Korean course dinner with wine corkage and hotel parking: Modam

🩵 Today I'm introducing Modam.

Modam Itaewon hours and parking info

• 📍 Hours: Daily 11:00–21:30
• Break time 15:00–17:00 / Last order 13:40, 20:10
• 📍 Parking: Up to 2 hours free at the Mondrian Hotel

Looking for a nice-atmosphere meeting spot in Itaewon?

Picking a place for an important gathering takes more thought than you'd expect, right? Today I want to recommend a Korean-course restaurant inside the Mondrian Hotel for anyone looking for a good-atmosphere meeting spot in Itaewon ✨ Being inside a hotel, it has an upscale feel and is great for special-occasion meals — I found it worked well for meeting the in-laws, year-end gatherings, family gatherings, blind dates, and more!

Outside — which entrance to use at the Mondrian Hotel

It's located inside the Mondrian Seoul Itaewon hotel, between Noksapyeong and Itaewon stations.

I didn't know the restaurant was near the front entrance so I walked in through a basement entrance I happened to see! Going in this way means a bit of a detour, so just use the front entrance.

Behind the hotel lobby there's a pretty exhibition space, and the restaurant is right behind that. Come in through the front entrance and go straight ahead — you'll see it right away.

The place felt much bigger and more upscale from the entrance than it looked in photos 🤍

I was so taken with the interior before even going in that I ended up taking pictures everywhere :)

Inside — hall table spacing and the room atmosphere

The entrance space had such pretty interior design! The details blending hanok (traditional Korean house) elements with a modern look really stood out — these traditional touches came together beautifully and were exactly my taste..✨

The main hall was spacious and the tables were spaced generously, so I could eat comfortably without worrying about the next table.

The private rooms seemed perfect for gatherings with more people, like meeting the in-laws or family dinners. One room with its door open had such a striking atmosphere..🖤 (there were also more ordinary-looking rooms)

Corkage fee

Corkage is ₩30,000 per bottle of wine and ₩50,000 per bottle of whiskey, with 6 glasses included as standard — extra glasses cost ₩5,000 each.

Menu — course sets and à la carte

As a Korean-course dining spot, Modam's main offering is the course menu, made up of various set options. Of course, à la carte dishes are also available!

There's a range of wines and other drinks to choose from depending on your taste.

How was the food? Going through the course in order

What I ordered: the grilled deodeok (bellflower root) and charcoal-grilled tteokgalbi (Korean grilled short rib patty) set (₩49,000), and the assorted seafood jang and gamtae (seaweed) butter rice set (₩49,000).

The two sets I ordered had the same composition and only differed in the main rice dish, so even if everyone orders something different, the shared courses come out together for the whole table.

First up as an appetizer was the seasonal porridge. It was thick and rich like misugaru (roasted grain powder) with a deep bean flavor, and the tanginess of dried tomato added a nice touch.

Next was the seasonal raw fish ceviche. The refreshing sauce with crunchy vegetables was perfect for whetting the appetite.

Green salad with barley shrimp chips. It was topped generously with barley shrimp, so the dried-shrimp flavor really came through — I'd never had dried shrimp paired with salad before, so it felt refreshingly different.

Gimbugak (fried seaweed chips) with black sesame dressing and seasonal fruit. The combination of fruit and gimbugak worked better than I expected! There were grilled mushrooms underneath too, and the fruit's tartness paired nicely with the black sesame dressing.

My top pick: bracken and perilla oil buckwheat noodles

Bracken and perilla oil buckwheat noodles. My partner's and my top pick..! The seasoning was just right, the perilla seed and bracken combination was great, and it came with something like pickled melon that fit in perfectly.

I asked them to mix the dish for me, but for some reason it tickled instead — apparently plating it neatly on camera makes them nervous, haha. I wanted to order this again as an à la carte dish 🥹

Modam gangjeong (sweet and spicy glazed dish). This one has whole thick shiitake mushrooms in it! The sauce felt like a spicy take on a cream shrimp flavor..? It wasn't overly coated, so you could still taste the mushroom itself and its texture, which I liked :)

The main dish — gamtae butter rice and assorted seafood jang

Finally, the main dish arrives 👏🏻

The side dishes and soup are the same across both sets, but the rice in the seafood jang and gamtae butter rice set is special — you mix gamtae-infused butter into the rice, and as soon as you start mixing, a burst of ocean aroma rises up!

The seafood jang comes generously loaded with shrimp, abalone, glass noodles, octopus, egg, seaweed, garlic scapes, and more to eat alongside.

The jang isn't overly salty and has just a bit of a spicy kick, making it easy to enjoy without feeling heavy!

Grilled deodeok and charcoal-grilled tteokgalbi

Grilled deodeok and charcoal-grilled tteokgalbi. The tteokgalbi came garnished with deodeok, gochu (shishito-like peppers), and burdock mash.

It tasted like the familiar tteokgalbi we all know, but the burdock mash in particular was really delicious. It had a hint of a Chinese-cuisine-like aroma that gave the tteokgalbi a nice kick!

Finally, dessert was a perilla leaf sorbet. The combination of perilla leaf and lime was so sweet and refreshing! The perilla flavor was quite strong, which I liked for its distinctiveness 💚 A clean finish to the meal with dessert!

My overall take

Between the great atmosphere and the friendly staff, I was able to eat comfortably :) The food also had little unexpected twists on familiar Korean flavors, so each dish was fun to try. If you're looking for an atmospheric spot for meeting the in-laws, year-end gatherings, or company dinners, I'd recommend this as a great Korean-restaurant meeting spot in Itaewon, or a great Korean course-dining spot in Itaewon for meeting the in-laws :) 👍👍