Gwanak lunch reservation, 36,500 won gyukatsu set for two: Izawa

This time I was hunting for lunch near Seoul National University Station and ended up at Izawa Sharosugil Branch, which kept popping up as a top gyukatsu spot on Sharosu-gil. I booked ahead through Naver, and honestly — reserve ahead if you can!! I got there just before noon and there was plenty of room at first, but as I ate, more and more people kept coming in and suddenly the place was nearly full haha.

Where is Izawa Sharosugil Branch? Hours and parking

Izawa Sharosugil Branch is on the 2nd floor at 28 Gwanak-ro 14-gil, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, South Korea (Bongcheon-dong 1604-6). It's close to Seoul National University Station, so personally public transit felt like the easiest way to get there.

Weekday hours run 11:30–21:00 with a break from 15:00–17:00 (last order 20:00), and weekends run 11:30–21:30 (last order 20:30). There's no dedicated parking lot as far as I could tell, so if you're driving, the nearest Gwanak-gu Office parking lot looks like the most convenient option.

How the waiting list works, and inside Izawa

The restaurant is on the 2nd floor, so you head up a stairway, and right at the entrance there was a waitlist sign-up sheet along with chairs to sit on while you wait.

What I thought was fun was that if you end up waiting, they give you a free mini soba (buckwheat noodles) or a drink. I hate waiting, but a little perk like that still puts you in a good mood haha.

On the way up, I also noticed a bunch of celebrity autographs on the wall — oh... is this actually a legit hotspot?? haha

The interior was cleaner than I expected and had a good number of tables. Since I arrived a bit early it was quiet at first, but once it passed noon, customers kept streaming in until the place was nearly full.

If you're after a top gyukatsu spot on Sharosu-gil, I'd recommend booking a Naver reservation rather than just walking in for lunch.

Izawa's menu and the 36,500 won set for two

Gyukatsu jeongsik and steki jeongsik are ₩18,000 each, with a gyukatsu curry at ₩20,000 and a double jeongsik at ₩33,000, among other options. They also have 2-person and 3-person set menus, and ordering as a set looked like much better value than ordering single dishes separately.

I ordered the gyukatsu jeongsik + steki jeongsik + drink 2-person set for ₩36,500. When the food first arrived I thought... hmm, is this really enough for two people?? haha. But bottom line — by the time we finished, we were stuffed.

What does the steki jeongsik taste like?

Izawa's steki jeongsik is also basically grilled yourself at the tabletop grill.

Unlike the gyukatsu, there's no breading, so the flavor and texture of the beef itself came through a lot more directly.

The steki comes with its own dedicated sauce — sweet and salty — that paired really well with the grilled meat.

Gyukatsu jeongsik: how far to grill it and which sauce to pair

The dish I enjoyed most that day was the gyukatsu jeongsik. The outside has a thin layer of breading, and the meat inside comes out nearly rare, so you cook it yourself on the tabletop grill to whatever doneness you like.

Once you lay it on the grill, the outside turns crisp and savory while the inside stays moist and juicy — the contrast in texture was really clear.

Personally, it tasted best when I didn't fully cook it through and left a slight pink center.

It's good dipped in the sauce too, but for me it was tastiest with just a touch of salt or a bit of wasabi haha. That combo let the beef flavor come through cleaner! I came here searching for a top gyukatsu spot on Sharosu-gil, and it had a completely different charm from regular tonkatsu — I think anyone who likes gyukatsu would be satisfied.

Grilling it yourself at the table, and swapping the grill plate

Izawa Sharosugil Branch gives each table its own personal grill, and the heat was stronger than I expected.

Even leaving it on briefly cooks it fast, so I'd recommend grilling small portions at a time at first haha. But in my eagerness to eat quickly, I did pile a huge heap of meat on the grill at once — not gonna hide that. Also, if the grill plate gets burnt, you can request a plate swap through the tablet at your table.

But before I even needed to ask, the staff kept circling the restaurant checking on the grills and swapping them out proactively. They relit the flame when it went out and checked in on anything else we needed right away. Busy restaurants really do seem to have staff with this kind of good instinct. Even during a hectic time, they were checking on us ahead of time, so the meal flowed without interruption, which I appreciated.

Is Izawa Sharosugil Branch worth it? Final verdict

The portion looked a bit small at first, but between the rice, salad and meat, by the end we were surprisingly stuffed. What I liked most was that the 2-person set lets you compare gyukatsu and steki side by side in one meal.

Between the two, I'd recommend the gyukatsu jeongsik. The crisp outside and moist inside were great, plus there was the fun of grilling it to your own preferred doneness right at the table. If you're near Seoul National University Station looking for a top gyukatsu spot on Sharosu-gil, or you just love gyukatsu, Izawa is worth a visit. That said, the lunch hour fills up faster than you'd expect, so I'd recommend a Naver reservation like I did, if you can swing it haha.