Gongdeok fine dining yukhoe and gamtae tasting dinner: Usu Dinner B

Today I want to introduce Usu, a restaurant I'd recommend for a sangyeonrye (formal meeting between families before a wedding) in Seoul. I went for an anniversary date, and everything from the food to the atmosphere seemed like something even parents would love.

Every seat is a private room, and the course runs through good ingredients — 1++ grade premium hanwoo, abalone, lobster, sweet shrimp, red tilefish — one after another. And honestly, everything was delicious from start to finish. For an important occasion, the food really does need to be good in the end. Usu is a Seoul fine dining spot that nails both the mood and the food, so let me walk you through the Dinner B Course one dish at a time.

Where is Usu in Gongdeok? Parking and opening hours

Usu's Gongdeok branch is on the basement 2nd floor of Lotte Castle President, 467 Gongdeok-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul. Hours are 11:00–22:00 with a break time from 15:00–17:00, open every day of the year. Parking is in a spacious lot with the first 3 hours free, and corkage is free too.

The location is really convenient. Come out of Exit 2 of Gongdeok Station and it's right there! You don't go through the Lotte Castle building itself — there's a separate stairway. For parking, you just use the complex's parking lot.

Usu Gongdeok: every seat in a private room

Every seat at Usu is a private room. There's a range from 4-person rooms to group rooms for larger parties.

The moment I walked in, I loved the atmosphere! It's all calm gray tones with soft lighting, giving it an upscale feel. Walking down the hallway, rooms line up on both sides.

There are framed pieces on the walls that look almost like art, and the whole space is calm, making it great for a quiet meal! I don't think there's a better place for an anniversary date or a family gathering restaurant!

What's in Usu's Dinner B Course 90g, and what it costs

What we had was Dinner B Course 90g, ₩129,000 per person. When the course starts, they show you the actual ingredients you'll be eating that day while explaining them: 1++ grade premium hanwoo, abalone, clams, lobster, sweet shrimp, red tilefish, sea bream, zucchini, shiitake mushroom.

Hearing the explanation for each ingredient got me excited even before eating. Every time a dish comes out, they kindly explain the ingredients and how to eat it, so even first-timers to course dining can enjoy it without difficulty.

First course: beef and chicken jinjuk (thick porridge)

First up was u-gye jinjuk, a rich porridge made from deeply simmered hanwoo bone broth and chicken stock, with three kinds of mushrooms, asparagus, and nurungji (crispy scorched rice) mixed in.

Starting with a warm porridge made my stomach feel warm right away — the feeling of properly starting with something good for your body! The rich broth plus the nurungji made it a light, easy way to open the course.

Four bite-size dishes at Usu that look as good as they taste

And then my favorite part — the four bite-size dishes! They told us to eat starting from the bottom left, going counterclockwise!

A crispy roll filled with grilled scallop and clam cream sauce. Crispy on the outside, fresh inside — delicious right from the first bite.

A bulgogi sandwich with hanwoo bulgogi, mushroom duxelles, and truffle cream cheese on brioche. The bread and bulgogi just melt together~

Inside the pollack roe gim-bugak (fried seasoned laver) was fried abalone innard rice, sweet shrimp, and yuzu sauce.

Last was the lobster taco! A taco made with squid ink and black sesame, filled with sous vide lobster, tomato, and onion.

Each one was a perfect one-bite size but wow... too pretty to eat. One gorgeous, delicious dish next to another! All four were a treat for the eyes and the mouth.

Shiitake, shrimp and zucchini plated like a painting

Next was fried shiitake mushroom stuffed with minced shrimp, and a zucchini roll, served with tofu cream sauce and wild herb oil. The visual alone... it's basically a painting!

I started with the shiitake mushroom — crispy and chewy shiitake plus the minced shrimp! Great texture, and the flavor really delivered too.

The tofu cream sauce especially was really delicious — I ended up eating the sauce by itself with a spoon after finishing the food.

Hanwoo yukhoe with gamtae seaweed, worth ordering twice

My partner especially loved the hanwoo yukhoe (Korean beef tartare) with gamtae (dried seaweed)! You eat fresh hanwoo yukhoe together with gamtae and sauce, and the soft tartare just melts in your mouth.

Eating the gamtae together adds a nutty, salty flavor too. The two of us seriously debated, 'Can we not order more of this?'

Grilled red tilefish with neungi mushroom broth

Grilled red tilefish is placed on top of barley wild herb rice, and neungi mushroom broth is poured over it. I usually love pot rice or ochazuke, so this was completely my kind of dish!

Scooping the warm neungi mushroom broth together with the barley wild herb rice and tilefish was so good. I was eating so much that my partner gave me some of theirs too.

1++ grade hanwoo tteokgalbi (grilled beef patty)

The 1++ grade hanwoo tteokgalbi came with celeriac purée! Mixing the purée into the tteokgalbi as I ate it — wow... so juicy!

Usu really is good for grilled hanwoo, but the tteokgalbi is a standout dish too.

Five-color gardenia noodles with chewy Wando abalone

The abalone five-color gardenia noodles feature Wando abalone and several herbs eaten together with gardenia-dyed noodles. The abalone is incredibly chewy! Eating the herbs and gardenia noodles all together gives a range of textures, and the mustard-garlic sauce adds a sweet, salty flavor that pairs really well.

The gardenia noodles especially were something I tried for the first time, and the noodles themselves were genuinely delicious!!!

Main course: 1++ sirloin and sea bream pot rice

Finally, the main event! The 1++ grade hanwoo sirloin arrives with a full table spread. You grill the beef yourself over a personal charcoal brazier, and side dishes like mustard leaf kimchi, wild garlic leaves, and salted seafood come along too.

The beef quality was excellent right from the start. Grilled just enough, and one bite was full of juices!

The tender sirloin melted in my mouth — really, 1++ grade hanwoo is amazing. The side dishes were all so refined too, pairing perfectly with the beef.

And then the sea bream pot rice! They first show you the whole pot before portioning it out to eat.

There's so much sea bream in it that the rice alone is delicious. Beef plus sea bream pot rice — the main course really delivered!

Corn dessert and jasmine tea to finish the Usu course

Last was a corn-based dessert. Corn ice cream, corn cake, and cream cheese come together, and the plating is beautiful right to the very end.

And to finish it off, jasmine tea! With the nice touch of a single ice cube floating in it! From the beef and chicken porridge to the final jasmine tea, nothing was missing in either flavor or plating — this is what fine dining should be, I thought!

Why Usu works for a sangyeonrye or family dinner in Gongdeok

Not a single dish in Usu's Dinner B Course fell short, from start to finish. With course meals, there's usually one or two dishes that don't quite fit your taste, but here they used good ingredients while keeping the flavor balance right too.

I came for an anniversary date, but I thought parents would really love this place too. Especially for an important occasion like a sangyeonrye, the food really has to be good. Every seat is a private room, and as each course arrives one by one, it naturally gives you things to talk about.

If you're looking for a sangyeonrye restaurant in Seoul, I'd recommend Usu's Gongdeok branch. It was a Seoul fine dining spot I'd want to come back to for anniversaries, family gatherings, and other days spent with someone special! (Saying this with full sincerity)