Western
SAM SAM SAM
쌤쌤쌤 광화문점 Ssaemssaemssaem Gwanghwamun-jeom Ssaem is casual Korean for 'teacher' and sounds like the English name Sam; one post says the shop belongs to its cartoon characters Sam and Sammy and 'Chef Sam', who are drawn on the walls and plates.
Compiled from 17 blog posts read in fullSources →
A West Coast American-style restaurant on the ground floor of D Tower in Gwanghwamun (17 Jongno 3-gil). You order lasagna, pumpkin gnocchi, pasta, risotto and sizzling-plate steak from a QR code on the table. Prices in the posts: gnocchi 23,000 won, lasagna 26,000, squid-ink risotto 24,000, shrimp bisque pasta 28,000, steak 46,000; one couple paid 59,000 won for gnocchi, lasagna and a glass of wine. Bread comes first with a tomato dip, and there is yuzu slush on the way out. From September 2026 the posts also show the dishes from chef-owner Kim Hoon's TV contest win (a hamburg-steak lasagna and a steak). We read 30 posts dated December 31, 2025 to October 18, 2026; 19 were written by people who actually went.
Data as of · Published ·
Location & hours
- Address서울특별시 종로구 종로3길 17, D타워 1층 (청진동)17 Jong-ro 3-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
- Phone0507-1426-8222
- Typical spend₩7,000 – ₩46,000
- From the station2 posts say it is walkable from the station.
- Floor areaFloor area 207 m² · Status In business
When it opens
Of 11 posts: 5 wrote Daily 10:30–22:00, 4 wrote 10:30–21:00.
| No day given | 10:30–21:00 | 4 of 11 posts |
|---|---|---|
| Daily | 10:30–22:00 | 5 of 11 posts |
| Break | Weekdays 15:00–17:00 | 6 of 11 posts |
| Break | 15:00–17:00 | 5 of 11 posts |
| Last order | 21:00 | 4 of 7 posts |
1 other values
| Last order | 20:30 3 of 7 posts last seen 2026-10 |
|---|
Counted from what bloggers wrote in their posts; we did not confirm it with the restaurant. Where the values differ, it may be a change over time rather than a disagreement, so we show when each one was written.
What sets it apart
- Ordering is by QR code at the table; six posts say so, and one adds that you pay at the counter afterwards.
- Seven posts call the room spacious. One mentions high ceilings and ceiling fans, another the window seats looking onto trees and office towers, and one lists two- and four-person tables plus group tables. One post notes there is no private room.
- Waits are split: three posts waited or saw a line, four walked straight in. One arrived at 5:45 pm on a Saturday, was told to join the CatchTable on-site queue, and waited 15 minutes; another always saw a long line when passing but got in at once after the weekday lunch rush. The four no-wait visits were Sunday at 5 pm, a weekday at noon, a weekend afternoon and an off-peak Saturday. One post was told the meal is limited to 1 hour 20 minutes when people are waiting; that is hearsay.
- Five posts found portions generous (the salad chicken was 'a lot', two people left well fed). One post, five people sharing four dishes, found it not enough.
4 more
- On price, three posts call it reasonable for Western food, one says there is a Gwanghwamun hot-spot premium, and two sit on the fence (not cheap, not a burden). One adds that beer is 8,000 won for 330 ml, so bring your own wine.
- Three posts mention a Naver review promotion: post a photo review and choose free fries or 1,000 won off. Another post got a brownie cake with a birthday coupon.
- Two posts describe the walk from the station: turn back and left from exit 4 of Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5), or go straight from exit 1 of Jonggak Station (Line 1).
- Three posts went with friends (a group of three, five college friends, a pre-wedding dinner) and two with family. One family post says the food was mild enough for their child; another notes high chairs.
What 17 bloggers said
Jjondeuk Danhobak Nyokki
Roomy
We read all 17 in full. The most common claims are “Roomy” (7) and “Large portions” (5).
What they liked
What they struggled with
Where they disagree
| Had to wait | yes 3 · no 4 |
|---|
Things you can check on site
- Self-order screen 6 of 17 posts
- In a basement saying it is not 4 of 17 posts
- Beer served 3 of 17 posts
- Review event 3 of 17 posts
- Reachable by transit 2 of 17 posts
- Complimentary tea or drink 2 of 17 posts
- Wine served 2 of 17 posts
- Toilet outside 2 of 17 posts
- Large windows 1 of 17 posts
- Coupon 1 of 17 posts
- Takeout 1 of 17 posts
- Photo booth 1 of 17 posts
- High chairs 1 of 17 posts
- Takes reservations 1 of 17 posts
- High ceiling 1 of 17 posts
- Corkage free — bring your own drink 1 of 17 posts
These are raw counts, not percentages. Someone who did not mention something is not someone who disagreed.
Parking
2 posts say you can park. None say you cannot.
| Posts saying you can park | 2 of 17 posts |
|---|
Two posts actually parked, and both got two hours in the D Tower garage validated. The 6,000 won per extra hour comes from copied listings. One post advises public transport on weekends because of rallies in Jongno.
Who came, and with whom
- With a friend 3 of 17 posts
- Family visit 2 of 17 posts
- Came with children 1 of 17 posts
- Group visit 1 of 17 posts
- Date 1 of 17 posts
- Came by car 1 of 17 posts
Where it is
We could not find this shop’s own listing on Naver Map, so the link searches for its Korean name around this spot instead.
From the station
Two posts describe the walk from the station: turn back and left from exit 4 of Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5), or go straight from exit 1 of Jonggak Station (Line 1).
