Myeongdong Street Food: The Steak and Octopus Stall Prices, Payment and Grilling
Walk down the main Myeongdong street and you'll spot a red stall with a cartoon cow on one side and an octopus on the other. The name is 'Meet the Beef Steak and Octopus', and the prices are 15,000 KRW for steak (beef), 10,000 KRW for octopus, and 20,000 KRW for the mix that gets you both. Cash, bank transfer, NAMANE card, Alipay and regular card payments all work here, so an empty wallet of Korean bills is no reason to walk past.
What kind of stall is 'Meet the Beef Steak and Octopus' in Myeongdong?
'Meet the Beef Steak and Octopus' is one of the licensed carts operating under MYEONGDONG STREET STALLS. The banner is printed in Korean and English side by side, so you can tell what's being sold without reading a single Korean character.
Two cow figurines sit at the front of the cart, and the display counter is lined with waving lucky cat figurines. Model cuts of meat and a model octopus sit among them, which means you get the idea before you ever look at the menu board.
At the bottom of the menu board, someone has written 'HAVE A NICE DAY' by hand. As someone who runs a shop in Myeongdong every day, I can tell you that one line makes a bigger difference to foreign customers than it looks. It's a small, honest sample of Korean hospitality. So what are the actual prices?
How much does the Myeongdong steak and octopus stall cost?
The prices are written out on a handwritten board hanging above the cart. No need to ask anyone — just look up.
The menu comes down to three clean options.
| Menu | Price |
|---|---|
| STEAK (BEEF) | 15,000 KRW |
| OCTOPUS | 10,000 KRW |
| MIX (BEST) | 20,000 KRW |
The board marks 'MIX' as BEST, which is another way of saying it's what most customers order. Buying the steak and the octopus separately comes to 25,000 KRW, while the mix is 20,000 KRW, so the math isn't complicated if you want to try both.
I went with a single octopus that day and paid with a 10,000 KRW note. That said, cash is far from your only option here.
Can you pay by card or Alipay at a Myeongdong street stall?
Here's what 'Meet the Beef Steak and Octopus' accepts.
| Payment method | Accepted |
|---|---|
| Cash | Yes |
| Bank transfer | Yes |
| NAMANE card | Yes |
| Alipay | Yes |
| Credit and debit cards | Yes |
A payment sign is fixed to the post of the cart, with a printed QR code on it. The sign carries the same instruction in Chinese, Japanese, English and Korean: scan the QR code to pay.
Plenty of visitors assume a street cart will be cash only and keep walking. At this one, there's no reason to. Now for the part you actually came for — how the food gets cooked.
How are the octopus legs and steak grilled at this Myeongdong stall?
The cart runs two griddles. Octopus legs go on one, steak on the other, each cooked separately. The pieces are held lightly cooked, and the moment an order comes in they go straight onto the griddle to be finished right there.
The order of operations matters here. Butter goes on first, before the cooking starts, which pushes the rich, nutty flavour up a level.
The octopus legs on the griddle are about as thick as a fat sausage. They're bigger than you'd expect, and seeing one in person may catch you off guard — I found myself wondering whether they use giant octopus for these. Even in a photo, the size shows.
Once the cooking is done, the vendor finishes the surface with a blowtorch for a smoky char. That last step is what leaves the outside crisp and the inside juicy, and eating it straight off the griddle, the texture was clearly there.
What should you know before eating it?
The stall keeps both chopsticks and skewers on hand. If chopsticks aren't your thing, grab a skewer instead. When you're eating standing up on a busy street, that choice matters more than it sounds.
Pepper and salt sit out on the counter, so you can season as much as you like. The pepper comes as whole peppercorns, which means you grind it yourself right there.
One tip: the smell of freshly ground pepper hitting the butter changes the flavour one more time. That's the part that stayed with me.
What's the honest verdict on eating octopus in Myeongdong?
I bought one because I hadn't had grilled octopus in a long time and the craving hit. Short version: the springy, bouncy texture was exactly right.
I used to live in Ulsan, a coastal city, so I went sea fishing often. Every now and then I'd go out at low tide and catch octopus by hand to cook at home.
Standing in the middle of Seoul, in the middle of Myeongdong, that memory came straight back. One piece of food pulling up something from years ago — those are the moments from a trip that last longest.
What are octopus and beef good for?
Octopus is a low-fat, high-protein food rich in taurine and protein. It's known to help with recovery from fatigue, blood vessel health, eyesight and dieting, and the taurine supports the liver's detoxifying work. Low in calories and fat, it sits easy even if you're watching what you eat.
After a full day of walking around Myeongdong, it's a reasonable pick for a snack that puts something back in the tank.
Beef is a complete protein as well, supporting muscle maintenance, anaemia prevention, immunity and general stamina. It's protein that older family members in particular shouldn't skip, so the steak works less as a snack and more as a full meal replacement. If you're travelling with family, treat your parents to one.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the Myeongdong 'Meet the Beef Steak and Octopus' stall charge?
Steak (beef) is 15,000 KRW, octopus is 10,000 KRW, and the mix that includes both is 20,000 KRW. The prices are written on the handwritten board hanging above the cart, so you can check them yourself before ordering.
Can I pay without cash?
Yes. Along with cash, this stall accepts bank transfer, NAMANE card, Alipay and regular card payments. A payment sign with a printed QR code is fixed to the cart's post, with instructions written in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese.
Is the food made in advance?
No. The pieces are held lightly cooked, then finished on the griddle the moment you order. Octopus and steak are cooked separately on two griddles, buttered before cooking and torched at the end for a smoky char, so the outside is crisp and the inside stays juicy.
I'm not good with chopsticks — will eating be awkward?
Not at all. The stall lays out both chopsticks and skewers, so use a skewer if chopsticks aren't comfortable. Pepper and salt are also out for you to season to taste, and the peppercorns can be ground fresh on the spot.
Is the mix the better buy?
On price alone, yes. Ordering steak at 15,000 KRW and octopus at 10,000 KRW separately comes to 25,000 KRW, while the mix is 20,000 KRW. The board also marks MIX with BEST, pointing anyone who wants both toward that option.
Myeongdong street food: where to next?
If one octopus leg has taken the edge off your hunger, the rest of the Myeongdong street carts are worth a lap. The strip runs from tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes) and eomuk (fish cake skewers) to kebabs, crepes and cheese hotdogs, each cart doing something completely different.
Reading through the other stall write-ups from someone who works in Myeongdong every day makes planning a single day here a lot easier. So which menu do you want to hear about next?
