Naju Gomtang

Gomtang is beef bone soup, and Naju's version is defined by what it is not: not milky. Where seolleongtang is boiled hard until the marrow emulsifies and the broth turns white, Naju gomtang is simmered gently and skimmed so it stays clear and light brown, and the beef - brisket and other cuts, sliced thin - is the flavour rather than the bone. It comes with rice, kimchi and a little green onion, and that is the whole dish. The town was a cattle market and a river port, which is where it comes from; several restaurants on the gomtang street date from the 1910s and 1930s and are run by descendants of the founders. The queue at the best-known house at lunchtime is a local fixture. Naju is otherwise a quiet town with a preserved Confucian school, an old magistracy and pear orchards - the pears are its other export.

The main sights

• The clear broth - skimmed rather than boiled white.
• The century-old houses - several running since the 1910s and 30s.
• The plain serving - soup, rice, kimchi, nothing else.
• The lunchtime queue - at the best-known restaurant.

When to go

Any season, best when cold. Lunch is the meal; some houses close in the afternoon or sell out. Weekdays avoid the worst of the queue.

Good to know

It is one simple dish in a quiet provincial town - do not expect a food destination. Little English. The difference from other beef soups is subtle and not everyone tastes it.

Nearby

Naju's Confucian school and magistracy are in the town; Gwangju is 30 km north.