When Justin Bieber posted “Made it to Seoul” this week, the internet did what it always does with celebrity travel: zoomed in on the plate. The visit — his first to Korea in 13 years, alongside Hailey Bieber for his fashion and lifestyle brand Skylrk — quickly became a Justin Bieber Seoul food trail that fans and food travellers can actually follow.
According to The Korea Herald on 26 October 2026, the couple moved through Jongno, Bukchon, Seongsu and Gangnam with a mix of restorative soup, Jeju tea, charcoal-grilled Hanwoo and a viral dessert. This is not a gossip recap. It is a practical lifestyle map of how Seoul eats when you have one long weekend and good taste.
Why this food trail matters beyond the celebrity angle
Celebrity itineraries often feel unreachable. This one does not. The stops sit in neighbourhoods that are already on most Seoul visitor lists. The prices are public. The dishes are classic enough that you can swap brands if a queue looks endless. What Bieber’s week underlined is a travel habit many of us already practise: let one trusted meal lead you into the next neighbourhood.
Hailey had already been to Seoul in May, posting about mango shaved ice and supermarket snacks. That earlier grocery-store curiosity sits nicely next to this week’s restaurant circuit. Together they sketch a soft-landing way to travel Korea: one iconic bowl, one cafe ritual, one serious dinner, one dessert people are already talking about on Korean social media.
Skylrk’s Seongsu-dong popup (22–25 October) was the business reason for the trip, with fans lining up from dawn. Bieber was photographed on the rooftop and later playing table tennis on the terrace. Seongsu’s design-district energy — cafes, concept stores, riverside walks — still makes a natural morning chapter after the popup ends.
Stop 1: Muguok for North Korean-style samgyetang
In Jongno’s Anguk area, Muguok serves North Korean-style ginseng chicken soup. Unlike the more common South Korean presentation, the chicken arrives separately from the broth and rice. The Korea Herald notes the restaurant was featured in the Michelin Guide Seoul this year for its clean, deep broth, made with locally raised Korean chicken in a traditional Anseong cauldron recognised as intangible cultural heritage in Gyeonggi Province. A serving is listed at 18,000 won.
For a traveller, this is the ideal first meal after a long flight: warm, protein-rich, easy to share and unmistakably local. Arrive early for lunch if you can. Order the full set, eat slowly, and use the walk afterward through Anguk’s side streets as your jet-lag reset. If the wait looks long, ask nearby shops for another well-reviewed samgyetang rather than abandoning the soup idea entirely — the category matters more than a single door.
Stop 2: Osulloc Tea House Bukchon for matcha and Jeju tea
From Jongno it is a short hop to Osulloc Tea House Bukchon, near Bukchon Hanok Village. Osulloc grows green tea on Jeju Island, where volcanic soil and clean air give the leaves their depth. The Bukchon branch mixes traditional Korean aesthetics with 1960s Western-style architecture. The Biebers were spotted with matcha latte, milk tea and ice cream — an easy midday pause that also doubles as a photo walk through tiled roofs and quiet alleys.
If matcha is not your drink, ask for a simpler Jeju green tea. The point is the ritual: sit down, order something leaf-forward, and let Bukchon set the pace of the afternoon. Pair the stop with a slow circuit of the hanok lanes, then exit toward a main road before evening crowds thicken.
Stop 3: Dosan Hoikwan for Hanwoo in Gangnam
Dinner energy shifted to Dosan Hoikwan in Gangnam. The restaurant specialises in premium Hanwoo beef graded 1++, wet-aged for more than 500 hours and grilled over charcoal. The menu stretches beyond steaks into yukhoe, sirloin burgers, Brie cheese Wellington and pastas. Past guests have included Charlie Puth, Peggy Gou, Ye, Blackpink’s Jennie, Lee Kang-in and Lee Jung-jae.
CEOs Lee Hyeong-jin and Kim Ja-woo shared photos of the visit. Kim wrote that the Biebers “told us repeatedly that they enjoyed the tenderloin and the pasta.” For visitors, that tip is useful: you do not have to order only the most expensive cut. Share a grilled set and one pasta if you want the house energy without over-ordering. Reservations matter here. Treat this as your one big-ticket meal of the trip, and keep lunch lighter so you can enjoy it.
Stop 4: Dore Dore mochi cheesecake and a birthday cake surprise
After dinner, videos circulated of the couple eating Dore Dore’s mochi cheesecake — a slice wrapped in mochi, topped with seasonal fruit such as figs or blueberries and a little yogurt cream. The Korea Herald lists each slice at 13,900 won, available at the Yongsan branch. Similar styles appear at other Seoul shops such as Hanjeongseon, so if the queue is brutal, ask hotel staff for the nearest equivalent rather than skipping dessert entirely.
Separately, The Oh’s Room prepared a custom “Happy Almost Birthday” cake for Hailey (her birthday is 22 November), decorated with pearls and edible gold after a last-minute request completed within two hours. That detail is less about copying a bakery and more about Seoul’s cake culture: custom celebration cakes are a real craft here, and a thoughtful gift if you are travelling with someone special.
How to turn this into a one-day Seoul food walk
If you only have a day, stitch it like this: late breakfast or early lunch at Muguok in Jongno; walk or taxi to Osulloc Bukchon for tea; cross the city for an early dinner at Dosan Hoikwan; finish with Dore Dore in Yongsan or a nearby dessert stop. Keep Seongsu for another morning if you want design-district cafes and riverside air.
- Budget roughly: one mid-range soup lunch, one cafe, one premium dinner, one dessert — still cheaper than a multi-course tasting menu.
- Transit tip: use the metro between Jongno and Gangnam rather than sitting in traffic; save taxis for late-night dessert runs.
- Etiquette: no filming staff without permission; order before you photograph; tip culture differs from North America — follow the house cue.
- Backup plan: if one stop is full, protect the category (soup, tea, grilled beef, trend dessert) instead of forcing the exact brand.
What travellers can steal from the Bieber week
Three habits travel well even if you never care about pop stars. First, balance restorative and celebratory food in the same trip. Second, treat neighbourhoods as chapters — Jongno for tradition, Bukchon for slow tea, Gangnam for a polished dinner, Seongsu for daytime design energy. Third, leave room for one trend dessert that locals are already posting about; it is an inexpensive way to feel current without chasing every viral stall.
For more on how food culture shapes city travel, see our guide to Indian food culture, street food and regional cuisine. Seoul’s lesson this week is simple: a good food trail needs a few honest stops, paced like a local day, with enough flexibility that a queue cannot ruin the story.
