Mackerel bong sushi with potato salad at Kuroiya, an Itaewon izakaya

Kuroiya — an Itaewon restaurant, Itaewon bar, Itaewon aged sashimi spot.

I was looking for a good-vibe izakaya in Itaewon and found Kuroiya! The sashimi looked so good that I visited, and sure enough, the soju just kept flowing haha. It's an Itaewon bar where you can enjoy everything from fresh seasonal seafood to Japanese fusion dishes, and every single dish paired so well with drinks.

What I ordered at Kuroiya and what it cost

• Sashimi ₩50,000
• Mackerel bong sushi ₩25,000
• Plus ankimo gimbap (monkfish liver rice roll) from a Naver review event!!

Where Kuroiya is and how to find the basement entrance

Kuroiya is a Japanese bar tucked into an Itaewon alley at 14-4 Itaewon-ro 16-gil, B1, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. It's open Sun–Thu 17:30–01:30 and Fri–Sat 17:30–02:00, there's no parking, and reservations are possible through Catch Table and Naver Reservations.

Open the door and head down to the basement, and you enter the good-vibe bar that is Kuroiya-!🔥🔥

Inside Kuroiya: is this Itaewon izakaya good for a date?

The inside of Kuroiya is generally low-lit and calm, so rather than a loud, bustling Itaewon bar(?), it seems better suited to people looking for a place to talk while drinking.

It's great for drinks with a friend, but it also seems fine for a night where atmosphere matters, like an Itaewon date or a blind date! They have a wide range of drinks too, from sake to highballs, so it's a good spot for Japanese-style snacks with a drink.

The four side dishes served first

Four kinds of banchan(?) came out as Kuroiya's basic side dishes! Among them, the cucumber was really tasty. It had a bit of a mala spice to it, so I ended up finishing a whole bottle of soju before the actual food even arrived haha.

Sashimi, 50,000 won: what comes on the ice

Kuroiya's sashimi costs ₩50,000. Sorry, I don't remember the name of the specific set..ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

As you can see in the photo, the sashimi comes out on ice, which is nice because it stays chewy and delicious all the way to the end. The cuts were pretty thick, and they also topped it with a bit of raw shrimp, beef sashimi, and caviar — which was a real treat👍🏻

The sashimi condition was great and the raw shrimp was chewy yet thick, so I really enjoyed it. Freshness was 100% confirmed!!!

Ankimo gimbap from the Naver review event

✅The ankimo gimbap I got from the review event👍🏻 It has ankimo (monkfish liver) sauce on top of the gimbap, and the savory, rich flavor was so on point that it ended up being my favorite dish.. It went perfectly with soju💓 It was so good that I finished it all, and thankfully they gave me another round on the house ㅠㅠ I devoured the second one too ㅋㅋㅋ If you care about the food that comes with your drinks at Itaewon bars, definitely check for review events too✔️

Mackerel bong sushi, 25,000 won, renewed with potato salad

At first, based on the name, I imagined a typical mackerel bong sushi (mackerel roll sushi), but apparently Kuroiya recently renewed their bong sushi to include potato salad instead. I hesitated but ordered it anyway — and wow, it was so delicious.

Inside the mackerel, the potato salad is packed in and wrapped once with seaweed, and the mackerel's distinct umami paired surprisingly well with the soft, smooth potato salad💓

It went down much more smoothly than a rice-filled bong sushi, so it felt even more like a proper drinking snack. Wrap it once more in the seaweed served alongside, and that's it — game over! If you usually like mackerel bong sushi, give Kuroiya's version a try!!

The warm soup Kuroiya sends out on the house

As the drinks kept flowing, they also brought out a warm soup on the house. It was a clear broth loaded with vegetables, but by that point I was already deep into having a great time drinking, so I don't remember the menu name…ㅎ But it was just so good..really.. Taking a sip of that warm soup and going back to drinking felt like a reset. That's about when I really started going for it…

Who should visit Kuroiya, and on what kind of night?

The sashimi was satisfying too! In particular, the mackerel bong sushi with potato salad instead of rice was a style I'd never tried before, and the combination turned out to be way better than expected. And the ankimo gimbap, which I ate with zero expectations, was so good I got a second round — that was the highlight of the day ㅋㅋ😚

Overall, this was a great Itaewon restaurant for people who love seafood and Japanese food and want to have a drink. The atmosphere is calm too, so it seems better suited to a night when you want to talk over good food with a sake or highball, rather than a loud, rowdy bar.

If you're looking for a spot for an Itaewon date, a small gathering, or drinks with a friend, save Kuroiya✔️ And if you're like me and the soju just keeps flowing once the good food shows up… I'd recommend clearing your schedule for the next day haha.