Japanese restaurant in Yeouido with grill-your-own gyukatsu: Izawa

I was a little surprised by how suddenly the weather turned chilly!! On days like this, you need a meal with that sizzling sound! Maybe that is why, on one day when I suddenly wanted gyukatsu again after not having it much lately, I met a friend in Yeouido and visited Izawa Yeouido Direct Store.

Izawa Yeouido Direct Store location and parking

Daily 11:00–21:00 · Break time 15:00–17:00 · Last order 20:30

Izawa Yeouido Direct Store is on the second floor of Yeouido General Shopping Center near Yeouido Station. If you drive, the ground-level parking lot on the first floor comes with one hour of free parking, while the basement lot is paid and not covered. The parking-lot entrance can be juuuust a little confusing, but Naver Map gives better directions than T Map!

A comfortable restaurant for solo dining, too

The interior was clean and neatly organized overall, so it was easy to settle in for a comfortable meal. There are regular tables, plus window-side bar seats where solo diners can eat without feeling awkward. It looked just right for a Yeouido office-worker lunch, too.

There is also a whole row of celebrity autographs on the wall. Lim Young-woong seems to know someone here?!

Izawa Yeouido Direct Store menu

Along with gyukatsu, there are noodle dishes for a lighter meal, too.

• Sirloin steak set without breading — ₩18,000
• Sirloin gyukatsu set — ₩18,000
• Double gyukatsu set — ₩33,000
• Spicy ramen — ₩12,000
• Basil ramen — ₩12,000
• Mazesoba — ₩12,000
• Pan-memil (cold buckwheat noodles) — ₩9,500

Ordering the sirloin gyukatsu set

I ordered the sirloin gyukatsu set. I wanted to order the steak set too, but since we arrived juuuust after lunch hours, quite a few items were SOLD OUT ㅠㅠ

The sirloin gyukatsu set comes with rice, soup, salad, sauces, and side dishes, so it is a pretty substantial full meal. They also set up a mini brazier on the table. The tender sirloin, wrapped in crisp breading, does not arrive fully cooked; you grill it yourself on the brazier to your preferred doneness.

The gyukatsu came neatly arranged in easy-to-eat pieces, and the cross-section of red beef beneath the golden fried exterior looked wonderfully fresh.

Gyukatsu grilled on the brazier

Sizzle, sizzle it on the brazier to your preferred doneness, then yum~ The gyukatsu came out crisp outside and tender and juicy inside. Personally, I loved adding just a little wasabi to the tender sirloin. I first ate it lightly cooked, then cooked the next pieces a little more; the feel really changed depending on the doneness, so I tried several styles. Gyukatsu can get tough if it is cooked wrong, but perhaps because Izawa uses good-quality beef, it stayed tender at every doneness!! Exactly my kind of style~

The gyukatsu was tasty, the value was good, and the atmosphere was comfortable, making this a place where I could take my time over a meal. If you are deciding on lunch or dinner near Yeouido Station, try a delicious sirloin gyukatsu set at Izawa Yeouido Direct Store~