Third-visit review: 24-person matchmaking room at Modam Dining

Modam Dining Gwanghwamun hanjeongsik review ♪

I visited Modam Dining Gwanghwamun, a hanjeongsik (Korean course meal) restaurant that's great for covering both 'formality' and 'flavor' on a special day. Following the Itaewon and Yeouido branches, this is my third visit — I love the food and atmosphere at Modam that much. At the Gwanghwamun location too, I had a satisfying meal of refined Korean food in an upscale setting.

If you're looking for this kind of Korean restaurant in Gwanghwamun

• Meals with parents, family gatherings with kids, matchmaking meetings
• Meal-focused 60th, 70th, 80th birthday gatherings
• Anniversary and birthday parties, couple dates
• Weekday lunches for office workers, business meetings, entertaining, staff dinners
• Wine and sake gatherings
• A private hanjeongsik room restaurant
• A corkage-free restaurant in Gwanghwamun
• Anyone looking for a good restaurant near the Seoul Museum of History

Modam Dining Gwanghwamun parking, reservations, hours

🚗 Parking at Modam Dining Gwanghwamun 2 hours free when parking on B3 of the D Palace building The lot tends to be crowded; if full, you can use the Concordian Building underground lot ※ The Concordian Building does not support parking before 18:00 on weekdays

📅 How to book — reserve through Catch Table or Naver Place

⏰ Hours — 11:00 ~ 21:30 / break time 15:00 ~ 17:00 / last order 20:30

• Baby chairs available
• ⭐ Free corkage for wine, whisky, sake, and traditional liquor

For a parent's birthday or a loved one's birthday, the coupon offering a hanwoo (Korean beef) seaweed soup set meal seems worth using. I checked with the restaurant, and they said corkage is free even without the corkage-free coupon.

It's about a 9-minute walk from Seodaemun Station Exit 5 or Gwanghwamun Station Exit 6, and it's conveniently located between Gyeongbokgung Station and City Hall Station. Since it's near the Seoul Museum of History, it's a good spot to enjoy delicious Korean food before or after viewing an exhibition.

Interior and atmosphere — how many people fit in a room?

(*Since it was busy, I captured the interior atmosphere whenever I had a moment.) The mood was calm and upscale, with tables spaced generously and roomy.

The interior was decorated so stylishly and sensibly, it felt like being at an art gallery or museum — a hanjeongsik specialty restaurant where I felt well taken care of the whole time.

Private rooms (seating 4 to 24)

This space suited a wide range of gatherings — meals or birthdays with parents, 60th/70th birthday celebrations, matchmaking meetings, entertaining and staff dinners, business meetings, and birthday or anniversary dates.

Hall seating

The hall at Modam Dining Gwanghwamun has a lot of partitioned seating, so it looked fairly private for a meal even outside the rooms. I saw a wide range of guests comfortably dining — from friend gatherings to business meetings, office lunches, and family gatherings.

Menu and prices — weekday lunch is cheaper

Modam Gwanghwamun's hanjeongsik lets you enjoy refined Korean food at a relatively reasonable price. On weekday lunches, there's a separate Modam hot pot rice set that's even better value, and course sets like the abalone tteokgalbi set keep the same composition as dinner but at a discounted price.

✅ Ordered Abalone shrimp jang and butter rice set Abalone tteokgalbi set

Shall we go through the hanjeongsik course in order? 🤗

Chopsticks and personal tableware were neatly set on the table, and Modam Dining Gwanghwamun's hanjeongsik course began with a beautifully arranged spread.

1. Seasonal porridge

The pumpkin porridge had a gentle sweetness paired with the nutty flavor of pumpkin, gently waking up the appetite and making for a good start to the meal.

2. Cheongyang water kimchi

Whoever made this cheongyang water kimchi so deliciously, haha — it was cool and spicy, refreshing the palate and great for cleansing between bites.

3. Sprout salad with yuzu dressing / 4. Mustard vegetables with pine nut sauce

The salads used fresh vegetables of many kinds, so I got to enjoy a variety of flavors and textures. The sprout salad with yuzu dressing was refreshing, while the mustard vegetables with pine nut sauce had a nutty sauce — both were good to enjoy for their contrasting flavors.

5. Seasonal raw fish and pickled ceviche

It was sweet and tangy with a rich, savory chewiness — delicious.

6. Modam-style fried dish

The Modam fried dish is even better eaten warm right when it arrives. After the crispy coating, the soft texture and fragrant flavor of shiitake mushroom spread through, becoming more savory with each bite — a real treat.

7. Perilla oil capellini

The perilla oil capellini was so good I'd order it again if it were sold as a standalone dish. Perilla oil, shrimp, perilla leaf, and radish came together for a flavor that was both refreshing and nutty, with perilla seeds adding texture and aroma throughout — really good.

8. Main dish ① Abalone shrimp jang and butter rice set

The abalone shrimp jang and butter rice set is a dish where you mix Isigny butter and seafood jang (soy-marinated seafood) into rice.

Whoever made this abalone shrimp jang so deliciously? (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)

The soy sauce, packed with seafood flavor, brought together meat, octopus, mushroom, abalone, egg, shrimp, and pickled garlic for an overwhelming savoriness. If they sold the seafood jang separately as a side dish, I'd want to stock up at home, haha.

8. Main dish ② Abalone tteokgalbi

The neatly shaped charcoal-grilled tteokgalbi (Korean-style meat patty) has a subtle charcoal aroma and a seasoning flavor that anyone would enjoy — kids would probably love it too.

It was a perfect match with the onion mustard sauce, and the accompanying abalone was chewy and great to eat alongside it.

9. Meal (steamed rice, today's soup or stew, four side dishes)

The soup and side dishes that came out at the end were each seasoned just right and not overpowering — delicious. The side dishes alone could make a full meal, which made me think again that Modam Dining Gwanghwamun is a great Korean restaurant. The dried radish strips in particular were pleasantly chewy, haha.

10. Dessert – refreshing plum tea

To sum up

A great hanjeongsik restaurant in Gwanghwamun where refined flavors and atmosphere came together in harmony — Modam Dining Gwanghwamun! 🎵 ◠‿◠ This post is a subjective record based on my personal experience. Others' opinions may differ.