Markets are the livelihood of many in a community, centres for people not only to shop but also to gather and meet. In South Korea, where markets continue to be a thriving trade for many locals, they have become popular tourist destinations for international visitors to immerse themselves in the everyday bustle of ordinary folk.
In Daegu this is no exception: SeoMun Market (서문시장) is the largest market in the city, with 4,000 stores that feature all sorts of goods from household items, to fresh produce, and ready-to-eat food. Its name, meaning “west gate”, refers to its location just outside the west gate of the Daegu Castle, which was demolished over 100 years ago. It is one of the oldest markets in the whole country, dating back hundreds of years to the JoSeon Dynasty.
The market has been re-established several times since, including a massive rebuild after a fire destroyed the entire market in 2016. The present form now is divided into several sections, each with its own designated category of merchandise. Though lanes and entrances are labelled, the sheer size of the market can leave an average newcomer lost amongst its maze of stalls.
The Day Market
During the day, SeoMun Market operates as usual. Compared to the long alleyways of other markets we’ve visited, the sheer sizes means the entire day market is packed in rows and columns, though everything is still under the covers of a giant complex. The shopping on offer is predominantly for locals, with very few souvenir-like options, so is not well-suited for those expecting retail stores you might find in a mall. We arrived a little too close to the day market’s closing time to give any realistic view on what the day market is like, but it’s allegedly famous for silk and fabrics, for those who may be looking to purchase such items.
As expected, there are plenty of eats available at the daytime market. Typical street food stands selling snacks like ddeokbokki spicy rice cakes (떡볶이) and eomuk fishcakes (어묵). There are also stands to sit down and eat and we noticed that there were two distinct sections in different parts of the night market that offered this style of dining. The stand consists of an open kitchen with seats at a bench for diners to sit and eat. In one section, we noticed that they sold predominantly knife-cut wheat noodle dishes, and in the other, steamed entrails such as intestines, stomach, and blood sausage.
As in typical Korean fashion, several consecutive, near-identical stalls serve close to the same menu in each section, so the choice is mostly down to who might be the friendliest to you.
Kal Guksu Knife-cut Noodles (칼국수) and Sujebi Hand-Torn Noodles (수제비)
We decided to give the noodles a go, as we expected to be able to be able to give the offal a go later (spoiler: we couldn’t, because of time and stomach space). The menu for each stand is virtually the same, with the only difference between each the number at the signposts at each stall, and their names. You can expect to find kal guksu (칼국수) knife-cut noodles and sujebi (수제비) hand-torn strips of noodle at each. Typically, they come in an anchovy-based broth, though some stands also have kongguksu (콩국수) noodles in soy milk or janchi guksu (잔치국수), a soup noodle with a variety of toppings.
Noms decided to try the kal sujebi (칼수제비), a dish of both hand-torn and knife-cut noodles in a warm anchovy broth, topped with roasted seaweed, sesame seeds, and a touch of gochujang red pepper sauce for ₩3,500 (US$2.90). The broth is light, and the seaweed and sesame seeds impart a lovely roasted flavour into an otherwise mild-tasting dish. Jos went for the naeng kalguksu (냉칼국수), the cold knife-cut noodles, which was the same dish in a cool broth and without the hand-torn noodles for ₩4,000 (US$3.30). The temperature of the dish made the noodles chewier, while the noodles in the warm broth became more tender.
These dishes are something you’d eat if you want fast, cheap food without too much thought. It’s not so much a must-try than a way to fill up for very little.
Really Nutritious Seed Hoddeok (진짜 영양 많은 씨앗 호떡)
This likely isn’t the name of the stall more than the description of it, but close to the main southern entrance of the SeoMun Market is a stand who specialises in what they claim to be very nutritious hoddeok. Hoddeok (호떡) are Korean-style pancakes consisting of a filled dough that is flattened and cooked in plenty of oil on a hot griddle. With a typical sweet hoddeok filled with sugar, cinnamon, nuts, and seeds, it is not surprising that a combination of the cooking fat, the sugar, and the carbohydrates make this a treat more than an everyday food. This stall instead uses a thicker, puffier dough using a combination of rice flour and wheat flour, and has less sugar filling.
At only ₩1,000 (US$0.80), it’s cheaper than most of the pancakes you’ll find in Seoul, where a ₩1,000 hoddeok is the exception. The combination of ingredients make it a tasty snack, a little more reminiscent of a crispy bun than the not-so-nutritious hoddeok we’re accustomed to. For those looking to indulge, this may not be the option for you, but it’s a tasty snack nonetheless, and you’re guaranteed a piping-hot portion thanks to its high turnover.
