Just the Japanese have the tradition of eating unagi on Doyo no Ushi no Hi (土用丑の日), the Koreans have their own tradition of eating samgyetang (蔘雞湯) on Samgyeongil (三庚日).
Why Samgyetang?
In Korea, samgyetang 삼계탕 (ginseng chicken soup) is traditionally eaten on the three hottest days of summer, known as Samgyeongil 삼경일 (三庚日) or Sambok 삼복 (三伏). These days are called Chobok 초복 (初伏), Jungbok 중복 (中伏), and Malbok 말복 (末伏), marking the beginning, middle, and end of the hottest period. While the exact dates shift each year based on the lunar calendar, they typically fall in July and August. For 2025, Chobok is on July 15, Jungbok is on July 25, and Malbok is on August 14.
The traditional belief is that eating hot food like samgyetang helps the body sweat and thus cool down, a concept known as yiyeolchiyeol 이열치열 (以熱治熱, lit. “treating the heat with heat”). Samgyetang is a nutritious soup, believed to help replenish lost nutrients due to sweating and physical activity during the summer heat. The ginseng and other ingredients in samgyetang are thought to help restore energy and vitality during the hot summer months
Tosokchon Samgyetang 토속촌 삼계탕
Before their signature samgyetang, a complimentary shot of Insam-ju 인삼주 (ginseng wine) is served. You can bottom-up the shot of liquor with intense ginseng flavour, or you can enhance the soup by pouring this shot into the soup. Go on, it’s quite OK to dump it into the soup.
Tosokchon Samgyetang 토속촌 삼계탕 is chicken soup made with a special recipe by adding luxurious ginseng and glutinous rice, pumpkin seeds black sesame, walnut, pine, native chestnut, medicinal jujube, ginkgo, garlic, sunflower seeds and special ingredients that are not disclosed. It is a nourishing tonic health food which offers a subtle scent and a smooth taste of palate.
And accompanying the soup are baechu-kimchi 배추김치 (napa cabbage kimchi) and kkakdugi 깍두기 (cube radish kimchi) that you can refill as much as you wanted. They are all made in-house by the restaurant and not from a major manufacturer like CJ. I liked the kimchi a lot as it was not too sour and just the right amount of spice.
About Tosokchon Samgyetang
Tosokchon Samgyetang 토속촌 삼계탕 is easily one of the most famous ginseng chicken soup restaurant known to tourists, having been widely featured in guidebooks, and in Visit Korea website.
An additional perk for coming here is that you can get an intimate look at how a traditional Korean house called a Hanok 하놐 feels like. In fact it reminded me of another favourite restaurant of mine in Beijing that is inside a Chinese courtyard called a Siheyuan 四合院.
For those who want to experience the whole deal, you can choose to sit in traditional rooms, cross legged on tatami floors. But you also opt for more modern seating and prevent yourself from suffering DVT.
Everything is available for taking home to extend the culinary experience you have. You can buy back their ginseng liquor, baechu-kimchi and kkakdugi.
The place is forever busy, but if you come earlier you can avoid waiting under the sun. Nevertheless, it is definitely worth the wait, even though there are many other samgyetang restaurants around the city.
Tosokchon Samgyetang (土俗村蔘鷄湯) 토속존삼계탕
5, Jahamun-ro 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul 서울특별시 종로구 자하문로5길 5 (체부동)
Tel : +82 2 737 7444
Visited Jun 2025
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