Annyeonghaseyo!!! That means hello in Korean and because we were recently there for a week, that makes us practically locals, right?? 

Anyway, my sister and I just got back from a week in Seoul and absolutely LOVED it. Such a safe, clean, and trendy city. However, as you all know, the main language is Korean and everything (ingredients included) was written in Korean characters, making the vegan situation a bit tricky. Sooooo, all that being said, we hope this blog helps you navigate your Korean adventures because it’s a country everyone MUST visit. The South part of Korea… not the, uh, North lol. 

Before I get into this though, I very much recommend you download the app Happy Cow as it was instrumental in helping us find vegan options. This is not an ad, but I wish it was lmao. Please sponsor us, Happy Cow! It would make me a happy cow!!

STREET FOOD

To start with the more broad categories before going into specific restaurants, South Korea (Seoul in particular) has TONS of street food and street vendors, with plenty of vegan snacks to munch. The main categories we saw throughout the city were: tanghulu (sugar-covered fruit – so yum), dalgona candy (from Squid Games, if you know, YOU KNOW), and cotton candy! The cotton candy we got was literally made in a cotton candy vending machine. How cool! 

CONVENIENCE STORES

Another broader and accessible category is options in convenience stores (mainly 711 and CU) which are located on literally every corner of South Korea. If you’re cool and in the know (which you are if you’re on the blog), then you must have seen tons of SK convenience store TikToks from popular Korean and American creators. 

If not, the stores are known to have cups of ice and drink packets to make your own iced drinks (genius), as well as hot drinks kept in heaters (also genius), foods and noodles to heat up in the microwaves, and tons of snacks. 

We used the Photo Translator app to help us sus out which products were vegan and which weren’t, since many weren’t labeled and, legit on the first day, we accidently ate something with cheese. So use the app and take your time, because 98% of the products are NOT vegan-friendly in the stores. 

The following, however, were vegan-friendly: all the cold drink packets (excluding the ones with milk, like the premade lattes), almond milk to add to the americano drink packets, premade oat milk lattes from Starbucks, these delish ketchup potato fry snacks we kept finding, different flavored almonds (which are randomly big in SK), endless sodas, etc. We also found a below-pictured specifically vegan-labeled rice bowl! That was a first. 

They also have (not pictured) packaged Japanese sweet potato and corn on the cob you can heat up in the microwaves there. So not a lot, but a few options for munching and whatnot!

STARBUCKS

The last more “broad” category is Starbucks. One thing we learned quickly is that South Koreans LOVE, I mean LOVE LOVE, their coffee. While we were there, there was a literal coffee festival outside our hotel. You can’t make this stuff up LOL. Anyway, be rest assured that there are also Starbucks on every corner like there are in the US. 

Starbucks has almond, soy, and oat milk and you can get lattes (both coffee and matcha) here whenever you please!

NULDAM SPACE CAFE

As you may or may not know, South Korea is big on cafe culture with both aesthetic and delicious pastries and drinks. Nuldam Space Cafe (our favorite cafe we went to in SK) is a rare ALL-VEGAN (yes, you did not hallucinate that) cafe, with the most AMAZINGLY beautiful and delicious drinks and desserts. 

We ended up getting the peanut butter croffle (croissant waffle), the black sesame croissant, the elderberry elixir, and two almond cream matchas. WOWZA. This was one of the best meals I’ve ever had. The croffle was so sweet and delicious and the peanut butter cream on top was thick and fluffy and so nutty and sweet. The black sesame croissant was so beautifully nutty in that signature black sesame way. The elixir was light and refreshing and gorgeous to look at (like myself – jokes). But the thing that took the cake was the ALMOND CREAM MATCHA. I can’t even explain how delicious it was. The almond cream on top was thick and sweet and almondy in a marzipan kind of way and elevated the matcha from a 10/10 to a 100/10. Every vegan must try this latte at least once!!

To top it all off, the restaurant offers a service where you can handwrite a future letter to yourself and send it out to yourself on a future date (domestic or international). They even have wax seals and everything! This place was a must. And it’s on the cutest street with other cafes, photobooths, dog accessory boutiques, and even a mini grocery store selling vegan stuff (the next review down). So you must check it out!!

