December's things to do

The trendy neighbourhood of Seongsu is home to a plethora of cafes, but if you’d ask us to choose, we’d have to pick 5to7 as one of our favourites in the area. The dessert cafe is a lovely spot to head to after a walk around Seoul Forest with plenty of drink options to quench your thirst. Be sure to grab a serving of their boba souffle pancake while you’re at it too.

Salmon sashimi lovers, here’s one for you. Mibbeudong is famed for its tomato salmon noodles – a refreshing, cold tomato broth packed with vegetables and long strands of salmon sashimi cut lengthways to resemble noodles. If you’re a little less excited over this, another popular item on the menu here is the Mibbeudong itself, a rice moat topped with a tower of mixed sashimi, uni and ikura.

By now, Maybell Bakery has practically become a household name, with other Seoul eateries proudly advertising their use of Maybell bread and lines of locals as well as Japanese tourists spilling out of their tiny Itaewon space. Bread flies off the shelves, and they generally sell out by early afternoon. Known for their wholesome, simple baked goods, most of their breads are not only vegan but also sugar-free.Our tip: in the back alley. just minutes from the main location is a lesser-known, more spacious branch of Maybell with even more varieties of bread and a fraction of the customers. Despite his success, founder Jeong Woong (정웅) is humble, opting for the title of “Baker” instead of “CEO” or “Owner” on his business card. He opened the second location in order to try out new breads, which is why you’ll find different varieties here (the two locations also use different varieties of natural yeast). While the fig bread and baguettes fly off the shelves at the first branch, the second branch sells an array of dense and chewy rye breads, whole-wheat loaves, and our favorite, a dark grain boule with bits of dried orange.