Solo lunch sushi bar seats with a 300ml draft beer: Elephant Sushi

Stopping by Elephant Sushi after Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun

I'd stopped by Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun and suddenly wanted sushi for lunch, so I went looking for Elephant Sushi! I thought it was just a regular sushi place when I walked in, but it turns out it's a new spot from the head chef who ran high-end brands like Sushi Umi and Sushi Shimizu, so I went in with a bit of anticipation.

Basic info

• 🏠 Elephant Sushi
• 📍 Basement 1, KT Tower, 178 Sejong-daero, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🕒 Daily 11:00 – 21:00 / Break time 15:00 – 17:00
• 🚘 Parking: KT Tower underground parking (up to 2 hours free)

How far is it from Exit 2 of Gwanghwamun Station?

Elephant Sushi is right at basement level 1 of the KT Tower building, just to the right as soon as you come out of Exit 2 of Gwanghwamun Station! (Insanely accessible 😮) You see the building the moment you step out of the station, so it's easy to find, and it'd be great for office workers around Gwanghwamun looking for a lunch spot without going far.

🚨Detailed directions for the directionally challenged🚨 Come in through the 1st floor entrance of the KT Tower building, pass TWG, and take the escalator down. Go straight in the direction of the arrow in the photo, then turn left!

The vibe of the restaurant

The restaurant was way bigger than I expected! One side has counter seats, so it's easy to eat alone without feeling awkward, and the other side is spacious with quite a few tables, so it'd work fine for a date, a work dinner, or a group gathering too.

Solo lunch at the counter seats at 1pm — plenty of room

Since I'd come to eat alone after stopping by Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun, I sat at the counter seats! I visited around 1pm, and since it was a bit past the office lunch rush, the tables were fairly empty and I could eat at a relaxed pace. Each seat already had water, soy sauce, pickled radish, and utensils set out, and there was even an order tablet at every seat, so even an introvert like me could order comfortably.

Menu

There were Elephant A, B, and C sushi platter sets that come with cold soba, along with a wide variety of individual sushi items beyond the sets! The type of sushi in each set differed slightly depending on the composition, and I went with Elephant B, which is mostly sashimi and nigiri.

A 300ml draft beer, just right for lunch

Elephant B (12 pieces + cold soba) ₩28,000 / Terra draft beer (300ml) ₩3,900. And you can't have sushi without a draft beer 🍺 You know how office workers sometimes want a light beer with lunch? But ordering a 500ml feels like a bit much — here they smartly have a 300ml option, which was just right. It's the perfect amount for a light drink at lunchtime, so honestly... perfect for a little sneaky daytime drinking haha.

They also gave us a miso-style soup and salad as basics, and brought the draft beer out quickly right after we ordered!

How was the Elephant B 12-piece set?

This sushi is mine now. White fish, tuna belly, horse mackerel, akami (lean tuna), amberjack, grilled salmon, soy sauce shrimp, cho-hanji, monkfish liver, swordfish, and futomaki (thick rolled sushi) — nothing to skip in this 12-piece lineup!!

Sushi always starts with white fish — and the sashimi is thick. The ratio of thick fish to rice was just right, and maybe because it's aged at low temperature, the fish was chewy yet had a subtle umami, so it was delicious from the very first bite!!

I kept eating piece by piece, and overall it was the style where the flavor of the fish comes through clearly. The rice was seasoned enough on its own that I didn't need much soy sauce, and as the fish's flavor combined with the seasoned rice, the balance got better with every bite. It really felt like they cared about bringing out the ingredients' natural flavor, so the sushi quality was better than I expected!

Why the futomaki stood out

The finale was the futomaki! Out of all the futomaki I've had, this is number one..!! You know how at omakase places they usually serve futomaki near the end? I'm personally a bit picky about that because if the futomaki's tanginess is too strong, it can wipe out the lingering aftertaste of all the delicious sushi before it. But Elephant Sushi's futomaki was different! Salmon, fried shrimp, egg, and other ingredients each came through with every bite, blending together in a savory way. The tanginess didn't overpower anything — the ingredients' flavors harmonized instead, so I got to finish on a delicious, satisfying note.

Plate cleaned. Done.

Wrap-up

Since it's run by a chef who used to run high-end sushi brands, I had high expectations for the quality — and it really delivered! Every piece of sushi was tasty and generously composed, so it actually felt good value for the price! The restaurant is spacious too, so it'd work well for Gwanghwamun office workers' lunch, or even as a spot for a lunch or dinner work gathering. If you're looking for quality sushi in Gwanghwamun, I recommend Elephant Sushi~~!