Yeonjeong Sikdang at Geumjeongsanseong: unplanned, with a good pajeon

At about 11 on a Monday morning, a close younger friend and I wanted lunch on the way to Gyeongju World. The place we meant to go to was a grilled pork restaurant. But the navigation took us to a different restaurant with the same name. That one serves duck and goat, and they said they take only guests with reservations on weekdays, so we could not go in. Only later did I realize it was a different place that happened to share the name.

We planned to eat quickly and leave. Skipping duck, we looked for somewhere nearby to have noodles and went into Yeonjeong Sikdang. It is in the restaurant village on the lower side of Geumjeongsanseong.

There is no air conditioner. The owner, worried we would be hot, turned on every fan there was. She is kind and cheerful. The place was not very tidy, but I accepted that much.

We ordered a pajeon and two bowls of bibim-guksu. The pajeon is 10,000 won.

The pajeon was better than I expected. The bibim-guksu is 7,000 won a bowl. It had a familiar home-cooked taste that reminded me of my mother’s food.

I wanted makgeolli, but we had to drive on to Gyeongju, so we just ate and left. I think it would be a good stop for hikers coming down the mountain. Only after the visit did I learn that this restaurant was recently shown on the KBS program Dongne Hanbakwi as a pajeon place.