Euljiro blind date restaurant: mackerel pasta and Earl Grey at Pyu

Where is Pyu Euljiro, and is there parking?

Pyu Euljiro (PHEW) is a contemporary dining restaurant on the ground floor of Tower 107, 27 Mareunnae-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul, an easy walk from Euljiro 3-ga Station. It is open daily 11:00 to 21:00, with last order at 20:20.

If you come by car, you can use the Tower 107 underground car park, and the first hour is free. After that it is ₩1,000 per 10 minutes.

Once you step inside the building, you will see a blue PHEW sign, so the restaurant wasn't hard to find.

What is the atmosphere like: good for a date or blind date?

Pyu Euljiro is a spacious, calm room with wood and beige interiors and soft lighting, which made it great for a date.

I was surprised by how big it is the moment we walked in. The whole place feels comfortable and calm, so it seems like a good fit for dates, a first-meeting blind date, or any gathering where you want to talk quietly 😊

There is a long table in the middle that suits a bigger group, plus a variety of tables for two and four. Group seating for up to 12 and private hire are also listed, so it is worth knowing about if you are looking for a place for a small gathering or a wedding invitation meetup.

There were also several baby chairs ready.

At the back there is an open kitchen where you can see the cooking, and a separate bar area where drinks and wine are prepared.

It felt less like a restaurant just for meals and more like a dining lounge where you can enjoy food, wine, coffee and tea all in one space.

PHEW, a place to catch your breath

The tables at Pyu Euljiro had welcome cards with our names written on them by hand, and little touches like that made me quietly happy. PHEW follows a concept called "The Sound of Relief", aiming to be a space where you can let go of tension for a moment in a busy day and catch your breath.

The table setting was neat and tidy too.

Pyu Euljiro menu and prices

The Pyu Euljiro menu includes pasta, risotto, steak and small dishes. Pasta runs ₩25,000 to ₩30,000 and steak is in the ₩38,000 to ₩54,000 range.

• Mackerel pasta ₩30,000
• Bisque pasta ₩26,000
• Ragu pasta ₩25,000
• Truffle mushroom risotto ₩26,000
• Garden tomato risotto ₩25,000
• Grilled yuzu chicken thigh ₩28,000
• Charcoal octopus with romesco ₩34,000
• Seasonal fish steak ₩38,000
• Striploin steak ₩54,000
• Smoked tomato ₩27,000
• Truffle smashed potatoes ₩23,000
• Crispy eggplant fritters ₩20,000
• Fresh salad ₩16,000

If two of you want to try several dishes, there is also a SHARE SET. It is ₩99,000 and includes a fresh salad, bisque pasta, charcoal octopus with romesco, crispy eggplant fritters and four-season ice cream (sherbet), and the menu says the bisque pasta can be swapped.

Wine selection and corkage terms

The wine list at Pyu Euljiro covers red, white and special wines, and some can be ordered by the glass. Corkage is free for up to one bottle, excluding alcohol sold in the restaurant, and costs an extra ₩20,000 per bottle beyond that.

At dinner an alcohol order is required, but the notice says you can order house wine or a non-alcoholic drink instead.

What the two of us ordered

That day at Pyu Euljiro we ordered one pasta, one risotto, one side and two alcoholic drinks.

• Crispy eggplant fritters
• Truffle mushroom risotto
• Mackerel pasta
• Cuna del Sol Sauvignon Blanc by the glass
• Cheongdam Daughter-in-law beer (Cheongdam Myeoneuri Maekju)

Picking one pasta, one risotto and one side and sharing them let the two of us taste a good variety.

Mackerel pasta, my first time trying it: how was it?

The mackerel pasta (₩30,000) at Pyu Euljiro was the dish I was most curious about that day, and when I tried it, the combination worked better than I expected and tasted great 😋 It was my first time eating mackerel with pasta. Two big pieces of mackerel sat on top of the noodles with a generous amount of arugula around them, so it looked different from the usual pasta from the very start.

It was fun eating the mackerel, noodles and arugula together, and above all I liked that it isn't a pasta you come across every day. If you want something different from familiar tomato or cream pasta, I would recommend the mackerel pasta.

Truffle mushroom risotto piled with mushrooms

The truffle mushroom risotto at Pyu Euljiro is ₩26,000. Thinly sliced mushrooms and cheese cover the whole risotto, so it caught my eye the moment it arrived.

According to the menu description, it is a risotto that uses three kinds of mushrooms, each cooked a different way.

The pasta and risotto are built so differently that, if you visit as a pair, ordering one of each and sharing works well. We picked a fish dish like the mackerel pasta and a mushroom-focused risotto, so nothing felt repetitive.

Crispy eggplant fritters as a side

The crispy eggplant fritters at Pyu Euljiro are ₩20,000. Eggplant fried crisp on the outside comes with a rich, nutty fish cream sauce for dipping generously.

Big pieces of fried eggplant are topped with plenty of creamy sauce, so it looked different from the eggplant fritters you usually picture. It is a good order when you want one more thing alongside the pasta and risotto.

Sauvignon Blanc by the glass and Cheongdam Daughter-in-law beer

With the food, I ordered Cuna del Sol Sauvignon Blanc by the glass. If a whole bottle feels like too much, it is nice that you can choose a glass like this 🥂 Since it was a mackerel pasta day, I paired it with white wine.

The other drink was the Cheongdam Daughter-in-law beer, whose name caught my eye right away. The can design is unusual too, so it made a good photo. Besides wine there is craft beer as well, so everyone can pick to their own taste.

After-meal drinks: Valentine Earl Grey and passion fruit ade

After finishing our meal at Pyu Euljiro we didn't want to leave right away, so we added a Valentine Earl Grey and a passion fruit ade!

I had the Valentine Earl Grey, and it was so much better than I expected that it stuck in my memory 😊 The teapot and cup came separately, so I could pour and sip slowly, and it was a nice way to wrap up, sitting and chatting after the meal. Being able to do everything in one place, from the meal to wine, beer, and after-meal tea and ade, was another plus for Pyu.

The review event running during my visit

When I visited Pyu Euljiro, a review event was also running. If you write a photo review on the platform of your choice among Naver, Kakao, Google, Catch Table and Instagram, you get one glass of house wine per review.

If alcohol isn't your thing, you can swap it for a regular drink, and it seems you can also write a review on each platform separately.

Recommended for an Euljiro date when you want something different

At Pyu Euljiro, the space itself stayed in my memory as much as the food.

The room is big, the tables are comfortably spaced, and the whole place feels bright and calm, so it was nice to eat slowly while talking. That is why I think it suits an Euljiro date, and also a blind date or small gathering.

Above all, the mackerel pasta I tried for the first time was unusual and delicious, so it was the most memorable, and the Valentine Earl Grey after the meal was satisfying too 😌

If you want to try something a little different from the usual pasta, or you are looking for a relaxed place around Euljiro 3-ga to eat with a glass of wine, I recommend Pyu Euljiro.