Alcohol-free gyukatsu date night near Balsan Station, Seoul: Ichigyu

I've been dating around Balsan a lot lately — so many good restaurants and bars there, great for date nights > <

Today after work we went on a dinner date to Ichigyu, a gyukatsu specialist restaurant near Balsan Station! It's apparently a popular spot that fills up fast in the evening. Let's get into the review!

Where Ichigyu Balsan Station Branch is and when it opens

Ichigyu Balsan Station Branch is at 2F, 211-ho, 269-15 Gonghang-daero, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, a 1-minute walk from Exit 1 of Balsan Station. Hours are 11:30-21:30, break time is 15:00-17:00, last order is at 14:30 and 21:00, and parking is free for 2 hours.

• ✔️ 2F, 211-ho, 269-15 Gonghang-daero, Gangseo-gu, Seoul
• ✔️ Hours 11:30-21:30 / Break time 15:00-17:00 / Last order 14:30, 21:00
• ✔️ Parking free for 2 hours

Just a 1-minute walk from Exit 1 of Balsan Station, so accessibility is great! Take the escalator up to the 2nd floor of the Hillstate Eco Magok building and it's right there.

The standing menu board out front lets you see everything at a glance — makes choosing so much easier? The straightforward pictures are great haha.

Inside Ichigyu: about 10 tables, full by 7pm

Inside Ichigyu Balsan Station Branch there are about 10 tables, and by around 7pm the place was already packed with customers. Seating isn't super plentiful, so come early during meal times. Seems pretty popular?

Ichigyu menu and prices

There's a wide range of choices beyond gyukatsu. The omurice looked good... the yakisoba napolitan looked good too... but we came for gyukatsu, so gyukatsu it is???

• Ichigyu Gyukatsu Set ₩19,500
• Ichigyu Steki Set ₩19,500
• Mini Curry ₩5,000
• Karaage & Shrimp Tempura ₩7,000
• Zero Cola ₩3,000

Ordered via QR code, done!

How to eat gyukatsu at Ichigyu

There was even a kind note on the table explaining how to eat it best.

• 1. Enjoy with the special sauce
• 2. Enjoy with wasabi, chili sauce, or salt
• 3. Use the premium French Isigny butter in three portions to make it last
• 4. Best grilled for 7-8 seconds!

The whole point of gyukatsu is grilling it yourself on this cast-iron plate, right? (This is exactly why I eat gyukatsu.) There was one at every table, and they lit it right before the food arrived.

The rice came out warm in a lidded bowl, and apparently it's unlimited refills! If it runs low you can just ask for more.

Everything we ordered came out together pretty quickly. Since it's a set, it all arrives as one full spread — neat, good-looking, and easy to eat.

What comes with the 19,500 won gyukatsu set

My partner's pick, the Ichigyu Gyukatsu Set! A decently large piece of gyukatsu, cabbage salad, various sauces, and clear soup — a clean, solid composition.

Mini curry, 5,000 won

The curry that came alongside was a separately added mini curry. Delicious with rice — clean and mild. Eating it with the fried food, though, I think it could've used a bit more spice.

Steki (steak) set, 19,500 won

My pick, the Steki Set! Same composition as the gyukatsu set, just a different main. I picked steki so I could steal bites of my partner's gyukatsu haha. I'd had gyukatsu before but this was my first time with steki.

Karaage & shrimp tempura, 7,000 won

My partner insisted we could finish it all, so we added this side of karaage and shrimp tempura (we really did finish it all). The shrimp tempura was surprisingly big and hearty — beyond my expectations.

Grilling gyukatsu and steki in Isigny butter

Now for the main event — grilling the gyukatsu and steki. What makes Ichigyu special is that they use French Isigny butter.

You're supposed to use the butter in thirds, but I didn't know that at first and just dumped it all in^^...

The sirloin came out medium-rare, and the meat looked great > <

Let's grill 2 pieces of steki and 2 pieces of gyukatsu on the nicely melted butter. The butter smell is seriously deadly...

Tried the well-grilled gyukatsu first. For me, wasabi was the best pairing, more than salt or chili sauce. Delicious plain, and delicious with rice too!

Grilled the steki well too — I'd highly recommend the special sauce + wasabi combo, so definitely try that. Both the gyukatsu and steki were delicious, but the steki was more my style. The meat was seriously tender.

There was food... now there isn't...! A couple who cleaned their plates completely, seriously, seriously full.

These days Japanese food in Korea has really leveled up, and Ichigyu's gyukatsu was very similar to and just as delicious as the gyukatsu I had in Fukuoka. If you're craving gyukatsu, go to Ichigyu!

Why Ichigyu works for a date near Balsan Station

On the way out there was a photo spot, so we took some pictures. A rare non-alcohol date~ (honestly, a beer together would've made it even better haha.)

If you're wondering what to eat on a date near Balsan Station, I recommend Ichigyu. The fun of grilling it yourself is a bonus > <!