Yeouido date-night Korean BBQ with free cheonggukjang stew: Yuk Lab

Why I picked Yuk Lab Yeouido for a Yeouido date

Yuk Lab Yeouido was a great find when I wanted a Korean BBQ place in Yeouido with a nice atmosphere and good meat. Today I planned a Yeouido date with Tongju! You know those days when you don't want just any old pork belly, you want somewhere with a good mood and good meat that works for a date or a gathering? This is the place I'd recommend right away for that.

I especially recommend it to people looking for beef in Yeouido, office workers planning a team dinner, anyone looking for a blind date or date spot, and people who want to enjoy lamb ribs and beef together in a clean setting.

Yuk Lab Yeouido location, hours and parking

Yuk Lab Yeouido is in the Yeouido General Shopping Complex, so it's easy to reach from Yeouido Station.

• Hours: weekdays 16:00–23:00, weekends 15:00–23:00
• Parking: search for Yeouido General Shopping Complex and park there

What are the rooms and basic setup like?

Every seat at Yuk Lab Yeouido is a private room, so it felt super private⭐️ and easy to talk. The interior is black-toned, the table is nice and wide, and the table setting was really neat. On the marble-look table, the side dishes, sauces and small plates were all laid out tidily, and the side dishes were just what you need.

There were ssam vegetables (lettuce wraps), kimchi and pickled side dishes, plus several kinds of sauce, so it was fun dipping each cut differently.

Menu and the free cheonggukjang

Yuk Lab Yeouido has a solid lineup of meats and sets, and ahh!!! the sides looked so good, seriously. … But small eaters like me get full on meat alone, so with tears in my eyes I gave up on the kimchi fried rice ㅠㅠ

And the free cheonggukjang (pungent fermented soybean stew) they served!!! When the meat starts to feel rich, have some of it and everything just gets wiped clean.

What's in the 2-person Yuk Lab set? Jingalbisal, lamb ribs and tosisal

The 2-person Yuk Lab set at Yuk Lab Yeouido comes with jingalbisal (beef rib meat), lamb ribs and tosisal (beef skirt-area cut). What I liked is that you're not stuck with just one cut: you get beef and lamb ribs in one go.

The meat looks incredible. The marbling isn't overdone, the grain is so pretty, and the color looks fresh, so my expectations shot up before it even hit the grill.

It came with grilled green onion, mushrooms, onion and even cherry tomatoes. And the grill isn't a thin disposable pan but a wire grate that really gives you that charcoal feel.

Tosisal: a tender, rich first bite

The first thing I ate was the tosisal, tender with a seriously great beefy flavor. It comes apart juicily along the grain in your mouth, but it isn't mushy and has just enough bounce, so the texture is crazy good.

Grill it lightly and just dip it in salt and it's delicious, and with a bit of wasabi on top the meat flavor comes through much more clearly.

Jingalbisal: richness that melts away

The jingalbisal just melts away. The nutty flavor rushes up and then it's gone. The texture is a bit softer, so it has a different charm from the tosisal.

Of course I grilled all the beef medium-rare. Getting to grill it the way I like is part of the fun, right~? It was so full of juice inside that I slurped it right up.

Lamb ribs: clean with no gamey smell, even for lamb beginners

And then the lamb ribs I'd been looking forward to. Honestly, lamb ribs can divide people because of the gamey smell if done wrong, but the lamb ribs at Yuk Lab Yeouido were way cleaner than I expected. The nutty flavor comes first, so I think even first-timers with lamb would find it easy.

Eaten with the outside cooked just right and the inside still juicy, they were really tender and tasty. There are several sauces too, and my personal favorite was salt + wasabi, while the lamb ribs also went well with the slightly spicy seasoning.

Kimchi and leftover meat all cleaned up, and the staff (?) enjoyed eating them happily.

Yuk Lab Yeouido prices and final verdict

They even offered a thoughtful spritz of Febreze before we left! Overall, considering the Yeouido location, the prices at Yuk Lab Yeouido didn't feel outrageous. Given the atmosphere, meat quality and mix of cuts, it's easily reasonable for a date, anniversary or team dinner.

If anything, at this quality I'm very satisfied! Next time I want to try the other sets. Yuk Lab Yeouido is a Yeouido Korean BBQ spot truly worth saving.