite stalls. In this little ally you will find all the auntie selling pretty similar food and all have their own customers.
And those famous stalls there are line of people waiting behind patiently to wait for their seats. Do expect seating here is cramp! as the owner trying to squeeze as many customer possible.
We stroll around up and down twice without knowing what to eat and also did not know which is better option as everything in here looks good.
Then we end up this stall as the owner herself is the most attractive in asking us to join them yet also she got alot of TV coverage in this stall and also one of the busiest too.
She even pose for me as we wait for our turn to eat.
All food are served with their kimchi and kimchi in this stall are marinated towards more sourish and with sweet end. That’s something new.
Its hard for us to take picture as the turn over of this stall is very fast. People quickly sit down and eat then move to let other customers to come in. You can order any sides if you want besides the complimentary and its additional charges.
We ordered one set by pointing to the owner as they do not know how to speak English. Therefore what people around there eat we follow suit. This is their famous Glass noodle in this stall that is served cold.
Something new to us as its showered with peanut, yet its cold platter with sourish, yet mild of sweet and spicy end. Something new yet very appetizing. We could not finish it as the portion is pretty huge!
Follow by their local handpull noodle that serve with seaweed, dry bean curd skin, meat and others.
Soup base is sweet and this opens out our appetitite for eating, with chili paste added on top to make it mild spicy yet noodle texture is al dante. Finish till to the last drop of it. We call it Korean Pan Mee version! A MUST TRY! One set cost is about RM 20 = 6500 Won
Korean people sure do can eat as their one portion serve with small glass noodle and a sides its pretty huge for us yet the finish it like eating a small meal. Impressive.
AS we stroll along the main market, then we saw this is also another product that must eat in Korea yet people are queuing up. I was too full even to put something into my stomach instantly.
For any online seller or retailer, this would be your paradise of shopping as most of this owner they handmade all the accessories themselves and the quality is GOOD! In this Jangan Accessories Shopping Mall they only sell wholesale price and if you do own a shop online or buy bulk, you have a special discount. After we came back only regretted we did not buy a huge pack to sell as its cheap.
Right outside this Jangan Mall, we saw this and decided to try.
cost 100o won for 3 pieces
filled with peanut and another flavour with red bean. Not my type of local pastries as I find the skin is too thick yet very chewy. .
Then comes to street snacks that this caught my attention.
We stood there and observe as they did it so fast yet customers just come buy and go . .
Its very good that its thin, coated with mild black sugar with a hint of honey . .
Then we saw another long queue that this auntie is doing their traditional breakfast omelette. Smells good though.
This is how they do their delivery . .
This is another side of Nandaemun which is pretty near to GAte 2 that sells all seafood and also alot of pig spare part item.
Till this stall caught our attention again as the queue is super long and turn out to be like a snake queue.
They are doing this non stop and it smells so good!
Anna is queuing while I was looking for something else to eat. It takes us about 20 minutes to reach our turn.
Among the ingredients, after it was cook, the owner will paint 3 times of this special marinated soy sauce with green papper, red dates, apple, onion, green chili and others to make it so special that the sauce is so fragrant when top on it.
Inside the fillings are glass noodle with special sauce. Fragrant and huge in pieces that makes it a good snacks. We could not finish though as its too much food for both of us.
This famous snack can be hunt at this Gate 2 pillar which is directly next to it. Do come by if you are here.
Nandaemun Market CLOSED ON SUNDAY!
How to get here:
Seoul Subway Line 4, Hoehyeon Station Exit 5
Namdaemun market is more like a food market – lots of glorious food.
I prefer to go to Insadong street – that’s where all the souvenirs are. 🙂
Missing Seoul!
heheh.. i have to agree with yu
Great shots… i really miss Seoul. Can’t wait to go back! 😀
wahh..thanks for the compliment eh~ heheh
still love your street shots. ..
The glorious food !! I miss Korea, love the food there.. not the weather though.. it was as cold as -19 Degrees when I was there.. way colder than Turkey..
wow. . .-19. keen to try that kind of weather. .
**STIMM
Jangan Mall, sound like “jangan masuk” or “jangan visit” Mall LOL
hehe.. now you say it, i only realise.. . lol~