Yeoksam eel rice bowl restaurant with Japanese sikhye dessert: Unagiwa

I was looking for somewhere to have lunch in Yeoksam before a dress tour when I found this eel rice bowl spot near my boyfriend's office. Unagiwa 💛 had such a classy atmosphere that it worked both as a date spot and a casual lunch place. Here's my review after filling up on hitsumabushi and unadon.

Where is Unagiwa? Next to GS Tower at Yeoksam Station exit 7

Unagiwa is located in the building next to GS Tower, right by exit 7 of Yeoksam Station — a good spot for office workers to grab lunch too.

Valet parking near Unagiwa and what it costs

Valet parking for Unagiwa is available at 25 Teheran-ro 27-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. The valet fee is ₩5,000 for 2 hours, just so you know!

Unagiwa appears as soon as you climb the stairs. I heard that unagi (うなぎ, unagi) means freshwater eel in Japanese. The entrance, decked out with red lighting and Japanese signage from the start, really looked the part of a Japanese-style eel rice bowl place.

Inside Unagiwa: the dining room and seating

The inside was super clean, like it was a newly-opened Yeoksam restaurant. You'd expect some fishy smell from an eel place, but there was none at all, and it felt so fresh that my mood lifted the moment I walked in.

It had that traditional Japanese feel while still looking clean and tidy. Even the trees visible through the window matched the interior perfectly, so good,,,

As soon as we sat down, water and wet wipes were brought out — and even the cup and the wet wipe holder were pretty!

Unagiwa menu and prices

• (Regular) Hitsumabushi (eel rice bowl) ₩38,000
• (Large) Hitsumabushi (eel rice bowl) ₩52,000
• (Mini) Hitsumabushi (eel rice bowl) ₩26,000
• (Regular) Unadon (eel rice bowl) ₩38,000
• (Large) Unadon (eel rice bowl) ₩52,000
• Ichino Unadon (whole eel rice bowl) ₩38,000
• Shirayaki set (salt-grilled) ₩38,000
• Unagi tamagoyaki (eel omelette), small ₩12,000

We tried one of each — (regular) hitsumabushi and (regular) unadon (₩76,000 for two).

There's also a variety of drinks like sake, draft beer and highballs, so you can enjoy a leisurely meal with a drink on the side.

✔️ Just so you know, if you leave a Naver receipt review, you can get one of the following: 1 piece of shio konbu squid, 1 matcha pudding, or 1 umeboshi ade!

(Regular) hitsumabushi, 38,000 won: how to eat it in four stages

📍What's included: eel rice bowl, salad, soup, chawanmushi, ocha (tea), seaweed, perilla leaf, chives, wasabi, side dishes, spicy sauce

The eel Unagiwa uses is the softest kind, 3.5–5 chi (a Japanese unit for eel size), charcoal-grilled — and it really was incredibly soft. They said it's 100% domestic, antibiotic-free japonica eel raised in-house, which made it a Yeoksam eel rice bowl restaurant I could trust even more 💗

The chawanmushi, a Japanese-style steamed egg custard, came piled high with mushrooms. The texture was still alive, which made it even tastier! It was perfect to start with the salad and chawanmushi as appetizers.

I discovered the chawanmushi-specific spoon a little too late haha,,,

The hitsumabushi could be divided into four parts and eaten in different ways like this.

• 1️⃣ Put a portion in the small dish and enjoy the eel's natural flavor
• 2️⃣ Add chives and wasabi for more depth of flavor
• 3️⃣ Sprinkle seaweed flakes and pour the ocha from the tokkuri jug over it to make ochazuke
• 4️⃣ When it gets too rich, add the spicy sauce

The eel is grilled with a centuries-old traditional Nagoya tare sauce imported directly from Japan, and the umami was on another level.

Maybe thanks to the sauce, there was never a moment it felt too rich. Especially when eaten with perilla leaf on top, the aroma made the eel taste even better!!

Adding the spicy sauce partway through gave it a whole different feel again. It was great being able to enjoy the eel rice bowl in so many ways.

And the real highlight was the ochazuke. Since the eel was such high quality with no fishy taste, it was delicious even eaten as ochazuke.

(Regular) unadon, 38,000 won: the softer eel of the two

Unadon is an eel rice bowl topped with eel that's charcoal-grilled and then steamed once more, which makes it much softer than the eel used in the hitsumabushi. The downside is that ocha isn't served with this one, so you can't enjoy ochazuke.

Aside from not getting the ocha, the setup is identical to the hitsumabushi. Personally I preferred the unadon for its softer eel, but next time I'd order the hitsumabushi so I can enjoy the ochazuke.

For dessert, we even got Japanese-style sikhye, which made for a perfect finish.

Who is Unagiwa best for?

With its great atmosphere and great food, this Yeoksam eel rice bowl restaurant worked well for a date, a more formal occasion, or just a casual lunch.