CHARLIE’S GROCERY

As mentioned in the above review of Nuldam Space Cafe, if you walk further down the street, you’ll run into Charlie’s Grocery store, which is not 100% vegan, but as you can see below on the storefront window, proudly offers vegan items. As an 11-year vegan, we can spot the word “vegan” from a mile away. Call it a special talent if you will 😉 

They had tons of vegan options from chocolates to frozen mock meats, even to vegan baked goods as seen on the chalkboard. So you might as well go to Nuldam and stop here for snacks after because… why not? Do it hoe. Just trust us. 

MARU JAYEONSIK KIMBAP

Maru is an all-vegan restaurant in Insadong that serves vegan renditions of Korean classics, such as kimbap, cold noodles (if you watch Logan on TikTok, you know all about these), tteokbokki, their take on California rolls, and much, much more. 

Those were the three we got from the below-pictured menu and we LOVED them all. The cold noodles were out of this world delicious and the kimbap was really yummy too. The tteokbokki was also amazing, just on the spicier side (even though we asked for it to be less spicy haha). The people who run the shop are also lovely, so I definitely recommend a visit. Most of their seating seems to be outdoors though, so if it’s cold, bring a jacket! 

FOREST KITCHEN

Forest Kitchen is an ALL-VEGAN contemporary fine-dining tasting menu located in the most gorgeous restaurant (pic below – obvi had to take a snap) in the middle of a mall. So don’t let the casualness and chaos of the mall turn you off from the cool elegance of this special gem located within. 

This may have been one of the best meals we’ve ever had. In the past, I always shat on tasting menus because I was just experiencing lame veganized versions of the chef’s original intent. But, this time, have a tasting menu intentionally crafted with veganism in mind? I now understand the hype and, dare I say, love tasting menus.

We had 12 courses, all crafted around specific vegetables and meals from all around the world. I can’t even explain each dish, other than to say they were vibes of GOURMET DELICIOUSNESS, presented with such elegance and class. Each dish blew our minds and if you come to South Korea, this is a total MUST. It will change your view of veganism if you’re not vegan, and change your view of tasting menus if you are. So much craft and talent. More words will not further suffice! All in all, it was massively LIT. 

PAN HONESTA

Pan Honesta is an all-vegan bakery and cafe, specializing in baked goods and vegan bingsu (sort of like a creamier shaved ice)!

The Itaewon branch only has cookies and biscotti and whatnot, and it’s for takeaway, not for sit-down. There we got the tiramisu cookie (BOMB – had cheesecake in the middle) and a packet of chocolate chip biscotti, which was also 10/10. 

However, at the Gangnam location (yes Gangnam as in style), they had four different options of bingsu (pistachio, chocolate, tiramisu, & black sesame. They also had a selection of cupcakes. We ended up getting the pistachio and tiramisu bingsu and the Earl Grey/chocolate chip and matcha/chocolate drizzle cupcakes. 

The tirimisu bingsu was NEXT LEVEL. It was creamy and icey and coffee-y (let’s make that a word plz) and tasted like a literal shaved ice version of tiramisu. 10/10. Would 100% get it again and recommend anyone to go get it. The pistachio one was yummy too but just paled in comparison to the art that was the tiramisu bingsu. 

The cupcakes were interesting. I can’t really describe them, but they were like cupcakes INSIDE a tart shell? So they were yummy, just kind of confusing?? I really liked the mixture of Earl Gray with chocolate chips, so I would recommend that flavor if you want to give it a try, but don’t expect it to have the same texture as a traditional American cupcake!

YUNIT CAFE

Yunit Cafe (named after the phrase “you need it”,  which, if it’s vegan, I absolutely do) was a cafe/grocery store in Sinsadong we actually stumbled upon because it looked plant-friendly and actually ended up having options specifically labeled vegan on the menu. 

We got the minestrone soup, the tomato eggplant stew, the Yunit salad, and two passion fruit spritzers. After eating carbs for like three days straight, the fresh veggies were such a breath of fresh air. The salad was a bit confusing because they basically served us a small head of lettuce and some sides, so we ended up making little lettuce wraps with all of the sides and the tomato stew, which was delicious. It also came with these vegan meatballs, which were YUM AF. The spritzes were also epic. If there’s one thing SK can do right (and there’s a lot), it’s crafty non-alcoholic drinks.

I wouldn’t say this spot is a place you must go, but if you’re craving vegan food on the healthier side, it’s a great option. 

