Meet Bib Gourmand rookies in Michelin Guide Seoul & Busan 2026

Nishin Tororo Soba (Sobakeeri Suzu)

The Michelin Guide has revealed eight new Bib Gourmand additions in its 2026 edition for Seoul and Busan, spotlighting restaurants that deliver quality cooking at accessible prices.

The Bib Gourmand distinction recognizes establishments serving a complete meal for under 45,000 won ($31) per person.

The list included Seoul's 3rd Samgyetang, a third-generation restaurant founded in 1973, which continues to draw loyalists with its deeply flavored broth made from more than 40 ingredients. Topped with mung bean and pine nut purees and mugwort paste, the soup is hearty yet balanced, with tender young chicken that slips easily off the bone.

Another Seoul restaurant, Gosari Express in Sindang-dong’s Jungang Market, has also been added to the list. Operating under the motto “Vegetarian every day,” the kitchen builds dishes around a signature gosari oil sauce, folding bracken into spicy bibim noodles and Taiwanese-style pancakes.

New entry Sobakeeri Suzu, led by a chef trained in Japan, reinterprets soba using Korean-grown buckwheat and a less common flour ratio known as sotoichi. The noodles are aromatic and gently chewy, served chilled with dipping sauce or alongside crisp tempura and braised dishes.

Another buckwheat-rich noodle restaurant, Andeok, is anchored by a mild, beef-based naengguksu reminiscent of Pyongyang-style naengmyeon, while fried peppers stuffed with meat and vegetables provide contrast.

The list continues with Oilje, which focuses on perilla seed miyeokguk, a simple seaweed soup elevated by nutty depth and pristine technique. In the open kitchen, rice and soup simmer in a cauldron, reinforcing the restaurant’s understated precision.

Busan’s three additions lean into regional character. Moemiljip mills 100 percent Korean buckwheat in-house, producing noodles that emphasize grain flavor, whether dressed in spicy sauce or slicked with perilla oil.

Songheonjip turns to charcoal-grilled tteokgalbi, serving thick, smoky patties with rice and doenjang jjigae in a renovated house that evokes a 1990s family dining room.

At Pyongyangjip, handmade mandu and mung bean nokdujeon arrive in a clear beef broth, offering a restrained, comforting counterpoint to flashier fare.

The full guide will be announced Thursday at Signiel Busan, marking the Michelin Guide’s 10th year in Korea.