In quiet area west of Gyeongbokgung, Ainogarden Kitchen offers taste of Korean homecooking

At the heart of bustling Seoul lies Seochon -- a tranquil neighborhood west of Gyeongbokgung, the main Joseon-era palace in Jongno-gu.
A good 10-minute walk from Gyeongbokgung Station on Subway Line No. 3 will lead you to Seochon Alley, lined with coffee shops and small eateries. While strolling down, a white, two-story house will instantly grab your attention. When it does, don't hesitate to step inside.
Go up to the second floor and follow the sound of ingredients being chopped, stir-fried and boiled and you will be at Ainogarden Kitchen -- a restaurant specializing in Korean cuisine that reminds you of "jipbap," or a home-cooked meal.
The restaurant can accommodate many visitors, with each table fitting two to eight people. It also has an open kitchen, keeping guests engaged watching as the food is prepared.
The Korean cuisine restaurant offers two set menus. The first includes stir-fried meat served with perilla leaves, lettuce and cabbage leaves for wrapping, along with a bowl of rice, ssamjang -- a flavorful paste to use with the wraps - and a crock of bubbling hot doenjang jjigae, or fermented soybean paste stew. Baechu geotjeori, or salad-like, fresh kimchi, eomukbokkeum, fish cakes stir-fried with carrot and onion, potato salad with apple and red pepper powder-seasoned minari (water celery) are also offered as side dishes. The set is priced at 13,500 won ($9.22) per person.
In another set menu, the highlight is boiled pork or suyuk slices -- moist inside and a little crispy outside -- with the same vegetables and side dishes. Try eating the pork without dipping it in the soybean paste or soy sauce at first to experience the flavor of the meat itself on your first bite. To enjoy a lettuce wrap, wrap a pork slice with rice, soybean paste, raw garlic and green chile slices. This set menu is priced at 16,000 won per person.
Other dishes at Ainogarden Kitchen include deodeokgui, or grilled lance asiabell root, and bindaetteok -- mung bean pancakes packed with ground mung beans, kimchi vegetables and pork. After taking a bite of the boiled pork, followed by tasting a mung bean pancake, take a spoonful of fermented soybean paste stew. It will highlight the harmony of different textures in Korean cuisine.
Also on the menu are dotorimuk muchim, or seasoned ground acorn jelly salad; kkomakbibimbap, a rice dish with seasonal parboiled cockels and red chili paste meant to be eaten mixed together; fermented soybean paste soup with beef brisket and rice; doeji gukbap, or pork and rice soup; and spicy mixed noodles with grilled pork belly.
Ainogarden Kitchen is open every day from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. except on holidays, including the upcoming Lunar New Year and the Chuseok holidays. The last order is taken at 8:30 p.m.