December's things to do

Mija Seoul has been making waves since it first opened in May. The restaurant focuses on creating a dinner menu inspired by hearty Korean fare made with local and seasonal ingredients. Apart from using produce from the restaurant's rooftop garden, they also take time to source from local farms. Here, you’ll find Danish chef Kevin Kroløkke, who brings with him 10 years of restaurant experience from the now defunct, Michelin-starred, Restaurant Relæ. He helms the restaurant with his partner Tina Choi (also known as Doobydobap on TikTok and Instagram).

Comments from our coffee experts SJ This place is owned by Coffee Libre’s Kim Byung-ki, a green coffee bean buyer; roaster Kim Do-hyun; barista Park Geun-ha; barista Song Sung-man from El Café; and the genius pastry chef Heo Min-su. It took almost a year for this coffee place to become one of the best places in Korea. David G. We Some people call this place the “Avengers of the coffee industry,” as people from diverse backgrounds got together to open this store. It is famous for its baked goods as well. Cho Won-jin Their fresh coffee and baked goods will satisfy you in every way.   Fritz is one of the few places in Seoul that will offer you the choice of paper or metal filters for your pour-over. It’s no mere gimmick: one of the five cofounders is Park Geun-ha, 2014 Barista Champion of Korea, and a 14-year veteran in the business of beans. They hold cupping sessions Thursdays and Sundays at 6 p.m. for those of you wishing to learn more about the finer points of coffee (sorry, Korean only). If the language barrier has you on the sidelines, console yourself with a pain au chocolat and enjoy the retro vibe of the converted traditional tile-roof house.

At this second-generation tonkatsu joint located near Sinsa Station, you’d never find a knife on your table. Instead, Hanseong’s tonkatsus are cut with a heavy cleaver before they’re served. Once you receive your dish, you’d know why: the pork inside the cutlet is so thick you’d have to wrestle with it otherwise. The star of this dish, however, is found with another of its element: oil has been extremely well removed from the batter which has got the perfect thickness to compliment the pork. The atmosphere of this restaurant is rather humble, but trying their menu will give you another opportunity to realize that it’s the substance that counts. The spicy mustard, tonkatsu sauce and miso soup (which has a good amount of sweetness) are all made in-house. 9000 won is in no way cheap for a tonkatsu, but the large portion and patent-worthy quality is definitely worth every won. While you’ll likely to be full almost all day after eating here, here’s what not going to happen at this place: you won’t try and have a peek at another table that ordered fancier items. Upon trying the tonkatsu, I immediately decided to come back here to try the hire katsu, though.