Gongsaemi 59 in Seogwipo: Rice Bowls and Relaxing Cats
All the restaurants near my house were under renovation, so I couldn't find a place for lunch. I barely managed to find Gongsaemi 59 using Naver Maps, and the place both looks and tastes good.
When you enter the shop, cat-related drawings catch your eye. Sure enough, a cat that looks exactly like the model is lying in the yard, soaking up the sun. The overall atmosphere of the shop is quiet and relaxed, with only the male owner bustling about.
Most people were eating either rice bowls or bomal kalguksu (sea snail noodle soup), so after debating what to eat, I chose the soy sauce rice bowl. I went with the very simple logic that since it was listed first, it must be the signature menu item they are most confident in. The prices are the same as famous restaurants in Seogwipo, so it feels a bit pricey for a rural neighborhood. But as expected for a place charging these prices, the plating and tableware are different from traditional local Jeju restaurants.
The food took quite a long time to come out, perhaps because the place was packed with customers. Since it was the cheapest rice bowl at 8,000 KRW, the overall portion was on the smaller side, but it had plenty of meat. However, the other side dishes were so simple that I was still hungry after eating and had to get dessert. The soy sauce-based rice bowl is sweet and delicious. The salad dressing is so intensely tart that you can't taste anything else.
The advantage of this place isn't just the taste of the food, but the careful plating and interior design that present the food so neatly. The Japanese-style tableware and cute plating give it the feel of a Japanese home-style restaurant. It might be a bit disappointing that it doesn't feel very "Jeju," but that's entirely up to the owner, and I was satisfied with the pretty table setting.
The interior is decorated so well that you'll find yourself constantly taking pictures. Every corner is pretty enough that it wouldn't be out of place to call it an Instagram hotspot. They also sell some items in one corner; if the owner makes them himself, his crafting skills are just as impressive as his cooking.
When you're traveling, good food alone doesn't make a place a must-visit restaurant. Especially these days, it needs to have an Instagram-worthy interior as well. Since the taste isn't bad and you can take some great photos, I think it's a nice place to stop by during a trip.
Since it's near my house, I ended up coming back a few more times.
Today I tried the bomal kalguksu, but the noodles felt a bit undercooked. Rather than a famous Seogwipo dining destination, it's more of a neighborhood spot with a pretty interior where you can grab a meal. Hmm... I still recommend the soy sauce rice bowl. The rice bowl is quite good.
