‹ Study abroad on a budget › South Korea
Student eats · November 2026
Studying abroad in Seoul
Every meal here costs ₩15,000 or less.
About $11 US. Typical prices, checked November 2, 2026.Seoul is made for eating cheaply and late: kimbap shops on every block, market pancakes, noodle houses with a line at lunch, and tteokbokki at midnight.
A day of eating for ₩32,500
- Breakfast, ₩4,500: Isaac Toast, the ham special toast
- Lunch, ₩13,000: Myeongdong Kyoja, kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and mandu
- Dinner, ₩15,000: Jinokhwa Halmae Wonjo Dakhanmari, dakhanmari (whole chicken hot pot), shared between two
Breakfast, lunch and dinner: ₩32,500, about $23.
Eat for ₩15,000 or less
1A photo like it
₩4,500Breakfast
Isaac Toast
Get: The ham special toast
A sweet, buttery griddled sandwich everyone in Seoul grew up on.
2A photo like it
₩13,000Lunch
Myeongdong Kyoja
Get: Kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and mandu
Since 1966. Free refills of noodles and rice, and very garlicky kimchi.
3A photo like it
₩8,000Lunch
Gimbap Cheonguk
Get: A roll of kimbap and a ramyeon
The diner chain students live on, with a menu of 50 dishes, all cheap.
4A photo like it
₩15,000Dinner
Jinokhwa Halmae Wonjo Dakhanmari
Get: Dakhanmari (whole chicken hot pot), shared between two
A hot pot alley with a whole chicken boiled at your table, finished with noodles. Price is per person when two share.
5A photo like it
₩10,000Late
Mabongnim Halmeoni Tteokbokki
Get: Jeukseok tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes cooked at the table)
The founding grandma of Sindang-dong's tteokbokki street. Loud, red, cheap.
The market
Every day, morning to late evening
Gwangjang Market
Jongno
Get: Bindaetteok (mung bean pancake) at Soonhee's, mayak kimbap, yukhoe
Sit at a stall counter, order a pancake and a makgeolli. Prices are on the boards.
The supermarket to find
GS25, CU, 7-Eleven and E-mart
- Triangle kimbap and a cup of ramyeon, made at the store's hot water station
- Banana milk, the national drink
- E-mart's prepared food in the evening at a discount
Convenience stores have seats and microwaves, and students eat there. Use the hot water dispenser for cup noodles.
How students save in Seoul
- University cafeterias (Seoul National, Yonsei, Korea University) serve full meals for about ₩5,000 to ₩7,000.
- Side dishes (banchan) are free and refilled. Ask for more.
- No tipping. Water is free and usually self-serve.
More for Seoul
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Prices are typical, checked November 2, 2026, and move; places with branches all over (chains) are named so you can use any of them. "A photo like it" is the same kind of food, not from that place. Chef Amazing is not paid by any place on this page.
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