Is there anything more delightful than walking into a restaurant you’ve never heard of, and having a wonderful experience? No online reviews. No mentions from a friend. Just a happy coincidence that turned out well. That was our experience on a Saturday afternoon in Hannam-dong when we visited ROOT for lunch.

We had worked up an appetite listening to music at Stradeum, but didn’t know the area. We saw a number of restaurants, and rather than rely on our phones,  we decided to wander a bit and see what we found.

On the block behind Stradeum (towards the Leeum Samsung museum) we spied the second-story eatery. The weather was pleasant, and their french doors were open to the balcony. We glanced at the menu and headed in.

Joan ordered brown-rice vegetarian sushi, while I got the avocado toast with bacon. Everything was beautifully prepared and tasted delicious. The food reminded us of some of our favorite restaurants in Los Angeles.

ROOT is closed on Sundays (good for them!) but we highly recommend it as a lunch break before or after visiting one of the museums in Hannam-dong. Check out their Instagram feed for more mouth-watering photos.

Root

741-19 Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, 2F, Seoul, South Korea

02-7979505