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ByPetra Udomprasert Updated on

The Best Local Dishes to Eat in Busan

Wondering how you should start your foodie experience in Busan? Not with the usual Korean barbecue, that’s for sure. Busan has an amazing food scene of its own that is so worth a taste!

Trying local food around the city for ten days was easily the best time of my 2026 so far. I did my research in Korean and put together a list of must-try local dishes to eat in Busan, and basically worked to check off the entire list.

You won’t find Korean menus that are just “popular country-wide” or “restaurants that every tourist must go” here. I’m only giving you dishes that really belong to Busan, along with places I genuinely enjoyed eating at. Most of the time, I was the only foreigner inside.

Some of my favorites are Pork Gukbap at Subyeon, Bokguk at Dami Bokguk, and the original Naengchae Jokbal in Nampo. Ah, can’t forget Dalgona, either. It’s a snack from Busan, too!

Introduction to Busan’s Unique Food Scene

There are two main keywords that define Busan’s food scene: Seafood and wartime.

Obviously, being a coastal city, seafood is a big part of what locals eat. At traditional markets like Jagalchi, you’ll find hundreds of vendors selling fresh raw fish and high-quality seafood.

At the same time, because Busan was the provisional capital city during the Korean War, many dishes were born out of wartime desperation.

Here’s one great news: Busan restaurants are very solo-friendly. While many restaurants in Seoul permit ordering from two servings up, you won’t find the same rules in Busan.

โณ Planning Busan last minute? Here’s Everything You’ll Need! ๐Ÿ’ก

Best Hotel: Lotte Hotel Busan (โญ๏ธ Rating 8.9)

โฐ Activities I Recommend in Busan:

Spicy hagfish barbecue sizzling in a black stone pan with thick slices of onion and green peppers coated in a red chili sauce. This is one of the most unique local dishes to eat in Busan.

1. Pork Gukbap (๋ผ์ง€๊ตญ๋ฐฅ)

Although you’ll find Gukbap in other parts of the country including Seoul, you haven’t been in Busan until you’ve had at least a bowl of Pork Gukbap!

Traditional Busan Pork Gukbap served in a black stone bowl with sliced pork, green onions, kimchi, and fresh garlic on a cafeteria tray. Long chives are plated separately to add into the rich broth.

This specific dish was first created by refugees from other cities during the Korean War. Because beef was very rare and valuable during wartime, they tried to recreate Seolleongtang using the cheaper pork they got from the US army.

Over time, it became a variation of the beef soup with rice that has been popular since the Joseon Dynasty. To best enjoy it, first dip the pork in sauce, then sip on the bone broth.

Bubbling bowl of pork gukbap topped with sliced green onions and egg foam beside rice and side dishes at a local Busan restaurant. Fresh chives and salted shrimp are served separately for customizing the soup.

Some people put rice straight into the soup bowl. I like to keep them separate.

Subyeon Chwego Dwaeji Gukbap (์ˆ˜๋ณ€์ตœ๊ณ ๋ผ์ง€๊ตญ๋ฐฅ)

This place is the true meaning of my life. I went back four times on just the one visit!

Restaurant sign reading โ€œ์ˆ˜๋ณ€์ตœ๊ณ  ๋ผ์ง€๊ตญ๋ฐฅโ€ and โ€œSu Byeon Best Pork Soupโ€ mounted on a dark exterior wall in Busan. The silver sign features a red pig logo beside the restaurant entrance.

I first found it by accident, walking along a more local street of Haeundae and thought it looked good. Then later found out that every Busan local knows it.

Bowl of pork gukbap with cloudy pork broth, green onions, rice, garlic, and side dishes arranged on a metal table. Cubed radish kimchi and spicy scallion salad are served alongside the soup.

I highly recommend Hangjeong Gukbap (sliced pork neck).

If you love your spicy things, get the spicy spring onion topping, too. They don’t hold back on the chilis, so get spiciness level one, and put in a bit at a time to see how much you can take.

