Gangnam Station eel restaurant with private rooms: Jangsimdo Gangnam

Jangsimdo, a Gangnam Station lunch favorite, is a grilled eel restaurant with private rooms.

Hi, this is Qming :) Before my company moved offices, we were based near Gangnam Station, and whenever there was an important meeting or meal, my coworkers would often head to Jangsimdo. Eel tends to come with a price tag, so I always figured it'd feel a bit much for lunch — but apparently Jangsimdo has a separate lunch special menu that makes it surprisingly approachable. I was curious, so I finally went! Let me introduce it :)

Where is Jangsimdo Gangnam, and when is it open?

• Location: B2, 363 Gangnam-daero, Seocho-gu, Seoul (13m from Gangnam Station Exit 5)
• Hours: Daily 11:00–22:00
• Break time: 15:00–17:00
• Pet-friendly
• Corkage available (1 bottle free)
• Free parking for 2 hours (valet)
• Private rooms available (2 to 20 people)

It's located in 363 Gangnam Tower, right in front of Exit 5. Being literally right by the station makes it a great spot to set up meetings in Gangnam, and easy to get to by public transport. There's even a separate dedicated entrance leading straight into Jangsimdo from the stairs at the back of the building! Finding a restaurant with parking in the middle of Gangnam is surprisingly hard, so that was another plus haha.

Inside Jangsimdo Gangnam: private rooms for 2 to 20

There's a menu board set up at the entrance, so you can check the menu lineup and prices before going in! Since eel is a pricier dish, being able to check ahead was a nice touch :)

Jangsimdo is said to be the largest eel restaurant near Gangnam Station, and along with regular tables, there are private rooms in the back for dining away from the crowd.

The overall interior has a calm, upscale feel with wood tones throughout, so I'd recommend it not just for important meals or family gatherings but also for anyone looking for a matchmaking dinner venue. What I also found interesting was the pre-grilling area! The space using the charcoal brazier is decorated to feel like it's channeling an old-fashioned atmosphere, giving Jangsimdo a distinct vibe of its own.

Jangsimdo Gangnam menu and prices

You order easily using the tablet at each table. The signature menu is the seonsang sutbul teukjangeo++ at ₩49,000, and the honey tare sauce seasoned eel at ₩49,000. Beyond eel, there was also a good variety of standalone dishes you can order alongside.

There are also meal options like sotbap (hot pot rice), pollack roe clam soup, bibim guksu, and Korean beef yukhoe bibim guksu. There's a separate lunch special menu too, so anyone looking for a Gangnam Station lunch spot might want to check it out :)

Banchan and organic wrap greens at Jangsimdo Gangnam

They set the table full with banchan right from the start. There's a good variety of side dishes and sauces to go with the eel!

What especially caught my eye was a full plate of lettuce wraps — apparently they use organic greens that cost about three times as much as regular ones :) They were noticeably tender, not tough at all, and had great texture when wrapped around the eel.

Seonsang sutbul teukjangeo++ (charcoal-grilled premium eel), 49,000 won

The seonsang sutbul teukjangeo can be ordered starting at 2 servings. Finally, the main eel arrives! They place the pre-grilled eel on the grill pan, and just looking at it, it's clearly hearty — heart eyes. Staff cut the eel into bite-sized pieces and grill it entirely from start to finish. You just relax and wait for it to be ready to eat haha.

Grilling eel yourself is tricky — it's hard to tell how much to cook it, and the flesh can fall apart if you mess up — so having it grilled professionally made things so much easier.

Once fully cooked, the eel gets neatly moved to the side so it stays warm while you eat. The eel itself was thick, giving it a satisfying chew while the inside stayed very tender. The outside was grilled to a golden, savory crisp while the inside was moist, really bringing out that signature soft eel texture :)

Even though the eel kept grilling at the table, no smoke drifted up toward our faces, which made the whole meal quite pleasant. Without a big hood over the table, it was easy to talk to the person across from us, and there was less worry about smells clinging to our clothes! Details like this are probably why people choose this place for important meals.

Bibim guksu and eel soup to finish

We also ordered bibim guksu and eel soup as meal dishes. The bibim guksu comes with a tangy, spicy sauce, vegetables, seaweed flakes, and boiled egg on top — since eel is a fairly rich, oily food, taking a bite of the noodles in between really cleared the palate, and the combination worked great haha.

You can tell from the photo alone that the eel soup broth looks rich. It has a deep, savory broth that was great for wrapping up the meal after the eel, and with chives mixed in, it felt hearty and filling.

How to eat the grilled eel at Jangsimdo Gangnam

I first tried the well-grilled eel completely plain, and it was savory and tender. My favorite combination was placing the eel on a perilla leaf with shredded ginger — clean and simple +_+ Adding roasted seaweed and a little wasabi or sauce was also delicious.

Dipping it generously in breadcrumbs turned out to be a surprisingly delicious touch too! My energy's been running on empty lately, even had a nosebleed recently... but eating the eel tail really gave me a boost. There's such a wide range of banchan, so I'd recommend trying different combinations to find your favorite.

Is Jangsimdo Gangnam right for a family introduction dinner?

I've been scouting matchmaking dinner venues lately, and while eating here, my boyfriend and I agreed this place would be a really good fit. The atmosphere is clean and upscale, and with private rooms available, it seems perfect not just for matchmaking dinners but for engagement gatherings too.

It's great to visit for eel at dinner, but with a separate lunch special menu, Jangsimdo is already famous as a Gangnam Station lunch spot. I'd been curious about this place for a while, and visiting in person was really satisfying — I'd definitely go back :)