Event runs Oct. 23-29 at DDP and across the city

Seochon dessert and Namyeong-dong old-restaurant tours on offer

Seongbuk-dong's 'Neighborhood Discovery' makes its debut

Seoul Gourmet Awards ceremony also scheduled

The 2025 Seoul Gourmet Awards ceremony, held last November. [Seoul Metropolitan Government]
The 2025 Seoul Gourmet Awards ceremony, held last November. [Seoul Metropolitan Government]

Seoul is set to host a culinary festival where visitors can sample home-style cooking reimagined by celebrated chefs and explore hidden eateries tucked away in the Seochon and Namyeong-dong neighborhoods.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Saturday that the 2026 Seoul Gourmet Week will run Oct. 23-29 at Dongdaemun Design Plaza and other venues across the city.

The centerpiece of the festival is the Seoul Gourmet Market, scheduled Oct. 24-25 at DDP around the theme of home cooking. Visitors can sample dishes in which some of Seoul's most prominent chefs reinterpret everyday meals through their own culinary sensibilities, alongside seasonal produce grown by local farmers and a range of distinctive food offerings. Chefs Jo Hui-suk and Kim Sang-hun will lead workshops themed around "rice and banchan" and "rice and drinks."

The Seoul Gourmet Tour runs Oct. 26-27, taking participants through storied alleyways and newly emerging food destinations in neighborhoods including Seochon and Namyeong-dong. The Oct. 26 tour focuses on Seochon's historic palaces and dessert spots, while the Oct. 27 outing is a tour of Namyeong-dong's long-established restaurants led by Chef Nam Jun-young.

Making its debut this year, "Neighborhood Discovery" spotlights the stories of Seongbuk-dong's alleyways through bread and noodles. The program lineup also includes Seoul Gourmet Class, where participants learn directly from culinary researchers, as well as cooking workshops for children, single-person youth households and foreign residents. A program called "A Meal Across Neighborhoods and Generations" brings together a diverse mix of participants — from children to foreigners — to connect through food.

The 2026 Seoul Gourmet Awards ceremony will be held Oct. 25 at DDP, honoring establishments selected for this year's "Seoul's Top 100 Restaurants." Detailed schedules and participation fees are available on the Seoul Gourmet Week official website and Instagram. Some programs require advance reservations.

"We hope visitors will come and experience the diverse flavors and stories of Seoul firsthand through Seoul Gourmet Week, and share a special moment with the people who make the city's food culture what it is at the Seoul Gourmet Awards," said Jo Seong-ho, director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Tourism and Sports Bureau.


ken@heraldcorp.com