Small brass bowl filled with spicy spring onion salad coated in red pepper seasoning. Thin strips of green onion are mixed with chili flakes and sauce as a topping for pork soup.
Bowl of pork gukbap topped with spicy spring onion salad in creamy pork broth. Green chili peppers, kimchi, and side dishes surround the steaming soup on a metal table.
Spicy red Pork Gukbap filled with green onions and sliced pork in a black stone bowl. The broth is seasoned with spicy spring onion topping and served with kimchi and fresh green peppers on the side.

Hapcheon Gukbap (ํ•ฉ์ฒœ๊ตญ๋ฐฅ)

For a more traditional Gukbap house, this one in a small neighborhood behind Igidae Waterside Park delivers. The pork is super soft and fatty, served with soy sauce instead of Spicy Doenjang.

Traditional pork gukbap served in a black stone bowl with sliced pork, green onions, rice, kimchi, and Korean side dishes spread across the table. The cloudy pork broth is lightly steaming and ready to be seasoned to taste.

If you’re going with a friend, ordering a small plate of Soondae to go with your Gukbap is a solid way to go. But if you’re alone, then that’s way too much food.

2. Milmyeon (๋ฐ€๋ฉด)

Busan dish number two is another wartime creation, inspired by the long-beloved Naengmyeon.

In order to make Naengmyeon noodles, the refugees needed Buckwheat. But they didn’t have that. What they did have was wheat flour, delivered from allies to the Busan port as war-time aid.

Bowl of Busan milmyeon cold noodles in icy broth topped with cucumber, spicy red sauce, shredded egg, and half a boiled egg. The wheat noodles sit in a chilled golden broth popular during Busan summers.

So instead of using flour to make bread, which is nonexistent in Korean cuisine, the noodle makers used it as a substitute for Buckwheat. This created Busan’s own brand of cold noodles.

If like me, you have tried the subtle Pyeongyang Naengmyeon before, you’ll find Milmyeon much more flavorful. I also like to add mustard for an extra kick.

Halmae Gaya Milmyeon (ํ• ๋งค๊ฐ€์•ผ๋ฐ€๋ฉด)

A local told me to go here for Milmyeon, and it took me a hot second to find it.

Exterior of Halmae Gaya Milmyeon restaurant along a narrow pedestrian alley in Busan. Korean signage reading โ€œํ• ๋งค๊ฐ€์•ผ๋ฐ€๋ฉดโ€ hangs above the storefront known for its chewy cold wheat noodles.

The place is on a small pedestrian-only alleyway, so the path doesn’t show up on the map. You’re gonna have to walk one street over from wherever the map tells you to go.

The Milmyeon here really was to die for. Noodles were just so perfectly chewy and bouncy. You also pay as soon as you order, so you can just walk out afterwards. Super convenient.

3. Pajeon (ํŒŒ์ „)

Jeon is a savory pancake in Korean cuisine. They’re cooked with a variety of ingredients and are called accordingly. Pajeon, specifically, is Spring Onion Pancake.

Crispy Busan pajeon filled with spring onions and red chili slices served with dipping sauce and bowls of makgeolli rice wine. The savory Korean pancake is browned and slightly charred around the edges.

If you’ve been to Korea before, then I’m sure you’ve had it once or twice. This insanely popular dish is loved all over the country, but it is from Busan!

Plate of crispy Korean spring onion pancakes served with spicy squid salad topped with sesame seeds at a Busan street food stall. The savory pancakes are cut into bite sized pieces and eaten with chopsticks.

The best way to enjoy Pajeon is with Ojingeo Muchim (์˜ค์ง•์–ด ๋ฌด์นจ), a type of spicy squid salad. Or instead, you can also get a Ddeokboggi with the Pajeon, and dip Pajeon in the sauce. Delicious!

Gukje Market Stall (๊ตญ์ œ์‹œ์žฅ)

The best Pajeon I had in Busan was at a random stall inside Gukje Market.

Korean pajeon made with chopped spring onions and batter cooking on a flat griddle beside fried dumplings and spicy tteokbokki. The crispy pancakes are being prepared fresh at a busy Gukje market stall in Busan.

