Seonleung Station eel rice bowl lunch with Dad, twice-grilled: Manmok
In short
Manmok is a Japanese restaurant serving Kanto-style eel rice bowls made with Gochang freshwater eel, an 8-minute walk from Exit 2 of Seonleung Station in Gangnam, Seoul. The writer brought her father for the whole-eel rice bowl, mixing in wasabi and sansho pepper alongside matsutake mushroom soup, salad and chawanmushi (steamed egg custard), then finished with a small bar ice cream in black tea or matcha. With solo seats as well, Manmok works just as easily for a Gangnam office worker eating lunch alone.
Good to know
- Location
- Within an 8-minute walk of Seonleung Station Exit 2, ground floor, street-facing
- Hours
- 11:00 - 22:00
- Seating
- Seats 30-40 at once, solo seats available
- Order
- Whole-eel rice bowl (with matsutake mushroom soup, salad, chawanmushi)
- Dinner menu
- Hanwoo (Korean beef) nabe, grilled eel and other dinner dishes
- Dessert
- Small bar ice cream, choice of black tea or matcha
- Side dishes
- White kimchi, dried radish strips
as written by the visitor on Sep 13, 2026
Eel rice bowl restaurants have started popping up everywhere in the last two or three years. It's not as sizzling-hot as charcoal-grilled eel, but eating well-seasoned eel simply and without any smell — that's the big appeal of an eel rice bowl.
Lunchtime for Gangnam and Seonleung Station office workers is supposed to be their own time, and Manmok is a place that welcomes solo diners in for an eel rice bowl.
Why I took my father to Manmok for eel
The deep, layered flavor of Kanto-style eel from a chef who trained at a 3-star restaurant in Japan
Manmok is a tidy, dedicated Japanese restaurant using freshwater eel from Gochang. I used to only eat this kind of thing as a treat when I visited Nagoya, so it's nice to see it as a lunch option for office workers.
These days a nice atmosphere, cleanliness, and a quiet meal really matter. My dad said, "Have you been the only one eating good stuff?" so I brought him along.
How to find Manmok from Seonleung Station, and its hours
Manmok is within an 8-minute walk of Seonleung Station Exit 2. It's not hard to find since it's right on the street. It's a ground-floor shop.
Hours are 11:00 to 22:00. In the evening there are also more leisurely dinner dishes like hanwoo (Korean beef) nabe and grilled eel.
Inside Manmok: atmosphere and solo seats
An elegant, comfortable atmosphere like hotel dining
Manmok isn't a huge restaurant, but the calm wooden space is laid out with plenty of room, seating 30 to 40 people at once.
It's nice to come as a group and sit at a table, but there are solo seats too, so no need to feel awkward. You can't really recommend eel rice bowl to a first-timer the way you'd suggest gimbap, haha.
What comes with the whole-eel rice bowl, and how to eat it
A friendly staff member guides you through the meal — it feels like being taken care of
A friendly staff member explains the components of the eel rice bowl — the matsutake mushroom soup, salad, chawanmushi — and walks you through mixing it with wasabi and sansho pepper.
So clean and tidy. I liked that the salad portion wasn't skimpy. The chawanmushi was steamed so smoothly it could pass for pudding. I once went to a sushi place in Japan just to eat chawanmushi, and this brought back that same nostalgia. The clear aroma of the matsutake mushroom soup was memorable too.
How much eel is in the whole-eel bowl?
We ordered the full eel bowl. The portion is enough even for a pretty hearty eater — if you finish a bowl and a half, you're a big eater; half a bowl and you're on the lighter side.
They floated a leaf on the soup so we wouldn't choke while drinking it too fast (just kidding). Japanese-style, you pick up the bowl and sip it straight. When holding the soup bowl, your thumb should be on top — if you grip the rim with your index finger in Japan, that's considered bad form, so watch out.
Once the rice topped with green onion and seaweed starts feeling plain, mix in some wasabi or sansho pepper
Dad: "It's tasty." Me: "You like it?" Dad: "Yeah."
I love wasabi mixed into rice. The sansho pepper went really well with the eel. I could have eaten three more chawanmushis.
White kimchi and dried radish strips are served for Korean diners. Nothing to complain about there. The little spoon rest was just cute.
The bar ice cream: black tea or matcha?
This felt important enough to highlight in red. You get a small bar ice cream, with a choice of black tea or matcha flavor. Such a thoughtful touch! Ending the meal with ice cream really lifts your mood afterward.
Verdict: a new solo lunch option in Gangnam
A place where you can feel both careful consideration for the customer and real sincerity toward the food
The atmosphere and service are excellent, and they make the most of domestic eel and ingredients. It's genuinely nice that Gangnam solo dining can be this comfortable now — you don't have to just wolf down sundae-guk (blood sausage soup) and dash off. Having this option alone makes me happy. It's a great place to stop by when you want a good meal with people you care about.
Event
There's something for every review left. Do you like alcohol? Then... leave a review.
Manmok, a Gangnam eel rice bowl spot with an unusually high number of repeat-visit reviews — and for good reason.
Where it is
9 Seolleung-ro 82-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea, 1st floor서울특별시 강남구 선릉로82길 9 1층
