Balsan Station Japanese restaurant special sashimi bowl: Ilpum Magok

Ilpum Magok, a kaisendon restaurant in Magok

I heard my favorite kind of kaisendon (seafood rice bowl) spot had a branch in Magok, so I went to check it out. From the moment I walked in, the atmosphere and the way people reacted felt different, and once I tasted the food, yep — this is a real Magok kaisendon spot. My husband and I went together, and the place was clean and calm even when it got busy, which made it feel like a great date spot too.

• Address: 228 Gonghang-daero, 112-ho, Gangseo-gu, Seoul
• Hours: 11:00-21:30 (closed Mondays)
• Break time: 15:00-17:30
• Free parking in the building for 2 hours

Where Ilpum Magok is and where to park

Ilpum Magok sits between Magok and Balsan stations — a bit closer to Balsan Station. Parking around Balsan Station is always tough, but since the building offers in-house parking, it's easy to drive here. Register your parking at checkout and you get up to 2 hours free.

With so many offices near Balsan and Magok stations, tons of office workers come here, along with couples on dates and families out for a meal. We arrived right as break time ended. We got there a little before 5, waited a bit, and went in as soon as it opened — right after us, people kept streaming in nonstop, and the place filled up even in the early evening.

Counter seats, tables and the open kitchen at Ilpum Magok

A clean interior and atmosphere, very fitting for a Japanese restaurant. The kitchen is open, so you can watch the food being prepared right in front of you — reassuring in terms of cleanliness. Inside, seating is split between counter seats and tables: the counter is for 1-2 people, and tables are for parties of 3 or more. My husband and I sat at the counter, side by side, which was nice both for chatting and for watching the food come together.

The Ilpum Magok menu and what we ordered

There were so many delicious-looking options that we agonized over the menu for a while. This place seems known for its kaisendon and its whole-fish eel rice bowl (unagi-don). After much debate, I ordered the premium kaisendon and my husband ordered the special sashimi bowl.

Before the main dishes, chawanmushi (Japanese steamed egg custard) came out first. It was great for warming up the stomach — a mild, savory egg flavor with a soft, pudding-like texture.

Premium kaisendon

This is the dish I ordered, the premium kaisendon. The bowl was packed generously with a variety of seafood. Salmon, monkfish liver, sweet shrimp, scallop, sea urchin, gamtae (seasoned laver), abalone, and more — it felt like they'd loaded in the best ingredients they could.

Wrapping the rice and sashimi in the seaweed served alongside, plus the gamtae in the kaisendon bowl, made it even tastier.

And of course, beer had to be part of it.

The special sashimi bowl my husband ordered

The sashimi bowl my husband ordered had a genuinely huge amount of sashimi. Salmon, tuna, and more — every single bite tasted fresh.

Cold udon with karaage

Cold udon came out alongside the mains. I've always believed udon is only good hot, so I'd never tried cold udon before. Wow... but this cold udon — it's a real hidden gem!

I thought it would just be regular udon served cold, but the broth itself tastes completely different — refreshing with a slight tang, and the noodles are chewier. There was a piece of karaage (Japanese fried chicken) in the broth, and since we ate it right when it arrived, it was still warm.

Warm karaage sitting in cold broth was a special combination too — juicy, springy meat with the cold broth seeping in. Hot-cold, hot-cold(?) (basically just means it's really good...)

Milk pudding and mango pannacotta

The dessert that came out last — milk pudding, followed by mango pannacotta — wrapped things up sweetly and cleanly!

Is Ilpum Magok worth a visit?

Ilpum Magok is a clean, well-organized Japanese restaurant. From parking to seating to how spotless the store is, there wasn't a single inconvenience — plus kaisendon and sashimi bowls made with fresh ingredients, and appetizers and desserts served like a full course! It was a truly satisfying meal. A place memorable enough that I want to go back soon. If I'm ever near Magok again, I think I'll stop by.

If you're dating in Magok. If you want a fun meal with family. If you want a high-quality meal in a clean Japanese restaurant. Ilpum Magok is worth a visit.