Balsan Station Korean restaurant, weekend lunch with kids: Mikodam

Hi, I'm Riri. On the weekend I wanted some clean, proper Korean food with my family, so we went to Mikodam Magok-Balsan Branch near Balsan Station. It's a place that lays out a full set-menu table centered on seaweed soup and cockles, and it turned out to be a solid pick for a family meal out.

Where is Mikodam Magok-Balsan Branch, and where do you park?

Mikodam Magok-Balsan Branch is near the NC Department Store by Balsan Station. We visited for weekend lunch and saw a lot of families around. Parking is advertised as 3 hours free, but we couldn't find the lot nearby, so we ended up parking on the street across from the restaurant.

What the entrance looks like from the street

The exterior has a clean, tidy feel. It's close to Balsan Station, so it's also a fine spot to reach by public transit.

Inside Mikodam: the hall, the private room and kiosk ordering

Walking in, the space was bigger than I expected. It felt clean overall, and the tables weren't packed too close together, so we could eat comfortably.

There's also a room further inside, which looked great for family gatherings or larger groups eating together.

Ordering was simple through the kiosk on the table.

What comes in the ₩46,000 set for two?

We ordered the set for two.

Set for two, ₩46,000

• Basic composition: seaweed soup for one + cockle bibimbap for one + side dish for one
• Seaweed soup choice: beef seaweed soup / flounder seaweed soup / abalone seaweed soup +₩4,000
• Cockle bibimbap choice: soy-marinated / vinegar-marinated
• Side menu choice: beef jeon / Jeju yellow crab marinated in soy sauce
• Add-on menu: LA galbi +₩20,000

We chose beef seaweed soup + soy-marinated cockle bibimbap + beef jeon.

The side dishes that fill the table

About 5 minutes after ordering, everything came out at once.

There was a nice variety of side dishes, from namul (seasoned vegetable) sides like bracken, mung bean sprouts, and bok choy to stir-fried pork, japchae (glass noodle stir-fry), salad, kimchi, and seaweed. The table was loaded with food and the dishes and cutlery were clean, so it all looked tidy too.

Beef jeon: ask to leave out the chive salad if you're with a child

The beef jeon (pan-fried beef) was thinly pan-fried and had a nice soft, savory flavor. It wasn't overly greasy, more light and nutty, so it went well with rice too. There was no fishy taste at all, and we enjoyed it.

That said, there's a chive salad in the middle and some chive salad liquid underneath, which can be spicy for a kid. If you're visiting with a child, it's better to ask for the chive salad to be left out separately.

Soy-marinated cockle bibimbap

We chose the soy-marinated version of the cockle bibimbap. It came with plenty of cockles and was seasoned with soy sauce, which paired well with the rice. It kept the distinct flavor of the cockles while being well seasoned, so it was delicious. Mixing the vegetables and cockles into the rice made for a satisfying meal on its own.

Beef seaweed soup, the highlight of the meal

The beef seaweed soup had quite a lot of beef in it, and the broth was rich and deep. The seaweed was soft and the broth had good umami — this was the dish I found especially delicious that day. It had a clean yet deep flavor that went well with rice.

My kid ate the seaweed soup well too.

Grilled mackerel also came out, which was oily and savory and went well with rice. The stir-fried pork and namul were tasty too, so we ended up eating a bit of everything instead of focusing on just one dish. Overall the seasoning was well balanced and the table was set out cleanly, which made it good for sharing as a family.

Dessert: popped corn, sikhye and plum tea

After the meal, there's popped corn, sikhye, and plum tea available. Finishing off a full meal with sikhye and plum tea felt like a clean way to end things.

Events running at Mikodam right now

There's a review event where you can get an egg roll, and also an event where visiting within a week before or after your birthday gets you a large beef jeon.

Is Mikodam worth it for a weekend family lunch?

Mikodam's food was clean and tidy overall, with clean flavors, making it a good choice for a family meal out. The beef jeon in particular was light and nutty, and the soy-marinated cockle bibimbap paired the cockles and rice nicely. The beef seaweed soup had a rich, deep broth — that was the dish I really enjoyed that day.

There were a lot of families at weekend lunch, and the restaurant is fairly spacious with a room, so it looked like a good spot for family gatherings too. If you're visiting with a kid, note that the chive salad in the beef jeon and the cockle bibimbap can be spicy. We shared a generous spread of Korean dishes and finished the meal completely full.