Magok Station seafood restaurant, solo uni toro don and sake: Ilpum

Friends, I just had an absolutely amazing meal!!! Can you see how gorgeous it looks even in the photo? Ilpum Magok, where the toro melted in my mouth! Here comes the review.

Ilpum Magok opening hours and parking

Ilpum Magok is at 112, 228 Gonghang-daero, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, and it's open 11:00-21:30. Break time is 15:00-17:30, last order is at 20:00, and it's closed every Monday. Parking is free and reservations are possible.

Ilpum Magok sits between Magok Station and Balsan Station. It's close to the main road and 5-10 minutes on foot from the station, so access is great! If you use the building's underground parking, you get up to 2 hours free.

Ilpum Magok seating: is it good for eating alone?

Inside there's one long bar table, 4-person tables, and group seating at the back. I came to eat alone, so I sat at the bar table! Every seat has a coat hook behind it, which is handy now that it's coat weather.

Ilpum Magok menu and what I ordered

I thought Ilpum Magok only had kaisendon (sashimi rice bowls), but look at the menu, there's a crazy number of items??? Lots of kaisendon types, and sushi and sashimi too...! I'd call it a seafood-focused Japanese restaurant.

• Uni toro don ₩55,000
• Gokigenchosan Matsuzan ₩6,000

It looks like a great place to come for sashimi and drinks, not just a kaisendon meal. I can't stop looking at the Geoje oyster fritters... I'll definitely come back for them, haha.

The chopsticks were disposable, which is hygienic, and you know those Japanese-style spoons that are awkward to eat with? This wasn't one of those. It was a flat spoon, so it was comfortable to eat with!!! You can eat neatly.

Side dishes: white kimchi, chawanmushi and miso soup

First out at Ilpum Magok were white kimchi, chawanmushi (savory steamed egg custard) and a clear soup. The chawanmushi was moist and bouncy like a pudding, with a tiny sprinkle of gamtae (seaweed) on top, and the aroma came through quite well.

There's a small shrimp inside the chawanmushi too, so don't miss it! I almost did, haha.

The soup is on the rich side, and its hot, comforting flavor kept me going back for more.

Gokigenchosan Matsuzan sake for ₩6,000

It felt like a waste to have only good food, so I ordered a Gokigenchosan Matsuzan sake (₩6,000). They poured it generously, right to the brim. I'm so glad I ordered it... I would have regretted skipping it!

Ilpum Magok uni toro don (₩55,000): how does it taste?

Everyone, please look at my uni toro don. So lovely... It came with nori (seaweed sheets), and also udon with chikuwa (fish cake tube). The standard set is quite generous!

Toro that gets richer the longer it sits

First I took the tempting toro (fatty tuna), dabbed it in wasabi and a little soy sauce, and it was unbelievably soft!!! So good. It's been ages since I had tuna this good... And look at this, everyone. As time went by, the oil rose up in the toro and it got even tastier.

This glossy, dripping fat melts the moment it hits your mouth... It's so, so good, I want everyone to try it.

Wrapping toro, uni and ikura in seaweed in one bite

Next I wrapped every ingredient of the uni toro don in nori. Toro, then uni (sea urchin), then ikura (salmon roe), all my favorites together! One big bite and the soft toro, uni and ikura flavors burst out. This three-way combo is just crazy.

Next, no toro, just uni and ikura on gamtae. Honestly I'm obsessed with uni and ikura. They're my favorite sushi ingredients...

Rice seasoned well enough to eat wrapped on its own

And the rice under the uni toro don was seasoned just right. It had so much umami that wrapping only the rice in nori was good enough, and I did it twice, haha. Ilpum's rice is tasty too...?

The toro pieces are big, so later I cut them in half. It's such a shame to see it disappear T_T Take a sip of sake, then eat the uni, ikura and toro wrapped in nori. Isn't this heaven...

The chikuwa udon served alongside

The chikuwa udon that came out first had tasty fish cake and bouncy noodles, easy to slurp down.

Dessert: mango panna cotta

Toward the end of the meal, Ilpum Magok brought out mango panna cotta for dessert. Normally I take just a bite of dessert and stop, but why is this so good... It wasn't cheap syrupy, it was smooth and sweet, everything. I scraped the bowl clean. A perfect meal right through dessert.

Who is Ilpum Magok best for?

There are lots of offices nearby, so Ilpum Magok works for office lunches, family meals and dates. Beyond all that, I recommend it for the taste alone! Booking my re-re-re-re-revisit now.