K-pop karaoke and all kinds of kimchi – six hot spots in Little Seoul

The reputation of Düsseldorf's Little Tokyo district extends far beyond the city’s borders. But the area around Oststrasse and the main train station is actually home to quite a diverse Asian community. We’ve got some tips for Little Seoul, with its South Korean restaurants, shops and cafés – six highlights that you definitely won’t want to miss.

Namu

Oststrasse is the ideal starting point for exploring Little Seoul. We begin with something sweet. Namu Café has been around since 2017 and is said to be the only place in Germany to serve bingsu, Korean shaved ice with delicious toppings. This dessert looks like a small pile of snow and is made with condensed milk and red bean paste. The restaurant has even imported a special ice machine from South Korea that turns water and other ingredients into tiny slivers of ice, to which a variety of toppings is then added. Namu offers around 15 different options in total. The most traditional topping contains pieces of rice cake, sweet corn powder and almonds, but you can also get bingsu with tiramisu, chocolate, matcha or mango. If you’d rather avoid cows’ milk, you can choose soya, oat, almond or coconut milk instead. Apart from bingsu, the café’s menu also features milkshakes, smoothies, cake, cookies and savoury Korean toast.

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Yogi

The diners are young and the vibe is spot on. YoGi is also very popular with the Korean community, always a good sign of authentic cuisine. Reservations are essential at this small restaurant at Grupellostrasse 5. Those who do manage to secure a table will be delighted by YoGi’s friendly service. Ideally you should order a number of different dishes for everyone at the table to try. Korean classics such as jjamppong, a rich and spicy noodle soup, and pork bulgogi (grilled meat) are supplemented with tasty sides, including bokkeum-bab (fried rice, e.g. with kimchi) and chopped seaweed with sesame oil. All of this is ideally accompanied by a beer, or, more traditionally, a round of soju, South Korea’s national drink.

Hanaro market

Strictly speaking, Hanaro Markt doesn’t only stock Korean food. However, Hanaro’s parent company, Kim’s Asia Import-Export, is one of Europe’s main importers of Korean groceries, and consequently the choice on offer is vast and varied. There’s a refrigerated counter at the back of the large pan-Asian supermarket with a huge selection of kimchi, for example. There are variants with turnips, radish, wild garlic and Chinese cabbage – you name it, it’s probably there. Don’t be fooled by the address though. While the shop is officially on Immermannstrasse, the entrance is at the corner of Charlottenstrasse and Friedrich-Ebert-Strasse.

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Gilson karaoke

Not far from Hanaro, also on Friedrich-Ebert-Strasse, is Gilson Karaoke. Although karaoke was originally a Japanese phenomenon – the term translates as ‘empty orchestra’ by the way – the idea of singing live to recorded music has long since conquered the world. At Gilson, the fun starts at 8pm, in private karaoke rooms that can accommodate either six or twelve people. Song lists are regularly updated and have something for pretty much everyone. Naturally, there are plenty of K-pop songs on offer, so fans of the Bangtan Boys aka BTS, Blackpink and Aespa will be in their element here. The bar is closed on Sundays, but on Fridays it stays open until 3am, and to 2am every other day. Fun fact: in 2008, a world record for singing karaoke was set in Helsinki, at 446 hours, four minutes and six seconds.

Gogimatcha

The name is slightly misleading, because Gogi Matcha at Bismarckstrasse 33 is not really the sort of place you’d go for green tea. The wood-panelled dining area has a rustic feel to it. Every table contains a grill and the walls are adorned with large photographs of raw steak and ribs. This reflects the menu, which is all about meat – sets of beef, pork and Iberian ham, or marinated neck and variations on pork belly. A real chamber of horrors for vegetarians, you might think, but far from it. With mains like yachae gui – grilled vegetables with corn, herb butter and cheese – or a meat-free bibimbap, veggies are catered for as well. The menu also has a selection of vegetarian starters, for example modum jeon, a type of spicy Korean pancake, and japchae, stir-fried glass noodles and vegetables.  

Pozangmatcha

Out late? Then head to Pozangmatcha on Oststrasse. The sign on the front still says ‘Finanzämtche’, a reminder of the days when this used to be a traditional German pub, and it does occasionally cause confusion. But inside, the restaurant is very definitely Korean, despite the fact that some of the furnishings date back to the previous owners. At Pozangmatcha, Korean business people rub shoulders with art students and late-night revellers. The opening hours – until 2am during the week and 4am at weekends – attract a diverse and lively crowd. Culinary highlights include Korean chicken wings, roast pork belly and tteokbokki, i.e. fried savoury rice cakes, but vegetarians and vegans are very welcome here as well.

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