One of the perks of staying within walking distance of the palaces (e.g. Gwanhwamun / Gyeongbukgung area), is being within reach to good food (in particular Toksochon). Tosokchon (토속촌 / 土 俗村蔘雞湯) is a renown Korean restaurant known for its signature chicken ginseng soup that is made with glutinous rice, gingko nuts, ginseng, garlic and jujube (all stuffed inside the chicken!).
Needless to say, since we were staying so nearby, I recommended us to go visit Tosokchon. So on a lazy morning we made our way to Tosokchon (on foot) just in time to have brunch. It was a short 15 minutes walk to the restaurant, but the queue was already long! Just like the last time I visited with DramaQueen, it took is about 30 minutes or so to get inside and seated, the only difference was that it was a sunny morning not rainy afternoon.
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| Look at the queue! |
The moment you enter the restaurant, it is like you are brought back in time with a courtyard and rooms with sliding doors and shoes left outside the rooms, all in a rustic Korean hanok theme.
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| Photo from my 2013 trip. There wasn't much difference in the setting this time round. |
Not much different from the last time I visited this restaurant, there was a bustle of activity within Tosokchon: waiters/waitresses were busy ushering patrons into rooms that contained groups of people already feasting on their ginseng chicken.
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| A bustling of activity - hungry diners and busy servers! |
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| Calligraphy and words adorn the walls |
Once seated inside (on the floor), it was time to order the food!
Tosokchon serves mainly ginseng chicken, but there are other dishes such
as roasted chicken (which we ordered this time round!) and pancakes
(e.g. seafood) Korean style. Tosokchon serves 2 types of ginseng chicken
soup: black or white (the normal) chicken.
Since the last time (I was here) I tried the black chicken and it wasn’t as flavorful as the white chicken, I (also) managed to convince M and C to take the white chicken instead (lol). Although one portion of ginseng chicken can be shared between 2 people, we decided to have one each to ourselves because we thought we were starving (which turned out to be a false assumption, but we still managed to finish the food somehow).
In addition, we ordered haemul pajeon (seafood pancake) and roasted chicken. The haemul pajeon was pretty nice and much larger than we expected, but with 3 people sharing it, it helped even out the denseness of the pancake. Although yummy, the pancake was a bit on the dense and heavy (flour) side, which is not bad if you like it, but eat too much and you might get ‘tired’ or it. The roast chicken was moist and succulent.
Since the last time (I was here) I tried the black chicken and it wasn’t as flavorful as the white chicken, I (also) managed to convince M and C to take the white chicken instead (lol). Although one portion of ginseng chicken can be shared between 2 people, we decided to have one each to ourselves because we thought we were starving (which turned out to be a false assumption, but we still managed to finish the food somehow).
In addition, we ordered haemul pajeon (seafood pancake) and roasted chicken. The haemul pajeon was pretty nice and much larger than we expected, but with 3 people sharing it, it helped even out the denseness of the pancake. Although yummy, the pancake was a bit on the dense and heavy (flour) side, which is not bad if you like it, but eat too much and you might get ‘tired’ or it. The roast chicken was moist and succulent.
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| Tasty "normal" white chicken filled with filled with nuts, rice and all things yummy! Each of us received a small cup that contained ginseng wine, which packed a mean ginseng-alcohol punch/ aroma. You can add that and the small bottle of ginseng shreds into the soup for that extra oomph. |
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| Roasted chicken! |
By the time we were done with the meal, our tummies were stuffed and we
almost couldn’t move (that’s what happens when you get greedy and over
order)! For a more detailed review on my first experience at Toksochon (and more photos), don't forget to check out my review on my 1st visit here: http://www.travelbytez.com/2013/06/tosokchon-ginseng-chicken-seoul-south.html
Worry not if you can't understand Korean, they have staff who can converse (quite fluently) in Chinese (Mandarin) and Japanese. For English speakers, with the aid of photos in the menu, it should be fine with a tinge of adventurousness? ^^
Worry not if you can't understand Korean, they have staff who can converse (quite fluently) in Chinese (Mandarin) and Japanese. For English speakers, with the aid of photos in the menu, it should be fine with a tinge of adventurousness? ^^
Tosokchon (토속촌 / 土俗村蔘雞湯)
Tel: +82-2-737-7444
Operating Hours : 10:00-22:00
Address: 5, Jahamun-ro 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
서울 종로구 자하문로5길 5 (체부동)
Directions
Gyeongbokgung Station (Seoul Subway Line 3), Exit 2.
Go straight about 170m and turn left onto Jahamun-ro 5-gil Road.
Tosokchon (토속촌) is located 10m ahead on the left.
OR
via Gwanghwamun from Gyeongbokgung Palace
(more about the directions here)
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