Where to Eat in Busan, Korea
Busan’s signature dishes almost all trace back to the same event: the Korean War refugee influx of 1950-53, which forced substitutions and improvisations that became the city’s own food identity.
Dwaeji gukbap, the essential order
Dwaeji gukbap is pork and rice served in a pork-bone broth, traditionally in a hot earthenware bowl with the rice mixed straight into the soup instead of eaten separately. It began as a wartime substitute for the beef-bone soup seolleongtang, when refugees couldn’t get beef bones and used cheaper pork instead. It’s the single dish to prioritize if you only try one thing in Busan, and it’s sold everywhere, not at any one landmark spot.
Milmyeon, the summer alternative
Milmyeon is Busan’s own cold wheat noodle, invented when refugees from the north couldn’t get the buckwheat used in naengmyeon and made do with wheat flour from American food aid instead. It comes either in cold broth (mul milmyeon) or with a spicy gochujang sauce (bibim milmyeon), and it’s the dish locals reach for on a hot, humid day.
Eomuk from Samjin, founded 1953
Eomuk (Korean fish cake) became a Busan specialty in the postwar years as the refugee influx fed a booming local industry. Samjin Eomuk, founded in 1953, is the oldest and most historically documented Busan brand, and opened one of Korea’s first eomuk “bakery” concept stores in 2013. Street versions, served hot in broth from carts, are a genuine winter staple.
Ssiat hotteok at BIFF Square
Ssiat hotteok, a sweet pancake stuffed with seeds, is closely associated with BIFF Square in Nampo-dong, sold hot from street carts near the old film-festival screening street. It’s a street-food order rather than a sit-down one.
Dongnae pajeon and raw fish
Dongnae pajeon is a local seafood-and-scallion pancake tied to the historic Dongnae district near the old hot springs (its “royal dish” origin story is unconfirmed, so treat it as local legend rather than fact). For raw fish, Jagalchi Market and Millak Raw Fish Town near Gwangalli are the city’s best-known areas, reflecting Busan’s identity as Korea’s biggest fishing port; buy from the ground-floor stalls and have it sliced and served upstairs. In autumn, look out for grilled jeoneo (gizzard shad), a seasonal coastal delicacy.
Cards work almost everywhere, but markets are more cash-friendly, and tipping isn’t expected anywhere in Korea.
Read more: our things to do guide covers where these dishes fit into a day out, and the main Busan guide has the full city overview.