It’s a small vendor cart in the middle of the walking street, a few steps north of Dongmyeong Kalguksu. You’ll know which one it is because she’s always surrounded by the locals.

4. Naengchae Jokbal (๋ƒ‰์ฑ„์กฑ๋ฐœ)

The beloved Korean pig trotters, yes. But served COLD, with vegetables, eggs, jellyfish, soaked in mustard dressing. The chewy texture of the pork skin against crunchy cucumbers, cabbages, and bouncy jellyfish is a masterpiece.

Large platter of naengchae jokbal topped with sliced pig trotters, cucumber, shredded egg, and imitation crab in mustard dressing. The cold Busan dish combines chewy pork with crunchy vegetables and jellyfish salad.

I was skeptical about this one because the idea of eating Jokbal cold didn’t sound like a pleasant experience to me, but I’m now an official fan. Talk about an underdog!

Wonjo Busan Jokbal (์›์กฐ๋ถ€์‚ฐ์กฑ๋ฐœ)

This place is the OG place locals go to for a good Jokbal, cold or not. Their golden dining hall is huge, but is miraculously never empty.

Exterior of Busan Jokbal restaurant on a rainy street with gold signage and Korean lettering above the entrance.

Get the smallest portion if you’re going alone. It’s still going to be a lot, but they can pack it to-go for you if you can’t finish everything.

5. Fresh Sliced-Raw Fish (์ œ์ฒ  ํšŒ)

Moving into the seafood arena with a must-try when in Busan, sliced raw fish! We’re not gonna call it the “Korean Sashimi” for cultural sensitivity reasons. The Korean word for this dish is “Hwe.”

Fresh sliced raw fish arranged in a circular pattern on a large white platter with lemon and parsley garnish. A second plate of chopped octopus sits behind the hwe seafood spread at Jagalchi Market in Busan.

Hwe and seafood in Busan are highly seasonal. While vendors may have menus that are out-of-season, it’s normal for locals to order what’s local and freshly-caught that time of year.

I recommend joining this food tour if you’d like local guidance to ensure you’re getting the right kind of fish for the time you’re visiting. I joined it myself and it gave me amazing context for the local food scene.

Jagalchi Market (์ž๊ฐˆ์น˜์‹œ์žฅ)

For seafood lovers, this indoor market is your heaven. On the first floor, you’ll see rows upon rows of vendors selling nothing but freshly-caught seafood.\

Wide aisle inside Jagalchi Market lined with seafood tanks and fresh fish vendors under numbered signs. The indoor Busan seafood market stretches into the distance with workers preparing catches for customers.
Seating area on the second floor of Jagalchi Market with numbered restaurant sections โ€œ21โ€ and โ€œ22โ€ hanging from the ceiling. Wooden tables and seafood stalls fill the spacious indoor dining hall in Busan.

Pick a vendor, pick what you want, then head up to the seating zone on the second floor and wait for your food. Look for the seating zone with a number that matches the store downstairs.

6. Bokguk (๋ณต๊ตญ)

Did you know pufferfish were edible? Because I didn’t before this point!

Steaming bowl of bokguk topped with fresh minari and bean sprouts in a clear pufferfish broth. Korean side dishes and greens are arranged around the table at a traditional Busan restaurant.

Bokguk is pufferfish soup, served steaming hot in a stone bowl, with side dishes and rice. It tastes just as cozy as Pork Gukbap, but the soup tastes much cleaner, completely fat-less.

Mixed rice with bean sprouts, seaweed, and vegetables prepared the local way alongside a bowl of bokguk in clear broth. The image shows how locals in Busan combine the soup toppings with rice and gochujang before eating.

The local way to eat Bokguk is to remove all the Minari and bean sprouts from the soup. Dunk them in with your rice, top it with Gochujang, then mix. Then, eat the rice along with the clear soup.

Dami Bokguk (๋‹ค๋ฏธ๋ณต๊ตญ)

This place was hands-down the most generous restaurant I’ve ever been to in Korea when it comes to side dishes. My table was FULL with side dishes, from Kimchi, potato salad, to fried pufferfish.

