Authentic South Korean street experience
Well, it was just my friend and I who did the tour, and it was great to have Na Young's devoted attention. It was a very extensive market tour, and I learned a lot about Korean culture and food. It was definitely one of the high points of my visit to Korea. We got to sample many traditional Korean street foods. There were so many choices, and we never could have tried everything. She seems very accommodating of special diets and needs. Very knowledgeable about food in general.
事業者からの返答
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear that you and your friend enjoyed exploring the market with Na Young. It’s great to know that you learned so much about Korean food and culture and had the chance to sample a variety of traditional street foods. We’re also glad that Na Young’s knowledge and attentiveness made the experience such a memorable highlight of your trip to Korea. We’ll be sure to share your kind words with her. We hope to welcome you back for another culinary adventure in the future!
Morning Mangwon market visit with chef Na Young
This trip to Mangwon food market Seoul was definitely worth it!! A very authentic market selling local and traditional korean food. An morning visit gave us the opportunity to see stalls being set up and the process involved to produce the final product.
事業者からの返答
Thank you for sharing your experience. We are so glad to hear that you enjoyed your visit to Mangwon Market and had the chance to explore such an authentic and lively local food market.
Seeing the vendors set up their stalls and watching the preparation that goes into the food is such a special way to understand the rhythm of daily life in Seoul. Moments like these often become some of the most memorable parts of a trip.
Thank you again for taking the time to leave this review. We truly appreciate it and hope to welcome you on another Traveling Spoon experience during your future travels.
A tour for novice travelers to Asia
Na Young was lovely, and she would've been great for a novice traveler to Asia who is unfamiliar with Korean dishes. We were a group of three who have traveled to Asia frequently and are familiar with Asian ingredients and Korean foods, so we found the tour to be pretty basic.
She takes you on a tour of the market and you can try several types of foods, but we were disappointed that she didn't seem to have any relationships with any of the vendors. We asked to try kimbap and she suggested we try Korean fried chicken, and in both cases, it felt like the stops were fairly random based on reasonably short lines. For example, instead of the stand that had a huge line, we went to a stall where half of the chicken we got was actually cold. At one point, she left to get us some kimchi, which was fresh and terrific, but we would've loved to have accompanied her to the stand. The one stand we really enjoyed was the fish cake soup place, which we probably wouldn't have been able to figure out, but that alone wasn't worth the price of the tour.
If you are like us — pretty comfortable navigating on your own and fairly knowledgeable about Korean food — this probably isn't the tour for you, especially because Seoul has become so incredibly easy to navigate. Even if you can't speak Korean, people are very kind and patient, and many speak enough English. The aggressive hawking you used to encounter ten years ago is gone, and you can expect fair and honest transactions.
事業者からの返答
Thank you so much for taking the time to share such detailed and thoughtful feedback about your experience with Na Young. We truly appreciate the perspective you’ve shared. It’s incredibly helpful for us.
We’re very glad to hear that you found Na Young warm and welcoming, but we’re sorry that the experience itself felt too basic and did not meet your expectations, especially given your familiarity with Korean cuisine and travel in Asia. That is certainly not the level of depth and engagement we aim to provide.
Your comments about the market stops, vendor interactions, and overall flow of the tour are especially valuable. We completely understand how having more intentional vendor selections, stronger local connections, and being more involved in each stop would have made the experience feel more meaningful and worth the price.
We have shared your feedback directly with Na Young and have worked closely with her on specific improvements, such as tailoring the experience based on guests’ familiarity with Korean food, highlighting personally recommended vendors, involving guests more actively at each stop, and incorporating deeper cultural and culinary insights throughout the tour.
Feedback like yours plays a big role in helping us refine our experiences, and we are grateful you took the time to share it so candidly.
We are truly sorry again that this experience did not fully meet your expectations. We hope to have the chance to serve you in the future.
Easy stroll with plenty to see, taste and experience.
What an excellent way to be immersed in the culture and history of Korean society. Chef Kim was delightful. She answered all my questions with thoughtful consideration and went further into detail regarding seasonal variance and supply lines, including modern and traditional considerations. Strolling through this very local food market, tasting the delights of Korean food, seeing the fresh ingredients as well as traditional staples was really enjoyable. Big thank you to Chef Kim.
事業者からの返答
Thank you for sharing such a thoughtful review. We are thrilled to hear how much you enjoyed your experience with Chef Kim. She has a gift for bringing Korean food and culture to life, and it is wonderful to know that her depth of knowledge, warm personality, and attention to detail made the experience so meaningful for you.
Your description of exploring the local market, tasting dishes, and learning about everything from seasonal changes to traditional food practices captures exactly what makes this kind of experience so special. It is clear you approached it with genuine curiosity, and we are grateful you found it so enriching.
Thank you again for joining this experience and for taking the time to share your impressions. We would be honored to welcome you on another Traveling Spoon adventure in the future.
