Whisky & sake BYO Korean BBQ in Isu, Seoul: beef yuksashimi, Hwaseol

I've been really into whisky and sake lately...! And most BBQ places charge ₩20,000–30,000 corkage per bottle, which can be a real burden T_T But guess what?!! Near Isu Station there's a BBQ restaurant with great meat AND free corkage?!! It's Hwaseol Isu Branch (화설 이수직영점)~! A set platter plus free doenjang stew~~ I had a really satisfying time, haha!

Where is Hwaseol Isu Branch, and what's the seating like?

Hwaseol Isu Branch is a BBQ restaurant on Dongjak-daero 25-gil, right near Isu Station. It's close to the station, so it's a good spot for get-togethers, dates or company dinners.

Hwaseol uses the 1st and 2nd floors. The 1st floor has a quiet, casual feel, while the 2nd floor has group seating and private rooms, so keep that in mind when booking~ Dates on the 1st floor! Get-togethers or groups on the 2nd!

What we ordered at Hwaseol Isu Branch and the prices

You order by tablet, and the set comes with free doenjang stew, so it felt like great value! (All the tables next to us were eating sets too.)

• Korean pork set 550g – ₩69,000
• Korean beef yuksashimi (beef tartare-style raw slices) 150g – ₩27,000

Side dishes and sauces

The side dishes were lettuce salad, sweet pumpkin salad, seasoned radish strips, green onion kimchi, aged kimchi, raw seaweed sheets and pickles, with wasabi, salt, salted seafood (jeotgal) and basil pesto as sauces. Lots of sauces to go with the meat. It was my first time with pesto and it was surprisingly good?!

Is Hwaseol Isu Branch corkage free?

Yes, it's corkage free!!! This is exactly why you should go to Hwaseol. These days BBQ places... ₩20,000–30,000 per bottle is standard, but at Hwaseol it's all free. So we brought whisky and sake~!

How was the 550g Korean pork set?

The 550g Korean pork set is made up of pork neck, pork belly and galmaegi-sal (pork skirt meat). I loved being able to try several cuts at once, haha. Staff grill it for you, so all you have to do is eat!

Pork neck

They grill the pork neck first, and it wasn't dry at all, just moist and clean-tasting! It was packed with juices, and the chew was a work of art!!!

Free doenjang stew

If you order a set at Hwaseol, the doenjang stew comes free! Pretty generous for a freebie, right?!

The broth was really rich and savory and warmed me right up. It wipes away the greasiness of the meat... and a bowl of rice disappears in no time, haha.

Pork belly and galmaegi-sal

The pork belly in the set had a perfect fat-to-lean ratio, and the juices burst out with the first bite!! The galmaegi-sal had a lovely chewy texture too, haha. Perfect with drinks!

Here's a tip! Lightly grill the raw seaweed sheets~~! Wrapping the meat together with aged kimchi in grilled seaweed is a real treat, haha.

Does the 150g Korean beef yuksashimi go with whisky?

The 150g Korean beef yuksashimi at Hwaseol uses tender cuts normally used for grilling! You dip it in the chogochujang (sweet chili vinegar sauce) that comes with it.

The quality of the meat is amazing, isn't it! The color alone is gorgeous...! It looked so fresh you could flip the plate and it wouldn't fall off, and you could feel that freshness right away.

For the first bite I had it with just the sauce, and it clung to my tongue, sticky and chewy in a way that was seriously great. The more I chewed, the more that nutty savory Korean beef flavor came out... and it went so well with the whisky we brought, haha.

Who is Hwaseol Isu Branch for?

If you have good drinks at home and want to enjoy them with BBQ corkage free, I highly recommend Hwaseol Isu Branch near Isu Station, haha. Bring whisky, sake, wine, whatever suits your taste, and enjoy a much better-value, classier drinking night~