Getting inside
| In a basement | yes 0 · no 4 (of 17 posts read) |
|---|---|
| Toilet inside | yes 0 · no 2 (of 17 posts read) |
It is at street level, not underground: four visit posts place it on D Tower's ground floor, entered from the lane facing Kyobo Book Centre (next to a bagel shop, in a former Paul Bassett).
No post describes the entrance from experience, whether there is a step or whether a wheelchair or stroller gets in. 'Wheelchair-accessible entrance' appears only in one copied listing. That is not a no; nobody wrote it down.
The toilets are not inside the restaurant: two posts say you go out the back door into D Tower. Separate men's and women's rooms appear only in copied listings.
No one mentioned: Second floor · Lift to the floor · Ramp at the door · Step at the entrance · Step-free access · Accessible toilet · Separate restrooms. That is not the same as there being none — it means we could not confirm it. Worth calling ahead, and do tell us: we will put it here.
How to read these posts
- Posts saying they paid themselves8 of 17 posts
- Posts saying nothing either way9 of 17 posts
Posts that followed a TV spot
Of the 27 posts we gathered, 10 went up on a single day right after a TV spot and show no sign of a visit. They retell the broadcast, so we left them out of the counts.
| 2026-10-17 | 3 posts in one day |
|---|---|
| 2026-10-16 | 2 posts in one day |
We do not discard them. That a TV spot produced a burst of posts is itself something worth knowing about a place, and a star rating will not show it.
When the posts appeared
Month by month
| Month | Posts |
|---|---|
| 2026-06 | 4 |
| 2026-07 | 1 |
| 2026-08 | 1 |
| 2026-09 | 3 |
| 2026-10 | 8 |
What we do not know
- All opening hours are copied, and the closing time disagrees: four posts from June-July 2026 say 10:30-22:00 (last order 21:00), five from September on say 10:30-21:00 (last order 20:30), and the mid-October promotional posts go back to 22:00. We cannot tell whether it changed. All agree on a 15:00-17:00 weekday break.
- The phone number 0507-1426-8222 is copied in many posts. One post went with a dinner reservation; the note that groups of six or more must book by phone comes from a copied listing.
- Many posts say corkage is free, but only one actually brought wine (it came in a chilling basket). The limits of one bottle per person, wine only, no glass changes, are copied or hearsay.
- Ten posts from October 14-18, 2026 share the same phrasing (a 'Michelin three-star chef from the US', 'one minute from Gwanghwamun Station'), hashtags and hours block: a promotional batch. Seven only introduce the place and were not counted; two that just name what they ate are counted as visits, but we did not use their claims.
- The menu has changed. The hamburg-steak lasagna (26,000 won) and contest steak (46,000 won), absent from posts through July 2026, appear from September. The roll lasagna from Culinary Class Wars 2 was no longer sold by a September visit, and the strawberry ricotta flatbread was already gone by June.
Sources (17)
Every number above was counted from the posts below.
- 스레파우승한 김훈의 쌤쌤쌤신메뉴 만족했던 후기 2026-10-18 · 찰나의 순간을 기억해
- Daily l 26년 3분기 2026-10-17 · @YungsLog
- 22: 뚜벅이들의 멋진 하루 2026-10-15 · 백색소음 · via Daum
- [겨론5] 청모 내돈내산 리뷰💐(용산/광화문/을지로/성수/송파/방이/올공/부산) 2026-10-14 · 아무래도 무식한 오정이의 일기장 · via Daum
- 여긴 파스타, 라자냐 맛집이네~ 쌤쌤쌤 광화문점 2026-10-14 · 올드타이머의 즐거운 라이프 · via Daum
- 7월 | 계절이 흘러가요 2026-10-12 · 내가 지은 zip · via Daum
- 광화문 맛집 쌤쌤쌤 광화문점 데이트 추천 2026-10-10 · 무블리의 Daily · via Daum
- 광화문 맛집 쌤쌤쌤 광화문점 라자냐 내돈내산 후기 2026-10-08 · 야니로그
- 광화문 쌤쌤쌤 김훈 셰프 스레파 우승 메뉴 브런치 맛집 2026-09-23 · 고민보다 GO
- 광화문 맛집 흑백요리사2 유행왕 김훈 셰프 쌤쌤쌤 광화문점 내돈내.... 2026-09-21 · 밍디민로그
- 광화문 맛집 쌤쌤쌤 광화문점 스레파스테이크 후기 2026-09-07 · 울동네 라이프 · via Daum
- 광화문 직장인 점심맛집 리스트 | 광화문에서 점심 머먹지?! 내돈내산 식당추천🧐 2026-08-03 · 올랖노트 · via Daum
- 광화문 쌤쌤쌤 디타워 직장인 점심 내돈내산 솔직 후기 2026-07-17 · 잘 먹고 잘 사는 · via Daum
- 쌤쌤쌤 광화문점 내돈내산 후기 | 흑백요리사 시즌 2 라자냐 2026-06-28 · 완지의 이모저모 · via Daum
- 파스타 먹는데 왜 소주가 땡기냐! <쌤쌤쌤 광화문점> 2026-06-12 · 돈값 하는 스크린 & 맛집 가이드
- 광화문 교보문고 근처 맛집 가족외식·데이트하기 좋은 식당 추천, 샘샘샘 솔직 후기 2026-06-08 · 도로롱B_LOG · via Daum
- [광화문맛집] 쌤쌤쌤 광화문점, 위치, 분위기, 맛 합격! 2026-06-04 · 하루하루를 여행처럼
Of 338 candidate posts we opened 50 and kept 17 as evidence. We stop once 30 are confirmed: beyond that the counts grow in proportion without changing the answer.