Gwangjang Market

Watch them grind the beans in the stone mill while you queue.

The “mayak” nickname came from a sauce people call addictive. In 2024 the market’s merchants voted the word off their signboards — they now read kkoma (mini) or wonjo (original) gimbap — though some English menus still print it.

Two sisters opened it in 1974 — jamae means “sisters”. Still a family shop in the tartare alley.

The grandmother’s hand-cut noodle counter inside the market — the one from the Netflix documentary “Street Food”. Foreign visitors have been finding it ever since, so expect a line.

The palate cleanser between fried rounds — ice-cold rice punch or cinnamon punch.

Second floor — take the stairs past the “수입구제” (imported vintage) sign. It closes at 7pm and is shut on Sundays. There are far fewer shops than there used to be, and some sellers now open just one day a week.