South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 9: Namsan Dong, Korean Cafe Hopping, Gyeongju Bread and Korean Beef Hanwoo BBQ

2bearbear inside Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread

In our South Korea Travel Itinerary, on day 9 of our travels in Gyeongju, we checked out all the interesting food offerings in Gyeongju! We left Hotel Valentine in the morning for Namsan Dong.

Book with Agoda Here: Popular Hotels in Gyeongju

Book Here with Klook: Popular Activities in Gyeongju

Gyeongju Attractions – Namsan Mountain

Because of the temples and shrines around Namsan Mountain, it has also earned a name of being an “open air museum in Gyeongju”. This time, we chose to visit Namsan Dong. However, it was a rainy day. Hence, we were only able to capture a couple of shots during this visit…

Slope up Namsan Dong
Slope up Namsan Dong
Temple at Namsan Dong Gyeongju
Temple at Namsan Dong Gyeongju
Shrine at Namsan Dong Gyeongju
Shrine at Namsan Dong Gyeongju
View from Namsan Dong
View from Namsan Dong

During this visit to Namsan Dong, we saw a stone buddha while Kate saw a green frog with black spots.

Gyeongju Attractions – Tong Il Jeon Palace

Tong Il Jeon Palace was where young shilla warriors trained. In 1977, to signify the unification of the Shilla states in 668, the Tong Il Jeon Palace was built. As it started to pour, we were not able to alight to check out the area.

Gyeongju National Park Guide Map
Gyeongju National Park Guide Map
Introduction to Tong Il Jeon Palace Gyeongju
Introduction to Tong Il Jeon Palace Gyeongju

For breakfast, we headed back to Bomun Tourist Complex to have breakfast at emart 24. There, we had pork cutlet gimbap and ramen for 6,000krw…

Ramen and Pork Cutlet Gimbap from Emart 24 Gyeongju (6,000krw)
Ramen and Pork Cutlet Gimbap from Emart 24 Gyeongju (6,000krw)

After breakfast, we walked around to capture some unique architectures in Gyeongju including

Gyeongju Tower
Gyeongju Tower
Gyeongju Pagoda
Gyeongju Pagoda

We wanted to visit Shilla Millenium Museum but even at 10am, it was still closed. Wonder if it has closed down?

Has Shilla Millenium Museum Closed Down?
Has Shilla Millenium Museum Closed Down?

Since it was still raining, we decided to do shopping at Home Mart Gyeongju as well as some cafe hopping (korean style), starting off with Coffee Bellus, perched atop a hill in Gyeongju. Because of its location, Coffee Bellus enjoys views over Bomun Lake albeit a little rainy…

Saw this flower covered Cheomseongdae enroute to Home Mart Gyeongju
Saw this flower covered Cheomseongdae enroute to Home Mart Gyeongju
On the Body X Kakao Friends products from South Korea Souvenirs
On the Body X Kakao Friends products from South Korea Souvenirs
South Korean Instant Noodles as Souvenirs
South Korean Instant Noodles as Souvenirs
Variety of Chocopie as souvenirs from South Korea such as green tea and banana flavoured ones
Variety of Chocopie as souvenirs from South Korea such as green tea and banana flavoured ones

For a more detailed coverage of what we bought as souvenirs from Gyeongju’s Home Mart, check out this post on the 9 Souvenirs to get from South Korean Supermarket.

Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
Coffee Bellus Gyeongju

While circling Lake Bomunho, we passed by Coffee Bellus several times. Hence, we stopped by for a latte (5,000krw) and cake (6,000krw). Here, we enjoyed coffee, cake and the views for an hour and a half…

Decoration within Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
Decoration within Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
English teacup set at Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
English teacup set at Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
Menu of Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
Menu of Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
Coffee Bellus Gyeongju Cake Selection
Coffee Bellus Gyeongju Cake Selection
Table Setting at Gyeongju Coffee Bellus
Table Setting at Gyeongju Coffee Bellus
Mini Eiffel Tower Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
Mini Eiffel Tower Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
View from Coffee Bellus Gyeongju
View from Coffee Bellus Gyeongju

Book with Agoda Here: Popular Hotels in Gyeongju

Book Here with Klook: Popular Activities in Gyeongju

Gyeongju Food – Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread

One of the most famous food in Gyeongju has got to be Gyeongju Bread. It is a red bean filled pastry that originated in Hwangnam-dong, Gyeongju, in 1939.

Entrance of Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread Shop
Entrance of Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread Shop

The tricky part about visiting Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju is its parking. This is because of the huge number of customers visiting, there are limited street parking lots here. Do note that parking is similar to that of Cheomseongdae where a parking attendant will note your time of arrival and come back again when you depart to receive payment. The parking is 1,000krw per hour.

Street parking outside Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread Shop
Street parking outside Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread Shop
Making of Gyeongju bread - notice the mountain of red bean paste! Yum!
Making of Gyeongju bread – notice the mountain of red bean paste! Yum!
Gyeongju Bread fresh out of the oven
Gyeongju Bread fresh out of the oven
Price of Gyeongju Bread
Price of Gyeongju Bread
2bearbear inside Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread
2bearbear inside Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread
10 Gyeongju Bread for 8,000 krw
10 Gyeongju Bread for 8,000 krw

We queued for 30 minutes before we were finally able to enter the Choi Yeonghwa Gyeongju Bread Shop. It was interesting to observe how the workers worked to put Gyeongju bread together. There was a mountain of red bean paste on the right hand side of each worker where generous amounts of it will be place unto a dough then kneaded into shape. Another lady will stamp the flower-like shape atop the Gyeongju bread before putting them into the oven. Another lady would check the ovens from the time to time and when she thinks that the bread was ready, she would retrieve them and place them on the wooden board. Lastly, once the order has been placed, the cashier would come over and place the piping hot Gyeongju bread into boxes before serving the customers. She even reminded us that it was hot and have to wait an hour before eating. Of course, we didn’t and had our first bite on the car. It was delicious! The paste was not too sweet while the pastry itself was fluffy and not too oily. The healthier version of Loong Fatt 😛

The other thing we noticed was that none of the workers spoke a word during the making of the Gyeongju. Literally no one. The discipline it takes to make Gyeongju bread.