Bowl of turmeric rice and bean sprouts prepared for mixing with gochujang beside a steaming bowl of Busan bokguk pufferfish soup. The table is filled with generous Korean side dishes including salad, vegetables, and creamy banchan at Dami Bokguk.

I especially love that their rice is spiced with turmeric and seeds. I had Bokguk for the first time here, so the staff taught me how to eat it like a local, too. They were so kind.

Get ready to wait a bit, though. The place is quite small, but locals are always coming to line up in the elevator hall outside. I promise it’s worth the wait!

Halmae Wonjo Bokguk (ํ• ๋งค์›์กฐ๋ณต๊ตญ)

The soup itself is just as delicious here as at Dami Bokguk, but the rice is less stylized, and the side dishes felt more like the usual amount.

Clear pufferfish soup served in a black stone bowl with minari greens, bean sprouts, and white fish simmering in a light broth. Small Korean side dishes and rice surround the comforting Busan seafood meal.

As a testament to their delicious Bokguk, you’ll see pictures of many famous people who have visited and taken photos with the owner on both walls.

Front entrance of Halmae Wonjo Bokguk restaurant in Busan with large Korean signage and open windows facing the street. Diners sit inside the famous local restaurant known for pufferfish soup.

The view of Haundae beach from the wide window isn’t bad, either. Unless you’re visiting in the dead of winter, the owners will leave the window open for air. Amazing ambience.

7. Grilled Hagfish (๊ณฐ์žฅ์–ด๊ตฌ์ด)

It is exactly what it sounds like, hagfish barbecue! They look like eels, but they don’t have bones, so they’re much easier to prepare and eat.

Spicy grilled hagfish cooked with onions and green onions in a thick red chili sauce on foil-lined barbecue griddle. Steam rises from the seafood dish as the sauce caramelizes around the vegetables and fish.

You can order them salted (์†Œ๊ธˆ) or spiced (์–‘๋…). I highly recommend the spiced version, which comes in spicy sauce and a variety of vegetables.

It’s also common to order a serving of fried rice with the spiced barbecue. If you do, then the rice will come later, mixed into the barbecue sauce and cooked on the spot for you.

Fried rice cooked directly in leftover spicy hagfish barbecue sauce inside a black stone pan. Bean sprouts, kimchi, seaweed, and bits of grilled hagfish are mixed into the rice after the Busan seafood barbecue.

The one caution I can give you is that… the fish wriggle, and it looks rather alarming. They’re dead. What you see is just their nerves reacting to the heat.

Jeil San Gomjangeo Gui (์ œ์ผ์‚ฐ๊ผผ์žฅ์–ด๊ตฌ์ด)

I was headed to a different place when I walked by this one and saw only older Korean customers inside. That’s always my sign to enter.

Exterior of Jeil San Gomjangeo Gui restaurant with tall red Korean sign reading โ€œ์ œ์ผ์‚ฐ๊ผผ์žฅ์–ด.โ€ The local Busan seafood barbecue restaurant is known for spicy grilled hagfish near Jagalchi Market.
Simple Korean barbecue dining room with pink plastic stools and built-in tabletop grills inside a local Busan restaurant. Small tables line the walls beneath red awnings and handwritten Korean signs.

The smallest serving comes at 50,000 Won here, and you won’t find it cheaper than that anywhere else. Barbecues are pricey. Seafood barbecues, even more so!

8. Fishcake (์–ด๋ฌต)

Ah, the good old fish cakes! Yes, it’s the same one you get in your Ddeokboggi. This is one of Busan’s best street food delicacies.

Skewers of Busan fish cake folded into ribbons and served from a steaming street food cart. The warm fish cakes sit in broth beside metal trays at a local Korean market stall.

You can find the plain fishcakes at most street stalls all over the city. They’re the perfect menu to warm you up in colder weather. It doesn’t matter where you get them from. Can’t go wrong with these.