King Hoddeok (왕호떡)
The use of wang (왕), or “king” when naming Korean food often refers to a larger version of the typical original, and in this case they did not disappoint. Near the third entrance of the market close to SeoMun Market Station is a stand whose signpost boasts features on Korean broadcasting television stations such as MBC and SBS. For the same ₩1,000 (US$0.80), this hoddeok is flatter, but also significantly wider, requiring folding in half to fit it into the little serving cup. Thanks to the thinness of the dough there is also much more of the sugar filling, very opposite to the nutritious seed one we’d tried earlier.
Surprisingly, the filling is not too sweet despite the sugar, and the nuts and seeds gives excellent texture. Crispy, chewy, and sweet, this was one of Jos’ favourite hoddeok throughout our trip in South Korea, so we recommend it as a stop if you’re visiting the SeoMun during the day.
The Night Market
There was some confusion between the two of us as to where the night market would be located, due to our turning up right at the time the day market was closing the night market was supposedly setting up. Rather than being held within SeoMun day market’s massive complex, it’s actually held in the parking lot just outside the southern entrance – all vehicles are cleared from the area and the entrance shut off from vehicles as carts are wheeled out from a warehouse to set up shop for the hungry patrons for dinner.
Compared to traditional Korean markets, this night market was more reminiscent to a Taiwanese style, if it were sparser. One or two dozen food carts are lined up at end of the parking lot opposite to the entrance, organised in one row of carts that patrons line up at to order. There is also entertainment at a small platform stage with performers and singers.
For the most part, many of the options at the night market are savoury meals, offering a mix of trendy, fusion food such as flame-torched steak cubes, or modernised Korean favourites like grilled samgyeopsal pork belly (삼겹살). There are also some sweet options for dessert. It is to be expected that the stands change frequently due to rises and falls in food trends, so we recommend taking a look around yourself for options that appeal to you than making a decision based on anything we might mention. There is a website with the food carts available, though this is all in Korean and we aren’t sure it’s all that reliable.
Coconut Shrimp, ft. Lime (코코넛 쉬림프 ft. 라임)
Thanks to our indecisiveness and our surprisingly different palates, we often find it difficult to decide on a dish to eat together when we’re faced with a lot of options. However, this coconut shrimp and lime stand was a no-brainer for us thanks to a combination of the queueing and the curious name which seems more appropriate for a music video.
At ₩6,900 (US$5.70) for 8 fairly-sized shrimp, it wasn’t as expensive as we expected night market food to be. The shrimp is crumbed and deep-fried, covered with shredded coconut, blowtorched, then topped with mayonnaise and sweet chilli sauce. The shrimp was still juicy and bouncy when we ate it as the shrimps are cooked from raw rather than pre-cooked. The crumb coating was crunchy, thanks to small-scale batch cooking and a high turnover. The torched coconut made for a surprisingly satisfying charred flavour and chewy texture, and while the relatively bland lime contributed close to nothing to the dish, the mayonnaise on top added to the creamy, luxurious flavour of the dish.
If it’s still there when you visit, we highly recommend it! It’s fresh, tasty, and not too expensive, and Jos’ pick for the night market eats.
Ultra Hotplate Pork Belly (울트라 삼겹철판)
With plenty of options it made for a difficult decision as to what we should eat next, but we settled on the stand called Ultra Hotplate Pork Belly (울트라 삼겹철판) because of the combination of ingredients for a shockingly low price. They only offered one dish: strips of pork belly cooked on a hotplate with mushrooms, chives, garlic, and onions in a sweet soy sauce, with a side of sweet soy ddeok rice cakes (떡) and topped with a runny fried egg. This whopping meal came to only ₩6,500 (US$5.35), and was incredibly hefty for just one portion.
Though the pork belly isn’t all that tender (we suspect it was frozen), the combination of ingredients in a sweet soy sauce with just the slightest kick of spiciness made for a moreish bite. Accompanied by chewy rice cakes and a perfectly cooked fried egg, there was nothing more to the meal than a culmination of someone’s bright idea during drunk, late-night cravings, and we weren’t mad. It was a great, if not exceptionally filling end to the night. This is the dish to choose if you love your pork belly and the typical combination of sweet-spicy flavours. Tasty!
Daegu’s SeoMun Market as the largest in the city has a lot to offer. Whether you’re shopping around for food, snacks, or merchandise, or just looking to have a good time, there’s something for every tourist at this incredible location. Make sure to check the links below for the opening hours of the night market, which varies according to season.
SeoMun Market (서문시장)
45 Keunjang-ro 26-gil, Daesin-dong, Jung-gu, Daegu, South Korea
Day Market: Mon-Sun 9am-7pm
Day market closed 1st and 3rd Sundays of every month
Night Market: Mon-Sun from 7pm (Check website for closing hours)
Night Market stall lineup (Korean only)
*Please note that we visited Daegu in May of 2019. This blog does not include any updates or changes that may have occurred since the development of COVID-19.
