Pojangmachas are street bars that often appear in Korean dramas.

Many of you may have seen drama characters have a drink at a simple stall on the street and wanted to experience it for yourselves.

Well, did you know that you can find these pojangmachas in various places in Busan, South Korea? There are many famous pojangmachas in Seomyeon, Nampodong, Yeongdo, etc.

We'd like to introduce them to you to some of the pojangmachas we visited in Seomyeon and Nampodong!

Seomyeon Pojangmacha Street

First, we visited Seomyeon Pojangmacha Street. Out of the many stalls, we picked one called 2 Outs In The 9th Inning (9회말 2아웃).

At first, we were wondering which stall to go to, but we searched on the Korean search site Naver and entered one with good reviews.

When you enter the stall, you'll see this interesting display right in front of you!

You can feel the unique vibe of the bar as soon as you walk in.

Since it's Busan, the Seomyeon pojangmachas are full of seafood, such as fish, sea squirts, squid, and shellfish, as well as meat dishes, such as chicken and pork.

The refrigerated case at the front displays the fresh ingredients brought in that day.

All the seasonings and utensils for cooking are set around the store manager, and cooking starts as soon as an order is placed. 

This is a picture of the menu. Unfortunately, it's only in Korean.

However, the manager of the stall we were in was very friendly and kind, so you shouldn't have any problems even you speak a different language.

The food prices start from 11,000 won, and the menu items and prices are almost the same at all the stalls.

You'll find yourself deciding on the bar and food based on the atmosphere and what's available. 

You can't visit a pojangmacha without getting some drinks!

The menu consists of foods that all go well with alcohol, and you'll find that most Koreans drink soju at a pojangmacha.

Before the food we ordered was ready, we were given some bar snacks (anju).

You might be surprised, but all this food was just an appetizer and it was also free!

Would all this be free at a bar in your country?

We got a ham omelet, tomato salad, cucumber and seasoned dried radish.

Even though it was nothing special, we ate all the appetizers before our main dishes came out because they were so delicious!

Our expectations for the main dishes grew.

Spicy Whelk Salad (골뱅이 무침)
11,000 won

One of the dishes we ordered is golbaengi muchim. 'Golbaengi' means whelk, a type of sea snail, and 'muchim' means seasoned.

The sour and spicy taste of the whelk salad calls for some alcohol.

It is a standard menu at a pojangmacha that is perfect for beer and soju!

Seafood Fish Cake Soup (해물오뎅탕)
11,000 won

At bars in Korea, fish cake soup, or 'odeng-tang' is a classic food to order.

'Odeng' means fish cake and comes from the Japanese word 'oden', referring to a hot-pot dish containing ingredients like fish cake and tofu. 'Tang' means soup.

As expected from Busan, the soup had lots of seafood, such as shellfish, and not just fish cake.

This is probably one of the only places you'll find this type of seafood fish cake soup.

We loved there were so many scallops in it and hope to eat this soup again!

It's just behind the Lotte Hotel, so it's easy to find and in a pretty safe area, so you don't have to worry when visiting.

It’s also a great option if you want a quick drink before heading back to the hotel.

Address: 부산광역시 부산진구 부전동 가야대로 772길 40
(40 Gaya-daero 772gil, Bujeon-dong, Busanjin-gu, Busan)

Hours: 18:00-24:00

Transportation: 4 minute walk from Seomyeon Station Exit 7

Nampodong Pojangmacha Street

Nampodong Pojangmacha Street didn't just have bar stalls, but also various other stalls such as tarot reading, kimbap, and street food stalls.

Nampodong Pojangmacha Street had more elderly customers, while Seomyeon Pojangmacha Street had more young customers!

The line of stalls is super long. Can you feel the unique, Korean atmosphere through the picture?

It looks a little run-down, but that's also the charm of Nampodong Pojangmacha Street.

It seems Koreans come here to enjoy comfort food.

Address: 부산광역시 중구 구덕로 80 인근
(80 Gudeok-ro, Nampo-dong, Jung-gu, Busan)

Hours: 19:00-24:00

Transportation: 3 minute walk from Jagalchi Station Exit 7

How To Get To Seomyeon Pojangmacha Street

Walk straight out exit 7 until you see the crosswalk and T World.

Cross the street towards T World.

Go straight down the street between T World and LG U+ and you'll arrive!

The part marked in red is Seomyeon Pojangmacha Street.

By the way, there are also pojangmachas on the other side of the street.

How To Get To Nampodong Pojangmacha Street

Head straight out of Jagalchi Station Exit 7.

Turn left at KT mobile shop.

Keep going straight.

Go straight until you see a phone store called 휴대폰 마트 then turn left.

Once you turn left, you've reached Nampodong Pojangmacha Street.

So, what did you think about Seomyeon and Nampodong Pojangmacha Streets?

We hope this was helpful for anyone debating what pojangmachas to go to while in Busan!