PLANT CAFE SEOUL

Plant Cafe Seoul was another all-vegan restaurant in Itaewon that we literally stumbled upon after seeing the word “vegan” on a small chalkboard outside. 

We didn’t get the chance to sit down and eat inside, but the restaurant was SO cozy and adorable, not to mention PACKED. I guess vegan food is really up-and-coming in Korea these days. We ended up getting food to go, but the menu was super extensive and had a bunch of American classics like mac n’ cheese, a Philly cheesecake (which we got), chicken Ceaser wraps with onion rings (which we also got), and much more. They also had dessert cases filled with cookies and pastries, including caramel coffee cakes (which we got) and banana tiramisu pudding (which we also got). Have I mentioned how much South Korea loves Tirimisu? All part of their love of coffee haha. 

We got some pics of the dessert display cases and not much of the food we ate since we took it to go, but it was DELISH. I wish we had known about this place earlier so we could have tried more things!! Either way, definitely check it out! 

NONO SHOP

The NoNo Shop was another shop we stumbled upon in Itaewon just walking around and it was epic. As soon as I saw the sign outside, I was like *cue the TikTok sound* “This… is gonna be epic.” 

It’s an all-vegan zero-waste grocery store and cafe. The store was chock full of vegan environmentally friendly brands of snacks, chocolates, jerky, mock meats, pantry stables, bulk bins, as well as vegan zero-waste beauty products. 

There’s even a place for people to come and drop off their empties, which is awesome. 

So we got a bunch of goodies including this BOMB AF vegan jerky, some chocolate bars, protein bars (we were def lacking protein options in Seoul so this was amazing – 20g of protein!!), and some chips. 

Then, from the cafe, Bella got a hazelnut latte, which, I shit you not, she legit went to heaven when she took her first sip. I swear her eyes rolled in the back of her head. She was OBSESSED. Said it was one of the best lattes in her life. It had a very similar cream on top that the matchas at Nuldam Space did, but it was hazelnut flavored instead of almond. 

Definitely come here for the cafe and stock up on some snacks while you’re at it! 

SUPER MATCHA

Super Matcha isn’t necessarily a place to eat, but it is this super bomb matcha shop within a shopping mall that has all kinds of matcha creations, with oat, soy, and coconut milk options!

We got an iced and hot soy matcha latte (since the soy milk in Asia is just top tier) and both were delicious and very aesthetically pleasing. We were honestly surprised at how little matcha there was in Seoul, so if you need a matcha fix (and some shopping hehe), this is your spot! 

SIGNIEL HOTEL 

My sister and I were fortunate enough to stay at the Signiel Hotel in Lotte Tower (the tallest building in Seoul) and we had a fabulous stay there. From the staff to the amenities to the spa treatments to the freaking smell of the lobby… it was unreal. 

The hotel did have some vegan options on their in-room dining menu, although sparse, so I thought I’d share. 

For breakfast, they had different types of cereals and vegan milks, a specified vegan granola bowl, and really delicious porridge that you could order with a fruit plate.

For lunch/dinner, they had a club sandwich that could be made vegan (basically a veggie sandwich), a vegan quinoa/hummus salad,  a vegan avocado salad (basically just avocado and yummy dressing), french fries, sauteed spinach, and (our favorite) spaghetti with tomato sauce. We got the spaghetti a few times because it was just THAT yummy. Now, I’m not saying every hotel will have these options, but these are just the ones ours had. So make sure to do your research before choosing a hotel. It’s hard to find food in the city sometimes, so it was really nice to have this solid backup. 

HONORABLE MENTIONS

1. The first honorable mention is bibimbop. You can get this dish at most traditional Korean restaurants if you make sure the only topics are veggies and tofu and omit the sauce and use soy sauce and gochujang instead. It was definitely a safe option for us when we were in areas with no other options. Just make sure you can translate that you can’t have meat or fish.  

2. Vegan Skincare

Yes, I know you can’t eat skincare, but that’s why it’s an honorable mention, OK!? Hop off my dick!! 

Kidding, but in all seriousness, there was a surprising amount of vegan skincare. To start, there are Lushs EVERYWHERE. Like, no joke, Seoul is sponsored by Lush, apparently. But also, every skincare store we went to (cough, cough, mainly Olive Young), had specifically “vegan” labeled products, so just look through them all and see what you can find 🙂 

Anyway, that’s it! Hope this was helpful! BYE!