Seongsu Korean BBQ: brisket sushi in Special Course A, Marblejeong

What is Marblejeong, the hanwoo BBQ restaurant in Seongsu?

Marblejeong (마블정) is a specialist in 2++ hanwoo (Korean beef) and aged Korean pork at 57 Seongsuil-ro, 2nd floor, Seongdong-gu, Seoul. It's open 11:00-23:00 on weekdays and 11:00-22:00 on weekends. It has a classy feel and private rooms, so it's a good Seongsu hanwoo spot for group gatherings, company dinners and dates.

Because Seongsu has its galbi alley, I always think of it as a place with good meat, and this hanwoo restaurant was so delicious that I'm happy to recommend it for company dinners or dates!

What are Marblejeong's private rooms and interior like?

The walls inside are floor-to-ceiling windows, so it's bright with a classy interior, and there are separate rooms where you can eat in private. I had booked ahead, so they showed us to a room, haha.

It's a fairly big restaurant for Seongsu, and maybe because of that there were lots of foreign guests too (tour groups?). I think it suits group gatherings and company dinners. They say the rooms range from 2-person to 20-person!

Since Marblejeong specializes in top-grade hanwoo and aged pork, there was a fresh meat fridge in one corner, and they say takeout is possible too! Just looking at the marbling, you can see how fresh it is,, 🥩

Marblejeong side dishes and what we ordered

The side dishes came with 4 kinds of seasoning plus a tomato cheese salad, lettuce geotjeori (fresh-tossed salad), radish pickle, ssambu (pickled radish wraps), jangajji (soy-pickled vegetables) and myeongi namul (wild garlic-chive greens), lots of veggie variety! We ordered the signature 1++ Hanwoo Special Course A (₩99,000 per person) for two :)

How is the Hanwoo Special Course A served?

Course 1: Abalone porridge, bite-size yukhoe and yukjeon

When we ordered Marblejeong's Special Course A, the first things out were abalone porridge, yukhoe (beef tartare) and yukjeon (beef pancake). The porridge was mild and warming for the stomach, and the yukjeon was tender and nutty!

The yukhoe had a sweet seasoning and tasted fresh, just right as an appetizer!

Course 2: Three 1++ hanwoo cuts, grilled vegetables and butter-grilled abalone

The three hanwoo cuts in Course 2 were striploin, eopjinsal (beef belly) and brisket, and it was quite generous for two people. Now the meat's turn begins, and you can tell how fresh it is *_*

A staff member grills the meat for you, starting with the striploin, going from the lighter cuts to the richer ones. The grill was big, and seeing it filled up like that, you could feel how much meat there was. What I like about Marblejeong is that the smoke goes down below the grill, so there's no meat smell clinging to you and no smoke filling the room!

They grill the meat to about medium-rare on their own. At some hanwoo restaurants it gets cooked too crispy on the outside or overdone, which is a letdown, but the staff here grill it really well!

I tried the striploin first and honestly, wow,, it was the softest, most fat-filled striploin I've ever had, and I thought, ah, top grade really is different 😭 Of everything I ate this time, the striploin was the best! I even wondered, was striploin always this good..?

They also grill the vegetables and put them on a plate so they're easy to eat, so all you have to do is keep eating the meat and veggies they grill for you! Grilled vegetables, garlic and mushrooms are so good..

Course 3: Doenjang jjigae and fried shrimp

Course 3 brought a spicy, bubbling doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), crispy fried shrimp and a sauce. It came out while I was busy eating meat, and I really liked how crispy the shrimp was.

The doenjang jjigae is on the spicy side, so it magically makes you order an extra bowl of rice.. The crab was plump, too, and it was great for cutting the richness of the meat.

Once you've refreshed with the mushroom vegetable broth, they grill the next cut right away!

How we ate the eopjinsal and brisket, including brisket sushi

The second cut was eopjinsal. As you can see in the photo, it's super fatty, chewy-crisp and full of marbling, so it went really well with wasabi,, ♡ My favorite pork cut is hangjeongsal (pork jowl), and eopjinsal felt like the beef version of that.

And the last cut, which was way tastier than I expected, was the brisket! They give you a special sauce, and I dunked it in generously. It's a savory soy-based sauce with garlic and chili, and paired with the fatty brisket it became a dopamine-packed flavor. I made brisket sushi with rice and wasabi, and it was insanely good,,,!

To finish, they even melted butter to make butter-grilled abalone! Personally I only eat abalone if it's there, but this was the most tender abalone I've ever had, and I was shocked at how good it was. It seemed to be fresh abalone, and you could really feel the quality!

Course 4: LA galbi and naengmyeon

Course 4 is the meal: naengmyeon (cold noodles) is your choice of mul (broth) or bibim (spicy mixed), so we ordered one of each, and LA galbi (cross-cut short ribs) comes grilled too. And it's not over yet,,! It feels like you're eating meat all day long, lol. The cold naengmyeon and the sweet, tender galbi were a great way to wrap up.

Course 5: Yogurt ice cream and omija tea

For the final dessert, you get yogurt ice cream and omija tea (five-flavor berry tea). It settles your stomach and feels refreshing!

Is Marblejeong good for company dinners or dates?

Marblejeong hasn't been open long, so it's clean, with restrooms and a smoking room, and the rooms are tidy too, so I'd happily recommend it! Besides top-grade hanwoo, I'd also recommend it if you're looking for samgyeopsal (pork belly) :)