Mapo private-room Korean beef lunch course: Usu

I visited Usu (우수) in Gongdeok with my mother for weekday lunch. After confirming my name following a reservation, we were shown to a private room. What I liked most about the Lunch C Course was being able to eat comfortably in a separate room.

Is it easy to reach from Gongdeok Station, and is parking available?

From Exit 2 of Gongdeok Station, I simply entered the nearby Lotte Castle building. The short distance from the station made getting there easy.

The restaurant is in the building basement. I could use the spacious building parking lot; according to the original post, parking is free for three hours with no limit on the number of vehicles. Its listed hours were 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM daily, open year-round.

Are there private rooms and facilities for children for family gatherings?

The interior was decorated in shades of gray, with rooms along both sides of the corridor. Since every seat is in a private room, it was easy to dine comfortably with our group.

The two of us used a standard four-person room. I was told there were also group seats suited to gatherings from two people upward. There were high chairs and a kids' menu as well.

What are the Lunch C Course price and corkage terms?

There were à la carte Korean beef dishes and a kids' menu, along with lunch and dinner courses at different price points. I ordered the 80 g Lunch C Course, priced at ₩79,000 per person.

Drinks including wine were available. Corkage was complimentary and one glass was provided per person, but replacing a glass cost ₩5,000. I was informed that alcohol sold at the restaurant and tonic water could not be brought in.

How did the Lunch C Course begin, and what were the small bites like?

First, we were served barley tea. Then the staff showed us a box of ingredients for that day's dishes, including Korean beef, seasonal fish, shrimp, and mushrooms, and explained them.

The first dish was “u-gye-jin-juk,” meaning a porridge richly simmered with beef and chicken. It tasted like a rich chicken porridge, with scorched rice, asparagus, mushrooms, and more for texture. My mother enjoyed it too.

Next came three small bites. Their presentation, like a forest transferred onto a plate, was striking, and the staff explained both the dishes and the order in which to eat them.

The bulgogi sandwich had a nice combination of sweet bulgogi, cream cheese, and crisp bread.

I was told that “scallop, clam” contained scallop, apple, and cream sauce inside thin pastry. The sauce reminded me of tartar sauce and was refreshing. My favorite was “sweet shrimp, gim bugak (crispy fried seaweed).” It was said to contain abalone innard rice, shrimp, and yuzu sauce in roasted seaweed, and I liked the savory depth created by the ingredients together.

What dishes come before the grilled Korean beef?

The shiitake shrimp and zucchini was finished with peanut tofu sauce and chamnamul oil. The rich yet fresh sauce suited the shiitake mushrooms, shrimp, and rolled zucchini. The shiitake shrimp also had a slightly chicken-like taste when chewed.

The abalone five-color gardenia noodles that followed came with thick slices of abalone, perilla leaves, mushrooms, and greens. The mustard-garlic sauce gave them a clean, pungent flavor.

How were the grilled Korean beef and fish pot-rice set in flavor and portion?

Before the main course arrived, the staff showed us the seasonal fish pot rice before mixing it.

The main was 1++ Korean beef sirloin and a seasonal fish pot-rice set. The sirloin was served on individual plates with vegetables. The mixed fish pot rice came with Korean beef miyeok-guk (seaweed soup), gat kimchi, myeonginamul and gungchae, and seed jeotgal made with herring roe, salted squid, and nuts.

The pot rice was deeply fishy and nutty with every bite, with a popping texture too. The Korean beef seaweed soup reminded me of the familiar, hearty soup made at home with beef.

Because I like my beef medium rare, I seared only the outside. The more I chewed, the richer and nuttier it tasted.

I ate it with a little wasabi or placed it over rice. I wondered whether I could finish everything because I was already full when the set arrived, but I ended up enjoying every bite.

What was the most satisfying part after dessert?

The final course was Chodang sweet corn ice cream. It was quite sweet yet nutty, while the cake and crumble added something fun to chew. Green tangerine cream sauce added freshness.

The most satisfying part of this meal was that every seat was in a private room. My mother and I enjoyed the course in a relaxed setting, and I was satisfied with both the flavor and the amount of food. Its proximity to the station, parking support, and complimentary corkage also made it a place I would think of for a formal family meeting or family gathering.