Rare-grilled sirloin gyukatsu near Yeouido Station: Izawa

I was craving the gyukatsu I had in Kyoto, so I went to Izawa Yeouido Direct Store, a well-known spot near Yeouido.

Climbing up to the second floor of the old, nostalgia-inducing arcade building, Izawa was waiting for us haha ☺️ The sirloin gyukatsu (breaded, fried cutlet) is grilled by you at the table, which made eating it kind of fun — but more than anything, the combo of melt-in-your-mouth meat and crispy breading was really delicious. 🤤

🥩 Sirloin gyukatsu — how much do you actually get?

We ordered the sirloin gyukatsu for two. When the food first arrived, I honestly thought, "huh, that's less than I expected?"

But once we started grilling and eating it piece by piece, it turned out to be quite a lot. Gyukatsu is beef that's fried once, then grilled to your liking on a mini-brazier set up at the table.

Recommended: grill it just lightly

I wanted to really taste the beef itself, so I only grilled it lightly.

The outside was wrapped in crispy! breading while the inside kept the chewy flavor of the sirloin — the combination of the two was really great. ❤️

Personally, I found it much tastier lightly grilled rather than well done. The meat was tender enough to cut with your front teeth.

I also liked loading up the whole grill plate and grilling piece after piece continuously 😆 (And if the flame happens to go out while you're eating, no worries! You can request both fuel and a grill-plate swap via the tablet!)

Side dishes that cut through the richness

Since gyukatsu is made from tender sirloin, eating it continuously can start to feel a little rich.

That's where the diced radish kimchi and stir-fried kimchi come in, along with a cabbage salad with sesame dressing — they cleaned up my palate in between bites. I don't usually eat ginger, so I left it out haha.

🍛 Definitely add rice + mini curry!

The combo I really want to recommend is gyukatsu + rice + miso soup + (spicy) mini curry. Rice with gyukatsu is delicious on its own, and pairing it with the fairly spicy mini curry in between made the combination better than I expected. 😆

So personally, I think adding rice and mini curry is a must. ❤️ (Apparently if you leave a Naver review, you can choose either a free mini curry or a drink.) If you're a gyukatsu lover, try it with this combo!

🚗 How we handled parking

We bravely brought our car that day. Before visiting, we'd checked that underground parking support wasn't available, so I was a little worried — "what if there's no spot left?"

Luckily, there was exactly one last spot left in the 1st-floor arcade parking lot! Thanks to that, we managed to park safely haha. After parking, we handed the car key to the person managing the lot.

We were told that after 8pm, you settle parking payment at the security office located inside on the 1st floor (we showed them the receipt from Izawa!). If you're planning to visit by car, I'd recommend checking parking support and the payment process in advance.

❤️ After eating it myself

Overall, Izawa Yeouido was fun because you grill the gyukatsu yourself, and above all, the chewy sirloin and crispy breading came together really well — it was delicious. It looked like a small portion at first, but with rice and curry added, it turned out to be a surprisingly filling meal.

If you're looking for gyukatsu near Yeouido Station, this place is worth a visit at least once. Especially recommended if you love gyukatsu or want to try beef in a slightly different way than usual! ❤️ Since you grill it yourself and can eat slowly, it also felt like a solid option for anyone looking for a date spot near Yeouido. 😊