Kyochon Chicken 교촌치킨 City Hall (Seoul, SOUTH KOREA) ★★★☆☆

I was ready to call it a night. Most restaurants in Seoul stop taking orders by 8:30–9pm, except for the late-night specialists—mainly fried chicken places that pair well with beer. Growing a little desperate, I even checked a few spots in Myeongdong that I normally avoid, including Myeongdong Kyoja (明洞餃子). None of them were seating new customers.

I headed back toward City Hall near my hotel, wondering if I’d find anything still open. After one last check on Naver, I spotted a Kyochon Chicken (교촌치킨) just a few steps from where I was staying.

Kyochon is one of South Korea’s largest and most well-known fried chicken chains. Founded in 1991 in Gumi, it helped launch the first major wave of Korean fried chicken (KFC) onto the global stage and has never looked back. Today the brand is known for its premium, thin-battered, double-fried chicken finished with natural sauces. With more than 1,300 locations in Korea alone, Kyochon also has a strong international presence across the United States, Malaysia, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, the UAE, and the Philippines.

Half-and-half (Soy sauce and honey garlic) (₩26,000) — Ordering ban-ban (반반) chicken is common here. You get two different flavors in a single order.

The wait was long enough that my mild hunger turned into a serious one. I really like Kyochon’s thin batter, and the seasoning isn’t as heavy-handed as many other Korean fried chicken places, which made me a happy camper.

The set came with a mix of wings and drumsticks. The soy sauce flavor is the classic choice; even without added honey it carries a mild sweetness from the sweet soy glaze. Still, I preferred the honey garlic. The extra sweetness from the honey balanced the savory notes more nicely.

These sets are usually meant for two, so it wasn’t surprising that I didn't manage to finish the whole thing myself. I was careful with how much I ate these days, especially with a few big meals lined up over the next couple of days.

After dinner, I took a slow and deliberate walk back to my hotel. For the first time, I let myself truly slow down and take in the night view around Seoul's City Hall. There was a profound peace in that unhurried pause — a rare moment to let my mind drift away from the constant pulse of city life.

Food Rating: 5.6/10

Price: ₩₩₩

Address: 55 Taepyeongno 2(i)-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Closest Metro Station: Myeongdong 

Tel: +82 2-318-1994

Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 1:00am daily

Myeongdong Art Breeze (Seoul, SOUTH KOREA) ★★☆☆☆

After visiting my favorite currency exchange shop in Myeongdong, I took a few steps towards Moxy Hotel Myeongdong, pondering my next move. That’s when I spotted Myeongdong Art Breeze right next to the hotel.

Myeongdong Art Breeze is a vibrant multi-level cultural art space designed to offer tourists immersive cultural experiences beyond shopping. There was a café on the ground floor of the complex with a small selection of drinks and sweet bites. 

Having a Dubai chewy cookie on this trip was one of my top priorities, so the moment I saw this signage outside the café, I wasted no time stepping in for a look.

Dubai chewy cookie (₩6,500) — They said it’s handmade, and I’m not going to argue with that. 

Based on my previous experiences with other Dubai chewy cookies, the shell is usually more mochi-like but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case here. The crunchy, nutty centre of pistachio-kataifi filling was okay.

I’m going to wander around Myeongdong a bit longer before deciding where to go next. There’s another problem to solve — where to have my late supper. Restaurants in Seoul tend to close pretty early, unless it’s a fried chicken and beer joint.

Food Rating: 4.3/10

Price: ₩₩₩

Address: 21-17 Chungmuro 1(il)-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Closest Metro Station: Myeongdong

Tel: +82 0507-1462-2458

Opening Hours: 8:00am - 11:00pm daily

Low Roof 로우루프 (Seoul, SOUTH KOREA) ★★★☆☆

Located directly across the street from the O’Sulloc Tea House, Low Roof (로우루프) is a café, bakery, and pastry shop all under one roof. The space spans three spacious floors, each with a slightly different theme.

The ground-floor bar area is a convenient spot for a quick sip of their signature beverages. The bakery section looked interesting, blending modern baking techniques with classic Korean flavors. Unfortunately, their standout chestnut cream croissant was nowhere to be found. Instead, the oversized Dirty Chocolate Au Pain immediately caught my eye. (No Dubai chocolate version, though.)

I decided to climb the stairs to check out the other floors.

Second floor: Some fabric seating and a shared table in the middle — it felt a bit like a kids’ playroom.

Third floor: More like a meeting space in a commercial building.

I didn’t get to see their traditional hanok backyard, which has made the place so famous, since it was already closed for the day.

After walking up the hill to Bukchon Hanok Village, I certainly wouldn’t mind a frosty drink. Perhaps with a slice of cake. 😜😜

Green tea latte (₩6,500) — The green tea flavor was very light; instead, it was extremely milky.

Sikhye rice mousse cake (₩9,200) — One of the café’s most unique desserts. A nice effort to blend Korean heritage with modern French pastry technique. 

The pastry was designed to mimic the elements of sikhye (traditional Korean sweet rice punch). A soft rice dacquoise base paired with a rice coulis, was topped nicely with a smooth cream made of rice and jocheong (traditional Korean brown rice syrup). Hidden inside was an unexpected core of sikhye jelly and persimmon cream. There was also rice in the syrup to give the dessert some extra texture.

All in all, not bad. But if I had to be picky, a bit of sharp acidity or a firm, crunchy base wouldn’t hurt.

I was really happy to snap a few photos at the Bukchon Hanok Village just before sunset.

Two quick desserts in a row, and I’m starting to realize I might not need dinner after all.

Food Rating: 6.1/10

Price: ₩₩₩

Address: 175-2 Gahoe-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea

Closest Metro Station: Anguk

Tel: +82 2-747-0709

Website: https://www.instagram.com/cafe_lowroof/?hl=en

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 8:00pm daily