For modern varieties like spiced, fried, stuffed with cheese, and more, go to Samjin Amook!

9. Ssiat Hotteok (์”จ์•— ํ˜ธ๋–ก)

Hotteok are sweet, smaller pancakes, usually stuffed with honey. In Busan, they stuff it with honey and a bunch of crunchy seeds, which makes it so much better!

Hand holding a Korean hotteok pastry filled with nuts and brown sugar syrup on a stone sidewalk in Busan. The fried pancake has a crispy golden exterior with sticky sweet filling spilling from the center.

I honestly have no idea where to recommend because too many places sell them on the streets and they have always been delicious. Picking one is too much of a dilemma.

If you’re not sure where to start, though, BIFF Square and Seomyeon Food Alley has tons!

10. Dalgona (๋‹ฌ๊ณ ๋‚˜)

Most of the world has seen these flat, crispy toffees in Squid Game. But I don’t think a lot of them know that the snack originated in the ports of Busan, again, during wartime.

Traditional dalgona candy wrapped in plastic with stamped shapes including hearts, flowers, and animals displayed at a Korean street stall. The nostalgic sugar candy snack became internationally famous through Squid Game but originated in Busan.

Its popularity spread all over the country in the early 1960s, when some of the refugees started returning to other parts of the country.

The snack is called by different names in different regions. Dalgona is its name in the Seoul dialect, which came from the second half of what kids always say. “Oh, it’s sweeter than sugar!” (์„คํƒ•๋ณด๋‹ค ๋‹ฌ๊ตฌ๋‚˜!)

In Busan, though, it’s called Ddonggwaja (๋˜ฅ๊ณผ์ž), which means…uh… Dung snack.

You’ll likely find these from street stalls at BIFF Square or Seomyeon Food Alley.

Add Aesthetic Cafes with Great Desserts to Your List!

I didn’t just hunt for local dishes and restaurants in Busan, but I also hunted for the most aesthetic cafes with delicious desserts!

It took me a hot second to narrow things down to this shortlist of top ten cafes, but I did it. No matter which ones you pick from this list, your foodie soul won’t be disappointed!

Know the Most Convenient Area to Stay in Busan

Busan is massive, and most people learn that the hard way when they’re already there. You’re not gonna be one of them! I’m telling you now that everything is super spread out, so you need to plan well!

If you haven’t decided where to stay, read my guide to the most convenient neighborhoods before booking so you can choose the right area for you.

I personally stayed in Seomyeon, and I highly recommend it for anyone who’s visiting for the first time. It’s the most central area possible, although you’ll always need transportation.

Visiting Seoul as well? Browse for Seoul guides and start planning there too!

Helpful Travel Tips for South Korea

Most visa-free visitors to South Korea need a K-ETA in order to enter Korea. Check if you need one and apply about a week before you travel. This replaces the arrival form.

Donโ€™t forget to learn some important dos and donโ€™ts in Korean culture, as well as some useful Korean phrases, before you arrive!

Grab My South Korea E-Checklist

To make sure you donโ€™t leave anything important out of your preparations, Iโ€™ve made a digital checklist to help you get ready. I leave 2 pages blank for you to customize your own checklist, too!

๐Ÿ“Œ Pin this for later

Pinterest graphic for a Busan food guide featuring sizzling hagfish barbecue in a spicy red sauce and a bowl of milky pork soup topped with shredded green onion kimchi. White text over the collage reads โ€œSouth Korea Foodie Travelโ€ and โ€œ10 Local Dishes From Busanโ€ with the website โ€œpolyglotpetra.comโ€ at the bottom, highlighting popular local dishes to eat in Busan.

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Petra Udomprasert is a career immersive travel blogger and the founder of Polyglot Petra. Believing in travel as a force that inspires empathy and respect in our world, she writes travel guides that deeply explore the history and culture of every destination she visits, leveraging her fluency in five different languages to access the local perspective. Through her immersive guides and localized language tips, she has helped tens of thousands of travelers enjoy trips that leave lasting positive impacts on their lives.