Gwangalli pizzeria date: birria dipped in sauce & lime, Extra Mile

For the weekend, my partner and I headed to Extra Mile (엑스트라마일), a Western-style restaurant in Gwangalli that's a great pick when you want pizza and pasta together. Here's my review right away.

What kind of restaurant is Extra Mile in Gwangalli?

Extra Mile is a pizzeria tucked into a Gwangalli alley, with a house-like exterior of white walls and a wooden door. As you stroll through the alley, this pretty house-style pizza place catches your eye.

The lighting is so bright and lovely that it felt like discovering a hidden gem. It's also an easy walk from Gwangalli Beach, so it suits a date course well.

Extra Mile's interior and seating

Inside, Extra Mile has a warm wood-toned interior with window seats and tables that fit several people. The kitchen is open, so you can watch the pizza and pasta being made.

Soft lighting and green plants add a relaxed mood, making it a Gwangalli restaurant that's good for eating slowly and chatting.

Extra Mile's pizza menu: can you order half and half?

You can pick pizzas like hot honey pepperoni, birria taco and potato, and you can order two flavors half and half, which made choosing easy. If you want pasta too, there are sets sized for your party, so even a first visit lets you try the signature dishes evenly.

Crayon coloring sheets while you wait at Extra Mile

Along with the menu, each table has a cute coloring sheet. You can fill it in with crayons in lots of colors while waiting for the food, which was a fun, playful way to pass the time on a date. Kids wouldn't get bored waiting either, and it's a small touch, but it conveys Extra Mile's bright mood.

Before the food arrived, we each colored in our favorite colors. Watching the pizza and pasta drawings get more colorful, I got more absorbed than expected, and the wait felt short. The finished drawing was cute enough to photograph, and it loosened up the mood nicely before we even started eating.

The soft drink we ordered first came out. Taking sips between bites of cheesy, spicy-topped pizza lightly cleared the rich flavors from my mouth, and it went well with the other dishes.

Extra Mile's Classic Set: tomato pasta and a half-and-half pizza

The Extra Mile Classic Set we ordered that day came with tomato pasta and a half hot honey pepperoni, half birria taco pizza. It looks delicious just sitting there.

How does Extra Mile's tomato pasta taste?

The tomato pasta came first, with finely grated cheese and plenty of herbs over a vivid red sauce. The warm tomato aroma and the nutty cheese scent rose together and whetted my appetite before I even picked up my fork. It was a nice light start before the pizza.

I liked that the tomato sauce isn't just sharply sour; you can taste the natural sweetness and subtle depth of well-cooked tomatoes. As the cheese melts it softly wraps the sauce and adds a pleasant tang, and a hint of pepper and herbs lingers at the end, so the flavor feels layered.

The noodles soak up plenty of sauce yet stay springy and never turn mushy. Twirled on a fork, they got evenly coated, and as I chewed I tasted the wheat's nuttiness and then the cheese in turn.

How was the half hot honey pepperoni, half birria taco pizza?

For the half-and-half pizza at Extra Mile, we chose hot honey pepperoni and birria taco. Comparing a sweet-spicy flavor and a rich meaty one on a single pie was very satisfying when you can't pick just one. The crust edge is golden and puffed, with plenty of toppings in the middle, and even the photo conveys the crispness of a freshly baked pizza.

Hot honey pepperoni pizza: sweet and salty without overdoing it

The hot honey pepperoni layers sweet hot honey, with a spicy finish, over salty pepperoni and rich cheese. At first the cheese's nuttiness and the honey's sweetness spread softly, and as you chew, the pepperoni's salty meatiness and gentle heat come up. The sweet-and-salty combo is distinct but not too sweet, so I finished a slice in no time.

Birria taco pizza: beef, onion and cilantro with an exotic twist

The birria taco pizza is generously topped with shredded meat, onion and cilantro. The meat is moist and tender, with deep meaty flavor and savory seasoning, while crunchy onion and fragrant cilantro lighten the heaviness. It tastes like the charm of a taco moved onto a pizza slice, and the more I alternated it with the familiar pepperoni, the more fun the contrast got.

The texture of Extra Mile's handmade pizza dough

When I lifted a slice, the melted cheese stretched softly. The bottom is thin and crisp while the inside stays chewy, true to handmade dough, so even with lots of toppings it didn't droop and was easy to eat steadily to the end. The dough has a faint fermented aroma and nuttiness, so I dipped even the crust end in sauce and ate every bit.

How to eat birria taco pizza: dip in sauce, add lime

Dipping the birria taco pizza at Extra Mile in the sauce that comes with it makes the flavor even richer. The salty, deep sauce soaks into the moist meat topping and cheese, and meaty, spiced flavor spread through my whole mouth. Adding a little lime now and then brings out a fresh aroma, and with the cilantro and onion it felt like eating a real taco.

Dipping the pizza crust in birria sauce too

The crust end is crisp on the outside and still chewy inside. Dipped in the tomato pasta sauce or the birria sauce, it gets extra moisture and savory depth, so even the pizza crust (kkodari) could be enjoyed like its own dish.

Is Extra Mile worth a return visit for a Gwangalli date?

With the tomato pasta and half-and-half pizza on one table, the tangy, soft pasta and the rich pizza flowed naturally into each other. The two pizza toppings have distinct personalities and the dough is good too, so if you like pizza and pasta, this is a satisfying combination. I'd like to come back for a Gwangalli date or a relaxed meal with friends.

Extra Mile at a glance

• Crisp, chewy handmade dough: Even with generous toppings, the bottom stays crisp and the inside chewy. You can dip the crust end in sauce and enjoy it to the last bite.
• Half-and-half pizza with two flavors: The sweet-spicy hot honey pepperoni and the rich birria taco make a fun pairing. Alternating the different flavors kept it from getting boring to the end.
• A mood that suits a Gwangalli date: The warm wood-toned interior and coloring tables feel cozy and charming. It's a good place for pizza and pasta before or after a stroll on Gwangalli Beach.