City Hall Chinese restaurant for a charcoal lamb rib dinner: Huhugwan

A modern Chinese restaurant at the end of the Deoksugung stone wall, near City Hall Station

Huhugwan (후후관) is a modern Chinese restaurant near City Hall Station, and this time I visited for dinner. If you walk along the Deoksugung stone wall path, full of autumn atmosphere, you reach a line where quiet traditional charm and the energy of the modern city blend beautifully. Huhugwan, near City Hall Station, gave me one of the best dining experiences among the restaurants I've visited recently. It boldly sheds the greasy, heavy image of older Chinese restaurants and serves neat, stylish modern Chinese food, so let me carefully write up my dinner visit.

First, the complimentary side dish!

What does the name Huhugwan mean?

They say the name Huhugwan combines the moment you blow "hu~ hu~" on hot food to cool it down with the Chinese character 후, meaning "to hold a warm, gentle energy." It's a witty, warm story that feels better the more you hear it. The name captures that instinctive moment when food lands on the table and, before the first spoonful, you purse your lips and blow to cool it a little. Cleverly woven together with the character 후, it carries a deep wish to pass pleasant warmth and comfort to everyone who visits Huhugwan.

Huhugwan atmosphere: a dining room by day, a bar by night

The inside of Huhugwan is a tidy space with showy decoration stripped away; by day it is a dining room, and by night it turns into a stylish bar with lowered lighting. Step through the door and you feel it with your whole body: exaggerated flourishes and complicated decor are gone, and the focus is on the food and the space itself. In the daytime it's a hearty dining space where freshly made dishes fill you with good energy in a busy day, and at night the lights go down and it transforms nicely into a stylish bar that calms the mind.

Refined but not overly formal, the relaxed mood suits a clean company dinner for office workers near City Hall Station, a special anniversary date with a partner, or a get-together with people you care about.

Just looking around the place before the meal put me at ease thanks to its distinctive warmth, and my anticipation for the food shot up.

What does Huhugwan's signature dinner cumin lamb ribs taste like?

Huhugwan's cumin lamb ribs (쯔란양갈비) are the dinner signature: a thick charcoal-grilled lamb shoulder rack brushed several times with a house-developed sauce. The clear highlight of the evening was these smoky charcoal-scented lamb ribs (feat. extra coriander).

After a short wait following my order, a thick lamb shoulder rack full of faint charcoal aroma arrived at the table. The biggest feature of Huhugwan's cumin lamb ribs is that good-quality shoulder rack is carefully grilled over charcoal and brushed again and again with the house-developed sauce to maximize flavor.

As you'd expect from a dish made by tossing a wok over strong heat and adding the warmth of charcoal, the outside of the meat was golden and crisp while the inside perfectly locked in moist juices.

The moment I bit into the warm lamb ribs, there was no gamey smell or lamb funk at all; the light, nutty juices spread softly through my mouth. The faintly spicy scent of cumin and the salty house sauce lifted the meat's own savoriness perfectly.

Is extra coriander on the cumin lamb ribs a must?

My personal flavor tip when ordering the cumin lamb ribs, and a choice I can never skip, was "extra coriander." Putting fresh, fragrant coriander on a piece of lamb rib and eating them together took the depth of flavor to another level.

After the rich, nutty weight of the lamb, coriander's sharp, fresh aroma followed and balanced the flavor perfectly.

The coriander cleanly cut the richness that could otherwise feel greasy, so I never got tired of it and enjoyed it with admiration down to the last piece. If you know the charm of coriander, I strongly recommend adding it.

A meal to go with the lamb ribs: garlic scape fried rice

To eat with the cumin lamb ribs at Huhugwan, I ordered garlic scape fried rice (마늘쫑차오판), and its crunchy, nutty taste was the best pairing. A main meat dish with fried rice never fails, but Huhugwan's garlic scape fried rice was better than I expected. Stir-fried loose and fluffy in a very hot wok, every grain was glossy and coated with a faint wok aroma, and the thinly sliced garlic scapes had a very appealing crunch.

Unlike ordinary Chinese fried rice drenched in oil, it wasn't overly greasy or salty, and its light, nutty flavor came through, so with the smoky, salty cumin lamb ribs the match was simply perfect. Taking a bite of charcoal-flavored lamb and then a spoonful of warm garlic scape fried rice made the layers of flavor in my mouth richer and more varied.

Who is Huhugwan for at dinner?

I recommend Huhugwan to anyone looking for an atmospheric dinner after a stroll around Deoksugung, or anyone who wants a drink with good food near City Hall Station. I hope you'll try the combination of cumin lamb ribs and garlic scape fried rice. Huhugwan isn't just a place that sells food to fill your stomach; it was a heartfelt space that breathes the warmth of good ingredients and care into the food and gives guests a proper bowl of comfort and joy.

I was fully satisfied on every count: honest, deep flavors without exaggeration, the comfort of a tidy space, and modern Chinese food with details done right. Sit in front of hot cumin lamb ribs, purse your lips, and blow "hu~" yourself. Go feel that warm, special moment for real.

Huhugwan location: 2F, 2 Seosomun-ro 11-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul