Magok Japanese restaurant for a blind date, mango milk pudding: Ilpum

Ilpum Magok (일품 마곡점) is a premium Japanese restaurant where you can enjoy eel and sushi in one place. The address is 228 Gonghang-daero, Unit 112, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, and it's open Tue–Sun 11:00–21:30, closed on Mondays. Break time is 15:00–17:30. Corkage, takeout, reservations, delivery and group visits are all possible, there are high chairs, and it's wheelchair accessible too.

It's a perfect place to go when you want proper Japanese food around Magok and Balsan. So many hot restaurants keep opening around Magok these days, right? Among them, I found a place where you can enjoy real restorative food and neat, refined Japanese dishes in a classy atmosphere, so I'd like to introduce it to you.

Where is Ilpum Magok, and what about parking?

Ilpum Magok is about a 5-minute walk from Magok Station, and parking is available. There's a reason it always shows up at the top when you search for sushi or Japanese food near Magok Station.

It's easy to reach by public transport, and with parking available, it also seems great for a family meal or company dinner if you come by car.

This is the exterior of Ilpum Magok. Even from outside it looks so classy and warm, which I loved. I want to go in right away!

The wait and the interior: is it good for a blind date?

Ilpum Magok is so popular that there's a bit of a wait, but there's a space inside the restaurant where you can put your name down and wait.

It was packed with customers when I visited, so I couldn't take many photos of the inside, but the modern, neat interior you notice as soon as you open the door really won me over.

As you'd expect from a famous Magok restaurant, lots of celebrities seem to have visited, because they've left plenty of autographs.

Overall, the toned-down wood tones and soft lighting come together for a comfortable, upscale feel. I recommend Ilpum Magok if you're looking for a blind date spot in Magok or a restaurant to take your parents.

Ilpum Magok menu: what are the signature dishes?

Ilpum Magok's signature menu has four items: kaisendon, premium kaisendon, whole-eel unagi don, and a sushi omakase platter. The menu was really varied, with kaisendon, sushi, sashimi and fried dishes, plus a range of alcohol.

What do the kaisendon and premium kaisendon look like?

I ordered the kaisendon and the premium kaisendon. While waiting for the mains after ordering, they brought steamed egg, aged kimchi and a clear soup. That steamed egg was seriously good.

The kaisendon overwhelms you with its looks alone! Freshness is everything with the ingredients, and the glossy shine makes you feel the freshness with your eyes first.

Look at the bowl: thickly sliced seasonal seafood like tuna, salmon, flounder, abalone and sweet shrimp is packed on top without a single gap, isn't it?

Even just eating the seasonal sashimi on the kaisendon one piece at a time, there are so many combinations. If you told me to pick just one of them,, it'd be really hard. There's definitely at least one in there that suits your taste.

Fried fish cake udon and mango puree milk pudding dessert

At Ilpum Magok, partway through your hoedeopbap (raw fish rice bowl), they bring out fried fish cake udon like this. That fried fish cake is seriously good.

And for dessert they also give you milk pudding topped with mango puree. This was really good. I'd want to go back just to eat this.

Next time: the eel rice bowl

The next table ordered the eel rice bowl, and the glossy shine on it, the look was insane. Next time I visit Ilpum Magok, I'm going to order the eel rice bowl. I recommend it to anyone looking for a Magok restaurant, a Magok date spot, or a Magok blind date restaurant.