The Dream Life of Mr. Kim

센터필드 서울 강남구 테헤란로 231

The building that stands in as the exterior and lobby of "ACT," the conglomerate Kim Nak-su has entered with pride for twenty-five years. It is Centerfield, the high-rise twin office towers at the junction of Teheran-ro and Eonju-ro.

신검단 로열파크씨티 인천 서구 원당동

The luxury apartment portrayed as "Banpo River Palace," where Kim Nak-su, arriving to pick up his superior, is left speechless at the mention of a 3.8-billion-won lease deposit. It is in fact not Seoul's Banpo but Singeomdan Royal Park City II, a new complex in Incheon's Seo-gu, a scene that has become emblematic of the show's satire on wealth.

불암산 애기봉 경기 남양주시 별내동 산237-1

The peak where Kim Nak-su, demoted to a provincial factory, climbs in search of a retired company executive. The drama makes the trail look punishing enough to soak a hiker through, yet Aegibong tops out at just 204 meters, roughly ten minutes up from the car park at Bulamsa temple. The summit opens onto a wide view over Namyangju, which makes it an easy outing for beginners and families alike.

을지로4가 노포 골목 서울 중구 창경궁로5길 34-26

The alley that holds the drama's "Ttokdari Sikdang," the old tavern where Kim Nak-su's sales team gathers for every company dinner. It recurs across the series, starting with the first episode in which he trades soju with friends and sighs over someone else's investment windfall. It is about a three-minute walk from exit 3 of Euljiro 4-ga station, and once the sun drops, plastic tables spill across the lanes and the old-quarter clatter begins.

중화루 인천 중구 홍예문로 12

The Chinese restaurant that appears as "Ssangyonggak," where the three members of the Kim household eat out in episode two, is Junghwaru in Jung-gu, Incheon. It bills itself as a century-old Chinese kitchen, and the wide dining hall with private rooms upstairs suited the family scene. Sinpo Culture Street and Chinatown are both within walking distance, so a meal pairs easily with a wander through the old open-port quarter.

서울여자대학교 서울 노원구 화랑로 621

The campus that stands in for the university attended by Kim Nak-su's son is Seoul Women's University in Nowon-gu. It belongs to a younger generation chasing values other than the father's, and it frames the scenes in which the son weighs a student supporters program against a startup offer. The wooded grounds sit in Gongneung-dong in northeastern Seoul, an easy walk from Hwarangdae station and pleasant to stroll through.

교보문고 일산점 경기 고양시 일산동구 중앙로 1036

Kyobo Book Centre Ilsan, where the wife, a full-time homemaker, drifts between the shelves. With her husband's career coming loose and worries about retirement and household money growing, the aisles become the place where she starts pulling her own life back out. The store occupies the first basement level of the Goyang Bus Terminal, linked to Baekseok station, so the same passages between the stacks are open to walk.

공간채향 경기 파주시 광탄면 소령원길 92

In episode two this hanok appears as the investment firm and Korean restaurant where the son is asked to join the startup "Jealousy Is My Strength." In reality it is a quiet hanok cafe in Gwangtan-myeon, Paju, near Majang Lake, serving tea and house-made yanggaeng in the courtyard and under the eaves. It opens Tuesday through Sunday and has its own parking, so it slots easily into a walk around Majang Lake.

미메시스 아트 뮤지엄 경기 파주시 문발로 253

A white museum designed by Alvaro Siza in the Paju Book City, named among the main filming sites of the drama's early stretch. Daylight curving along its rounded walls gives the galleries a soft glow that plays against the grey office world closing in on Kim Nak-su. The upper gallery, which leans on natural light, and the gentle curved stair photograph well, and the publishing district's bookshops are a short walk away.

고바우 기사식당 서울 용산구 이촌로2가길 25

Gobau, an old taxi-driver diner in Ichon-dong, Yongsan, that carries the plain, working-class table Kim Nak-su faces once he sets down the title of conglomerate manager. The unfussy set meals and the worn interior match the tone of the series, sitting in deliberate contrast to the polished Gangnam office scenes. It is walkable from Ichon station, so it slots neatly before or after a stroll along the Han River park.