Gosari Express Second Branch: A Vegan Cha Chaan Teng Concept Built Around Morning Noodles

Gosari Express’s second branch is shaping up to be more than a simple expansion of the popular Seoul vegan noodle shop. The new location is being developed around a “vegan cha chaan teng” concept inspired by Hong Kong breakfast culture, with menu testing still underway as of the official Instagram update published on June 5, 2026.¹²

That makes the second branch an interesting next step for anyone following Gosari Express vegan noodles. The first shop has already built its identity around casual, plant-based noodle dishes using gosari oil sauce; the second branch appears to be moving the brand into a morning-focused format with its own ingredients, rhythm, and point of view.³⁴

Gosari Express Second Branch and Its Vegan Cha Chaan Teng Direction

The clearest source-backed detail about the second branch is its concept. In a March 24, 2026 interview report, chef Kim Je-eun described the new branch as preparing a “vegan cha chaan teng” inspired by Hong Kong breakfast culture.² In natural English, that means the second shop is not simply copying the first branch’s menu; it is using the atmosphere and food habits of Hong Kong-style morning dining as a starting point, then translating that into a vegan format.

Kim’s quoted explanation was direct: “We are preparing a ‘vegan cha chaan teng’ inspired by Hong Kong’s breakfast culture.”² The source material does not provide an opening date or full address for the second branch, so the safest reading is that the project was still in development during the first half of June 2026.

The official Instagram post from Gosari Express on June 5, 2026 also said the team was in the middle of developing menu items for the second branch. That post mentioned a menu planned for both the first and second locations, and it included the point that the menu was being prepared as vegan food.¹ For readers, the takeaway is simple: the second branch is confirmed as an active menu-development project, but the publicly available details stop short of a complete menu or opening schedule.

What the Menu Direction Suggests

The second branch’s menu direction is especially notable because it gives the brand a different culinary center. The Wikitree interview report said ginger would be used as a key ingredient, while vegan xiaolongbao made with mushrooms and kelp was also being prepared. The same report mentioned Gunsan guava leaf tea as part of the plan.²

Those details matter because they point to a breakfast-and-tea sensibility rather than only a noodle-shop format. Ginger, mushrooms, kelp, dumplings, and tea all sit comfortably within the broader idea of a morning dining concept, while still staying inside Gosari Express’s plant-based frame. The source material does not say whether these items will be final launch dishes, so it is better to describe them as items being prepared rather than guaranteed permanent menu fixtures.

The planned operating hours also support the morning-focused identity. Kim said, “The second branch is planned to operate only from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.”² That schedule, if carried through, would make the second branch feel quite different from a conventional dinner-oriented noodle bar. It suggests a place built around breakfast, lunch, and daytime eating, rather than late-night dining.

At the same time, the second branch still connects naturally to the original Gosari Express identity. Cook & Chef described Gosari Express as a vegan noodle specialty shop in an alley of Seoul Jung-gu’s Sindang-dong Central Market, with all menus made 100% vegan and based on gosari oil sauce. Representative dishes named in that coverage include gosari perilla bibim noodles, crown daisy bibim noodles, and gosari noodle tteokbokki.³

The MICHELIN Guide’s official page also lists Gosari Express as a Bib Gourmand restaurant in the 2026 Korea guide and describes its dishes as being based on gosari oil sauce. It highlights a bibim noodle dish with perilla powder, chickpea hummus, and veggie rayu.⁴ That foundation helps explain why the second branch is drawing attention: it is being developed by a team that already has a clear vegan noodle language.

Why the Second Branch Feels Like a Natural Next Step

Gosari Express has not been presented in the sources as a formal, fine-dining vegan restaurant. Its appeal is closer to everyday food made with a distinctive plant-based idea. Pitch by Pitch’s 2025 interview described it through Kim Je-eun’s words as “a noodle shop aiming to make vegetarian food casual.”⁵ That phrase is useful because it frames both the original shop and the second branch: vegan food here is not treated as a special restriction, but as something that can be approachable, quick, flavorful, and easy to fold into ordinary eating.

The brand’s path also gives context to the second branch. Pitch by Pitch reported that Gosari Express moved from a Mangwon-dong pop-up to Seoul Central Market in Sindang-dong, and that it served items such as perilla bibim noodles and noodle tteokbokki based on gosari oil sauce.⁵ In 2026, media attention grew further: Cook & Chef reported that Gosari Express was newly selected for both Bib Gourmand and Green Star recognition in the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Seoul & Busan edition.³

Esquire Korea also introduced Gosari Express Sindang as one of the newly selected Seoul Bib Gourmand restaurants for 2026, describing it as a vegetarian noodle shop to enjoy with drinks and noting that all menu items are 100% vegan.⁶ Together, those details show why a second branch is not just a business footnote. It represents a broader expansion of a vegan casual-dining idea that has already earned outside attention.

The most interesting part is that the second branch does not appear to be repeating the first branch mechanically. Based on the available sources, it is being developed as a daytime vegan cha chaan teng with ginger, mushroom-and-kelp vegan xiaolongbao, Gunsan guava leaf tea, and planned hours from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.² For readers watching Seoul’s plant-based dining scene, Gosari Express’s second branch is worth following because it shows how a vegan noodle shop can grow by deepening its concept, not just by adding another address.

About the Author

joanna jang

Author

View All Posts