Sinpo-dong is to Dongincheon what Myeongdong is to Seoul. Quite apart from Dongincheon’s decline, Sinpo-dong feels like it’s drawing far more people than it used to.

Gyeongnam Hoetjip

It’s a mineo (croaker) place, and it’s still going strong.

Sandong Mandu

This place is famous for its gonggalppang (hollow puff bread), but they can’t turn out very many. So you have to wait a good hour to get a taste. It looked like you could just ask for anything other than the gonggalppang and buy it on the spot, but since I’d come all this way, I might as well queue up for it.

A view of Sinpo Market

The place is jam-packed, but I took the shot at a moment when it thinned out a little. Right in front of Sandong Mandu there’s even an egg tart specialty shop.

Jung Hwa Bang

Incheon has a lot of Chinese restaurants run by the ethnic-Chinese community, and this is one of them — I’ve heard it’s pretty good.

Places like this, too..

Nice atmosphere.

Chinatown

There’s a spot here that’s a bit like a park.

Inha-ui Jip

This is the place famous for its grilled Spanish mackerel.

Cheongsil Hongsil

This has been a famous memil (buckwheat noodle) place for ages, and it still looks as popular as ever.

Back at Sandong Mandu

They sell a good variety of mandu, too. And the prices are on the cheap side.

Sandong Mandu’s second-generation gonggalppang

They also sell gyeran-ppang (egg bread), jjinppang (steamed buns) and so on.

Gonggalppang

They can’t sell them the moment they’re made — they have to cool down, which is what takes the time.

Mandu

Jjinppang

Gyeran-ppang

They sell all sorts, but this time I skipped them because I was there for the gonggalppang. The unusual look of them did catch my eye, though.

A view of Sinpo Market

A market scene

Fried snacks

The dakgangjeong queue

The line here was far too long as well, so going after the gonggalppang and the dakgangjeong on the same trip turns out to be seriously hard. All you can do is take on one per visit.

Mandu

I bought some to take home, and the filling wasn’t much different from the frozen mandu you buy at the store. Which just goes to show how good frozen mandu has gotten these days. The wrapper, though — handmade really is a different thing. That’s something frozen mandu will never be able to match.

Sandong Mandu’s gonggalppang

I’ve seen all kinds of gonggalppang around this neighborhood, but this one looked the most delicious of the lot.

Crack it open nicely..

If you’re going to eat gonggalppang, a plastic bag is essential. There’s a real pleasure in cracking it open like this. This shop’s gonggalppang is crisp, with a refined sweetness that has ginger in it. It’s a bit like a cracker with ginger jam spread on one side. It’s remarkable that they’ve been selling a snack with such a refined flavor since way back when. I suppose a city with history can’t help but end up famous for its food too. It isn’t expensive either, so if you’re a dessert lover I’d recommend eating one at least once, just for the experience.

I think the charm of Sinpo Market is that it’s fun no matter how many times you go. There’s a Chinatown right next door too, so there’s plenty to see. I imagine it’ll go on overflowing with people.

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