Book with Agoda Here: Popular Hotels in Gyeongju

Book Here with Klook: Popular Activities in Gyeongju

Gyeongju Food – Korean Beef Hanwoo BBQ

For dinner, we tried the Korean Beef Hanwoo BBQ at the foot of the hill from Hotel Valentine…

Korean Beef Hanwoo BBQ Gyeongju
Korean Beef Hanwoo BBQ Gyeongju

The style of this Korean Beef BBQ restaurant is a little different. Besides being a restaurant, it is also a butchery.

Butchery inside Gyeongju Korean Hanwoo BBQ
Butchery inside Gyeongju Korean Hanwoo BBQ

Before you get a seat, you’ll choose the meat that you like from the butchery. This time, we chose 2 different cuts of the beef for 45,000krw as recommended by the restaurant staff. Soon, we were seated and we were able to make other orders. Side dishes costs 5,000krw per person while rice costs 1,000krw. Together with the 4,000krw for soju, the total cost was 60,000krw.

Beef and side dishes from Korean Hanwoo BBQ Restaurant Gyeongju
Beef and side dishes from Korean Hanwoo BBQ Restaurant Gyeongju
Korean Hanwoo Beef BBQ
Korean Hanwoo Beef BBQ
Yummy Korean Hanwoo BBQ
Yummy Korean Hanwoo BBQ
Inside Korean Hanwoo BBQ Gyeongju
Inside Korean Hanwoo BBQ Gyeongju

The 5,000krw side dishes included high quality vegetables, mushrooms, kimchi and salad. This we felt was value for money as we were able to load up on fibre and nutrients that complemented the BBQ beef really well. Overall, an enjoyable dinner – although a little expensive we felt.

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Book with Agoda Here: Popular Hotels in Gyeongju

Book Here with Klook: Popular Activities in Gyeongju

We hope you have enjoyed day 9 of our travels in South Korea. On day 10, we depart from Gyeongju and drove up to Danyang, another one of our favourite locations in South Korea. Stay tuned to find out why! We’ll now leave you with this video coverage of the top things to do and attractions in Gyeongju!

Related Posts

You have just finished reading a post from our 14 Days Travels in South Korea. Check out the rest of the posts from this series below!

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 1: Busan Gwangalli Beach, Spaland and Fried Chicken Army Stew!

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 2: Busan 40 Steps, Yongdusan Park, Busan Tower, Jagalchi Market, Gukje Market, Songdo Beach and Seomyeon Underground Mall!

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 3: Jeju Mysterious Road, Hallasan, Black Pork BBQ and Jeju Shinhwa Landing Resort!

South Korea Jeju Travel Itinerary Day 4: Jeju Attractions of Cheonjeyeon Waterfall, Jeosangjeolli Cliff, Oedolgae Rock, Cheonjiyeon Falls, Jeongbang Falls, Jeju Folk Village, Seopjikoji and Seongsan Ilchulbong!

South Korea Jeju Travel Itinerary Day 5: Geumneung Beach, Hyeopjae Beach, Jeju Glass Castle, Innisfree Jeju House, Jeju Teddy Bear Museum, Sanbangsan, Suwolbong Peak

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 6: Flight from Jeju to Busan PLUS Hilton Busan Review!

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 7: Haeundae Beach, Dalmaji Road and Dalmaji Hill

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 8: Gyeongju Attractions of Cheomseongdae, Dong-Gung, Wolji Pond, Bulguksa Temple and Bumunho Lake

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 9: Namsan Dong, Korean Cafe Hopping, Gyeongju Bread and Korean Beef Hanwoo BBQ

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 10: Discovering Danyang Attractions Dodamsambong, Woraksan and Chungju Lake Cruise

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 11: Driving from Danyang to Seoul!

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 12: Discovering Seoul Tower, Manjok Ohyang Korean Pork Trotter, Namdaemon, Myeongdong, Dongdaemon and Insa-dong Stream!

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 13: Gyeongbokgung Palace, Korean Ginseng Chicken Soup (Tosokchon Samgyetang), Buchon Hanok Village in Seoul Attractions!

South Korea Travel Itinerary Day 14: War Memorial of Korea, Emart Yeongdeungpo Station Times Square Mall, Craft Roo Pub Seoul Attractions

Top 17 Things to do and Attractions in Jeju South Korea!

Top 8 Busan Travel Experiences, Things to do and Attractions!

Top 7 Gyeongju Things to do, Attractions and Travel Experiences!

Top 5 Danyang Attractions, Travel Experiences and Things to do!

Top 7 Seoul Attractions and Things to do

Top 8 Food to eat in Seoul South Korea

The Ultimate Guide to Driving in South Korea!

What Souvenirs to buy from South Korea? 9 Souvenirs to get from South Korean Supermarkets!

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