Petra in Itaewon: The Go-To Spot for Halal Food

2017-05-26 · Updated: 2026-08-11 · Original (Korean)

This article was translated from the original Korean post with AI assistance. Read the original Korean post →

I made plans to meet up with some friends after a long time, and one of them suggested going to an Islamic restaurant. I wondered why he'd crave it when he goes to Dubai all the time, but hey, if that's what he wants to eat.

I don't usually meet many foreigners for work, and even if I do, they're mostly from India or Russia, so I've never really gone out of my way to find Islamic food. According to my friend, this place, Petra, is where the Arabic department at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies has their department dinners (I wonder if that's true...). He also said it's a very important spot because it's a place you can comfortably recommend for Halal food when Islamic buyers or employees visit. Apparently, Arab people have eaten here and called it a great restaurant, so I'm looking forward to it.

Since Petra is a historical site in Jordan, I assumed it was a Jordanian restaurant, and it really is run by a Jordanian owner. But I'm told it's more accurate to view it as a general Arab restaurant. I guess Arab cuisine isn't as strictly divided by country as Korean, Japanese, or Chinese food. Or maybe I'm just completely ignorant about this culture—like those Western chefs who put a pineapple on top of rice, call it pineapple sushi, and claim to be making Japanese food.

Glowing English sign of Petra restaurant against a dark night sky

First-floor entrance and stairs of the building, and standing signboards guiding to the restaurant — Finding the entrance is tough. The sign is clearly visible, but there's no entrance in sight. Don't be fooled by the size of the building—there's only one way in, so look carefully.

View of the road and forest looking down from the restaurant balcony — Once you get inside, it feels refreshing because you have a clear view of the outside, but it's a bit dusty since it's right in front of the road. For peace of mind, it's best to wipe down your front plate once before eating.

Restaurant menu cover with a drawing of the Petra ruins

Menu page listing various appetizers such as hummus and baba ganoush

Appetizer menu page listing falafel and various types of rice and bread

Menu page listing salad types such as olive salad and tabbouleh

Menu page listing main dishes such as biryani and kabsa

Menu listing kebab types such as chicken kebab, lamb chop kebab, and tikka kebab

Menu listing main dishes such as mansaf, kofta, Petra special chicken, and musakhan chicken

Menu listing various drinks such as milk coffee, milk tea, and anise tea

Menu with photos of shisha and various colored drinks — Oh! They sell shisha. It seems like quite a few people come here just for the shisha.

Menu listing set menus with various compositions

Notice with an introduction to Petra restaurant and how to order — I had nothing to do until the other guys arrived, so I was just taking pictures of the menu. The unique thing is that they sell shisha.

Restaurant interior with walls decorated with Arab-style tiles and brown chairs — We came right at dinnertime, but it wasn't very crowded. We ate for about two hours, and except for us and the table in front of us, every group had foreigners in the mix.

We tried to order, but the server didn't know Korean. It's pretty unique—no matter what country you go to, you rarely see a place operating without knowing the local language. Isn't Korea almost the only country where you can run a business without knowing the language?

Anyway, we had to ramble through our order in English, and the food came out shortly after. The food is served quite fast.

Round fried dishes and salad served on a blue patterned plate

Thin, flat bread and a plate of round fried dishes placed on a table — Falafel. It's my first time ever seeing this dish.

Salad mixed with finely chopped vegetables and tomatoes, and thin bread — There's a specific way to eat it: tear off a little piece of 'pita' (is it called naan in India and pita in Islamic cultures?), place half a falafel inside, add some salad and sauce, and pop it in your mouth. If you ask the server, they'll kindly explain how to do it. In English, of course.

Two colors of sauce or dip beautifully plated in a flower shape — This is hummus, which I've had before. It tastes even better dipped with pita.

Bread, fried dishes, salad, and various sauces set on a table

Dish with grilled meat and chicken topped on yellow rice — Mixed Kebab. It disappeared before I even had a chance to grab much. I think we should have ordered the Royal Mix Kebab for the five of us.

Yellow rice piled high on a white plate — Saffron rice. This one is a bit polarizing. I had a hard time eating it, but Mr. Dubai said it was delicious and ate it well. I'm pretty sensitive to spices, so if you are too, you might want to think twice before ordering.

Thick brown stew dish containing beans and meat — Sultan. We ordered this to dip the extra pita we got, and the meat inside is delicious. This also disappeared before I could grab much.

The five of us ate at Petra, recommended by Mr. Dubai, and I don't think we barely spoke a word. It seemed like a lot of food, but strangely, I didn't feel that full after eating. Since I've never had food in an Islamic country, I can't compare it to the authentic local taste, but either way, it's pretty good for Korean palates. Everything was good except the saffron rice.

Since these aren't foods I eat every day, it was a great time to fill both my stomach and my curiosity. It's not easy to have this kind of experience in Korea, but I guess it's possible because we're in Itaewon (Seoul's international district). The price range is similar to a standard Italian restaurant, so I think it'd be a nice spot for a date, too. Even if you don't speak English, the menu is in Korean, so you can just point and say "this and this" to order. I'm glad I found a good restaurant with nothing really to complain about.

#Food #Itaewon #HalalFood