Window-seat lunch date pasta with fresh truffle at Romaok Magok

Did you know there's a restaurant near Magok Naru where you can really feel the vibe of Rome, Italy? Here's the story of a Magok favorite with a classic mood like a backstreet in Rome, where every dish I ordered was perfect.

Getting to Romaok Magok from Magok Naru Station, and parking

It's on the 3rd floor of LG Arts Center Seoul, about a 1-minute walk from Exit 4 of Magok Naru. Since it's near Seoul Botanic Park, it's perfect for a date course. There's also comfortable 2-hour free parking in the building, worth noting.

• 🏠 3F LG Arts Center Seoul, 136 Magokjungang-ro, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🚇 54m from Exit 4 of Magok Naru Station
• ⏰ Daily 11:00–21:30 (break time 15:00–17:00, last order 14:00, 20:30)
• 📍 Group seating, reservations, Wi-Fi, separate men's/women's restrooms, high chairs, corkage available

The interior, with its arched structures as the standout feature

It felt like discovering a hidden gem inside the Colosseum in Rome, Italy-!✨ The huge arched structure is the centerpiece, making the interior feel like a piece of the Colosseum transplanted here. The cream-toned arches and warm lighting create an overall classic mood. Romaok is a Blue Ribbon-rated Magok favorite with plenty of atmosphere.

Romaok, a trattoria-style Italian restaurant, has high ceilings and trendy, stylish exposed concrete. Seeing the shelves lined with wine bottles at this Magok Naru favorite makes it feel like some sentimental restaurant somewhere in Europe — perfect for a Magok date course.

A window-seat lunch date with my husband

There's a bar table that's great for 1–2 people dining, and there are also large group tables that work well for family outings, group gatherings, or office dinners.

I visited this time for a lunch date with my husband, and luckily we got a window seat with proper natural light-!✨ The space itself has a bright, relaxed mood, making it perfect for a comfortable conversation-filled date. Even though we came at an early lunch hour, office workers coming for team meals and date-night couples kept streaming in until the place was full before we knew it.

Romaok Magok's menu lineup and what we ordered

From starters like pine nut caprese salad and kelp-aged flounder carpaccio, to mains like pasta and risotto, chicken and steak, and coffee, tea, glasses of wine, beer, and highballs — there's a wide variety. If you're coming with a group, there are pasta & steak sets and pasta & risotto sets for 2, 3, or 4 people, worth checking out.

Here's what we ordered.

• ✔️ Kelp-aged flounder carpaccio (₩18,000)
• ✔️ Fresh truffle Korean beef white ragu pasta (₩29,000)
• ✔️ Iced hibiscus (₩4,500)

You order via the tablet on the table. Leaving a Naver receipt review gets you a free can of soda, so don't miss out on that kind of event.

Pre-meal bread with green onion baked in

Wow, the pre-meal bread here is seriously delicious-! Baked warm and fresh, it's soft and moist, with green onion baked inside giving it a subtle savory flavor — good stuff. Dipping it in herb oil brings out a fragrant herb aroma that tastes upscale.

The dishes we ordered came out one by one in order, gradually filling the table until, before we knew it, the whole spread was set✨ Every dish had pretty plating and visuals, so we ate with our eyes first.

Kelp-aged flounder carpaccio

Kelp-aged flounder carpaccio

Wasabi cream is swirled onto the plate, topped with kelp-aged flounder. On top of the flounder, avruga caviar, orange & grapefruit, and dill finish it off-! I really love raw fish, and this is on a completely different, more upscale level than dipping it in wasabi soy sauce or vinegar-chili sauce.

Fresh, chewy flounder sashimi paired with smooth wasabi cream just can't be bad. It's perfect as a starter to whet the appetite.

The chewy, dense texture of the aged flounder, the kick of the wasabi cream, and the refreshing tartness of the orange and grapefruit hit just right — plus the savory salty depth of the caviar tops it all off-!♥ It's an upscale flounder carpaccio with a European feel. The quality rivals fine dining, an unforgettable taste.

Fresh truffle Korean beef white ragu pasta

Fresh truffle Korean beef white ragu pasta

This is spaghettini stir-fried with Korean beef ragu and salsiccia along with black truffle paste. Sherry wine vinegar, a fermented vinegar, is drizzled around the rim, and fresh truffle is generously piled on top. The rich, savory ragu flavor combined with the upscale aroma of fresh truffle really hits your nose.

I started by scooping up the fresh truffle first, then mixed in the sherry wine vinegar from the rim. The vinegar's tartness comes in sharp and cleanly cuts through the richness. The fresh truffle was piled on so generously it was practically dripping off — the ultimate in luxurious-looking food-!✨

The thin spaghettini noodles soak up the Korean beef white ragu sauce nicely, giving it a soft, creamy texture — good stuff-✨ It tastes even richer when eaten warm.

Loaded with minced meat, the texture really comes through with every bite-! The deep flavor of the Korean beef ragu, finished off with the truffle aroma rising up at the end — it's such an upscale taste that it just keeps going down easy. The pickles are crisp and refreshing too.

Putting the leftover ragu sauce on the pre-meal bread

I saved a bit of the pre-meal bread and scraped up every last bit of the leftover Korean beef white ragu sauce to put on top. The soft, moist bread soaks up the sauce beautifully, and one bite of that is pure comfort food-! It's the kind of charming, delicious dish that pulls you in more with every bite.

Iced hibiscus

Iced hibiscus

The iced hibiscus at this LG Arts Center-area favorite is refreshing from the visual alone. Tangy with a subtle sweetness, the distinctive fresh aroma of hibiscus spreads through your mouth, making everything feel instantly clean. Packed with ice and cool, it resets the whole mood on a hot day-!✨ It looks pretty and tastes clean and delicious.

Why Romaok Magok is a great Magok date course

Wrapping up

At Romaok, a Magok trattoria with a strong Italian atmosphere, my husband and I enjoyed a relaxed meal and spent a truly special time together. As an LG Arts Center-area favorite, I'd highly recommend it for a meal before or after a musical, or as part of a Seoul Botanic Park date course. It felt distinctive with plenty of Italian dishes you don't see easily elsewhere, and it's also a great Magok Naru spot to enjoy while pairing with wine.

If you're looking for a restaurant in Magok that satisfies on atmosphere, taste, and service all at once, go check out Romaok Magok! With this upscale Italian atmosphere, a thoughtfully composed menu, casual prices, and flavors that exceed expectations, it's a Blue Ribbon-rated Magok favorite that I think will become one of my go-to regular spots.