Soy-based yukhoe bibimbap for a late lunch in Gasan, Seoul: Yukhwang

I recently visited Gasan Digital Complex Station and had a really satisfying lunch, so I wanted to write up a review~ The place is called Yukhwang, and I had the yukhoe bibimbap (raw beef mixed rice) and a plate of yukhoe (raw beef). Yukhwang's yukhoe bibimbap isn't the usual gochujang-seasoned style — it's soy-based, which I found pretty striking.

It was my first time trying this style, and since the seasoning wasn't overpowering, the flavor of the yukhoe itself really came through — that was the appeal for me.

Where Yukhwang is and what's on the menu: 5 minutes from Exit 8, Gasan Digital Complex Station

Yukhwang is located a little over five minutes from Exit 8 of Gasan Digital Complex Station. There are a lot of offices nearby, so it seemed like people working in the area come here for lunch.

I visited a bit after the lunch rush, so there were only a few tables of office workers whose meal had run long. The interior was clean overall, and the chairs had space to tuck your bags into, which was convenient.

The menu has meal options like gomtang, chadol gomtang, yukhoe bibimbap, and yukhoe mulhoe (cold raw beef soup), plus suyuk (boiled meat), yukhoe, and various hot pots. The yukhoe mulhoe in particular seemed unusual and I wanted to try it, but since the next day was a wedding... I couldn't bring myself to try something new, so I went with the yukhoe bibimbap and a plate of yukhoe to load up on energy instead.

Per the menu at the time of my visit, the yukhoe bibimbap was ₩13,000 and a plate of yukhoe was ₩27,000. With lunch prices going up so much lately, I personally felt it wasn't bad to be able to get a bibimbap with actual yukhoe in it for ₩13,000.

Yukhwang's side dishes: kkakdugi, seasoned lettuce and salted octopus

After ordering, the side dishes came out first. When I visited, the sides were kkakdugi (radish kimchi), seasoned lettuce, and nakji jeotgal (seasoned octopus).

The seasoned lettuce had a slight jeotgal (salted seafood) flavor to it, which I actually really enjoyed — a personal thumbs up! The nakji jeotgal seemed like it would be a real treat eaten together with the gomtang.

Yukhwang's soy-based yukhoe bibimbap, 13,000 won

And the dish that impressed me the most that day was, without question, the yukhoe bibimbap.

When I think of yukhoe bibimbap, I naturally picture mixing it with gochujang seasoning, but Yukhwang's version is soy-based. This was my first time trying a soy-based yukhoe bibimbap, and it was far more appealing than I expected. Best of all, since the seasoning didn't overwhelm the dish, the flavor of the yukhoe itself really came through.

It can be a bit disappointing when you order yukhoe bibimbap and there's barely any yukhoe in it, haha. But here, I could really feel that there was a generous amount of yukhoe mixed in as I ate.

The yukhoe bibimbap also comes with a bowl of gomtang broth on the side. Since yukhoe is a cold dish, it was nice to be able to have some warm broth alongside it. It seemed to be the same broth used in the gomtang, and honestly, the bibimbap was delicious, but having the tasty gomtang broth alongside it made the whole meal that much more satisfying.

A plate of yukhoe for 27,000 won: fresh, springy raw beef

That day I was really in the mood to load up on yukhoe, so I ordered a plate of yukhoe alongside the bibimbap. With yukhoe, you can tell right away from the texture if it's not fresh. If it feels mushy or slimy, I tend to lose my appetite for it, but the yukhoe I had that day was fresh with a great chewy texture.

How to eat it: wrapping the yukhoe in gim (seaweed) with the dipping sauce

It was fine to just eat the yukhoe plain, but what I personally found fun was the accompaniments and the way it's meant to be eaten. You place the yukhoe on a sheet of gim (dried seaweed), add minagri (water dropwort), radish, and pickled radish strips, wrap it up, and dip it lightly in the sauce. The sauce seemed to be a mix of gochujang, garlic, soy sauce, and sesame oil.

Eating it this way, with the added texture of the gim and vegetables, made for a real treat, different from eating the yukhoe on its own. Rather than sticking to one way of eating it, it was fun to try it plain, then dipped in sauce, then wrapped in gim with the accompaniments.

Is Yukhwang worth it for lunch near Gasan Digital Complex Station?

The soy-based yukhoe bibimbap I had at Yukhwang this time really stuck with me. It was my first time trying a soy-based yukhoe bibimbap at all, and since the seasoning didn't cover up the flavor of the yukhoe, it was a great way to enjoy the beef's own taste and texture.

The portion of yukhoe was satisfying too, chewy and fresh, and the gomtang broth served alongside had a deep flavor, making it a solid meal overall. Given how expensive eating out has gotten lately, being able to get a quality yukhoe bibimbap for ₩13,000 felt pretty good too.

If you're near Gasan Digital Complex Station and craving something more substantial than your usual lunch spot — a meal with real yukhoe in it — this is worth considering. If you happen to be in the area, hope this helps! : )