Japanese restaurant in Haeundae, Busan: charcoal eel at Yuok

Today, I’m here with a story about a leisurely lunch with just my best friend—without the kids—for the first time in ages! Haha. Usually I’m rushing through meals while taking the kids around, but today I finally got to chat and eat slowly 😂 We went to Yuok (유옥), famous for eel rice bowls in Songjeong, Busan!

Yuok’s exterior and Japanese-style atmosphere

• 47 Songjeonggangbyeon-ro, Haeundae-gu, Busan, South Korea, 1st floor
• Daily 11:00–22:00 / break time 15:00–17:00
• Last order at 21:30; may close early when ingredients sell out
• Parking for up to 8 cars in the building; parking is also available in front of the restaurant
• A 5-minute walk (320 m) from Songjeong Station Exit 2

Even the big “Yuok” lettering on the sign gave off such a Japanese feel. This is Busan, not Japan~ haha!

The outdoor terrace seating was really unusual. There were wooden tub props that looked like footbaths, a pebble garden, and benches, so it felt like we’d come to a hot-spring village.

Inside, there’s an illuminated wooden sign and bamboo-painted fan decorations. On the little shelves along the wall, cat figurines, Totoro, and Ghibli bits and pieces are all tucked together, so there was lots of fun stuff to look at.

My best friend and I kept looking at every little thing and saying, “Look at this, it’s so cute!” for ages, haha. There was quite a wait at lunchtime too! Haha. Since there were two of us, we got in quickly though, haha.

Yuok menu

Jumbo Unaju and Toridon sets

My best friend and I ordered one of each: the restaurant’s signature Jumbo Unaju set and a Toridon set.

The Jumbo Unaju came topped with large, whole pieces of charcoal-grilled eel, and it looked seriously substantial right from the start. They even showed us as they brushed sauce over the eel, and it was so glossy. It wasn’t greasy, and the gentle charcoal aroma had really seeped in, so it went down wonderfully smoothly.

For the toridon, large-cut chicken thigh was grilled in a sweet-savory soy sauce and piled high with scallions. It was best when I took a big bite of everything together.

A clean lunch without any fishiness from the eel

It felt unbelievably relaxing to eat with my best friend without the kids for once, haha. I don’t usually eat eel often, but this one was clean-tasting with no fishiness, so I kept reaching for more.

My best friend absolutely loved the toridon and finished every last bite. Even on a weekday afternoon, the place was pretty full, so I could see why it’s popular.

From charcoal-scented eel to sweet-savory toridon, it was a relaxed Songjeong meal I really enjoyed for the first time in ages 🐟