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Busan Day 3: F1963, Milmyeon, Jeonpo Photo Booths & Tteokbokki

Busan in May, Day Three: Cold Noodles, Photo Booths, and a Walk Through Hyundai

Day 3 in Busan had no grand plan—just cravings, curiosity, and rain-driven spontaneity. Somehow, it became my favourite day.

Jump to: Hyundai F1963 · Seomyeon Milmyeon · Fruto Fruta · Jeonpo-dong Café Street · Dalmaji-gil & Juhyun Gallery · Halmae Tteokbokki · Day 3 in a sentence

Morning at F1963 — Where Steel Turns into Stories

Waking up late in Busan is risky; queues form fast. We skipped the lines and headed to F1963, a former wire factory reborn as a cultural playground of bookshops, cafés, and exhibitions beneath soaring steel beams.

Exterior of F1963 in Busan with industrial steel frame and culture complex entrance under giant beams.
F1963 — wire-rod factory reborn as a culture space. Map
F1963 greenhouse corridor—wood table, yellow chairs, brick floor, ivy walls, steel-and-glass roof
Greenhouse wing—communal table on brick, ivy along the glass, soft garden light.
F1963 garden path with greenery threaded between industrial structures
Industrial bones, soft garden edges—the contrast is the point.

Inside felt like an industrial memory box: exposed beams and huge halls swapped machinery for cafés and culture. I’ve worked on Hyundai’s EV projects, so finding Hyundai Motorstudio Busan here felt full-circle.

For me, there was an extra layer of nostalgia. A few years ago, I worked on Hyundai’s electric car projects and later visited their pop-up in Seongsu, Seoul. That was when I realised Hyundai wasn’t just making cars anymore — they were reshaping themselves as part of design and culture. So walking into Hyundai Motorstudio Busan, tucked inside this old factory, felt like coming full circle.

Hyundai Motorstudio Busan exhibition hall with large-scale installations
Hyundai Motorstudio Busan—design and industry in quiet conversation.
Installation view at Hyundai Motorstudio Busan with raw wood and metal displays
Plastic: Remaking Our World—clever, industrial, unexpectedly poetic.

The exhibition Plastic: Remaking Our World wasn’t a glossy car showcase. Instead, it explored how plastic reshapes our lives — with installations, sculptures, and raw wood-and-metal displays. Thought-provoking, industrial, surprisingly poetic.

Info — F1963 Cultural Complex

Food Break: Seomyeon Milmyeon (서면 밀면) — Busan’s Icy Comfort

Bowl of Busan milmyeon with sliced beef, cucumber, and egg
Milmyeon: wheat-noodle cousin of naengmyeon—icy, tangy, quietly addictive.

Busan’s pride dish, milmyeon, was born when wheat replaced scarce buckwheat after the Korean War. At Seomyeon Milmyeon, a steaming cup of hot broth comes first—then the icy bowl of chewy noodles and tangy, gently sweet stock. Top with beef, cucumber, and half an egg.

Close-up of Busan milmyeon noodles sitting in icy, tangy broth
Local move: a dash of vinegar + a dab of mustard.

I’m a die-hard naengmyeon (냉면) girl, so trying milmyeon was non-negotiable. At Seomyeon Milmyeon (서면 밀면), the process began with a steaming cup of hot broth to warm the stomach — a small, comforting ritual before the main event. Then came the icy bowl: chewy wheat noodles in tangy, gently sweet broth, topped with beef, cucumber, and half a boiled egg.

Add vinegar and mustard (the local move), and suddenly it all makes sense — refreshing yet full, sharp but soothing. Was it love? Yes. But I’ll confess… my heart still beats fastest for tteokbokki.

 Info — Seomyeon Milmyeon (서면 밀면)

Dessert Stop: Fruto Fruta (프루토 프루타)

Fruto Fruta dessert plate with strawberry shortcake and seasonal fruit
Fruit-forward sweets: shortcakes, jewel-like tarts, parfaits that taste like the season.
Fruto Fruta counter with seasonal fruit tarts neatly arranged
Pretty enough to hesitate. (You won’t.)

Because one bowl of noodles isn’t enough, we drifted to Fruto Fruta—a dessert spot locals whisper about. Everything leans seasonal and fruit-forward: delicate shortcakes, glossy tarts, parfaits so photogenic you pause before diving in. Sweet, bright, and the perfect counterpoint to salty, tangy milmyeon.

Info — Fruto Fruta

Afternoon Fun: Jeonpo-dong Café Street & Themed Photo Booths

Jeonpo-dong Café Street is messy in the best way—indie cafés, boutiques, murals, and tucked-away surprises.

Jeonpo-dong café alley with indie shops and wall murals
Indie cafés, vinyl vibes, hidden corners—Jeonpo is chaotic in a charming way.
Café Goof in Jeonpo-dong, Busan — vinyl-lined bar with warm lights, plants, and merch shelves
Café Goof—vinyl vibes, coffee by day and cocktails by night.

One memorable stop was Café Goof. Vintage LPs lined the walls, the lighting was moody, and the menu ran from oat coffee to cocktails. It’s the kind of place you could come alone with a book, or with friends for late-night conversations. The vibe was Busan-meets-Brooklyn, if that makes sense.

Not far away, the photo booths lured us in. And not the plain subway kind — these were full studios with themed sets: bunker-style rooms, neon-lit corners, retro vibes. The three of us squeezed into a booth, fumbled our poses, and by the third flash were laughing so hard we could barely keep still.

The best part? After your photo strips print, you also get a QR code linking to a video of the whole session. Watching ourselves shuffle positions, burst into giggles, and try again was somehow funnier than the actual photos.

Info — Jeonpo-dong Café Street

Detour: Dalmaji-gil & Juhyun Gallery (조현화랑)

Dalmaji-gil scenic road with pine trees and sweeping sea views
Dalmaji-gil—pine forest on one side, the sea on the other.
Exterior view of Juhyun Gallery on Dalmaji-gil
Juhyun Gallery—small space, big ideas.
Curved balcony at Juhyun Gallery in Busan—benches, plants, glass wall opening to greenery
Curved balcony at Juhyun Gallery—benches, plants, and a glass wall opening to greenery.

One highlight was Juhyun Gallery (조현화랑), where the city-wide digital art project Loop Lab Busan featured French artist Philippe Parreno. His flickering Marquee series—light sculptures that blink and breathe—felt cinematic and a little surreal, as though the gallery itself had turned into moving architecture. It was a reminder that Busan isn’t just about beaches; it’s also quietly, seriously, an art city.

Ending with a Classic — Namcheon Halmae Tteokbokki (Busan Station)

Halmae Tteokbokki near Busan Station—thick rice cakes coated in deep red sauce
Since 1983: thick garae-tteok in deep red sauce—comfort in a bowl.

Before heading back to Seoul, we made one last stop: Namcheon Halmae Tteokbokki (남천할매떡볶이) by Busan Station. Running since 1983, it’s famous for thick garae-tteok rice cakes simmered in a deep red sauce that’s spicy but never punishing.

It wasn’t fancy — small tables, red-stained aprons — but it was perfect. Chewy rice cakes, a sauce that sticks to your lips, and a nostalgia that tastes like Busan itself. For me, tteokbokki will always be soul food — messy, comforting, and the perfect goodbye.

Info — Namcheon Halmae Tteokbokki (Busan Station) 남천할매떡볶이 부산역점

Day 3, in a Sentence

Steel beams, icy noodles, fruity desserts, vinyl cafés, photo-booth giggles, avant-garde art, and nostalgic tteokbokki — Busan’s inland soul surprised me the most.

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Location: South Korea

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