Gangnam date-night restaurant for spicy crab risotto: Eulji Darak

I went on a date to Eulji Darak, a Gangnam Station restaurant known for great pasta and a nice atmosphere.

Where is Eulji Darak Gangnam Station, and what are its hours?

Address 22 Gangnam-daero 96-gil, 2nd floor, Gangnam-gu, Seoul

Parking No on-site parking - A nearby public lot is available 'Yeoksam Culture Park No. 1 Public Parking Lot' — ₩300 per 5 minutes

Hours Daily 11:30–21:15 (last order 20:30)

Other Indoor restroom / no corkage / no pets allowed

Inside Eulji Darak Gangnam Station: good for a date or a wedding-invitation meetup?

The inside was bigger than I expected, with plenty of tables.

Since it's known as a great-atmosphere pasta place, there were tons of couples on dates.

Apparently people also come here a lot for wedding invitation meetups, and honestly the interior makes total sense once you see it. It really does feel like the perfect spot for that!

There's also a small self-serve bar with water, tissues and wet wipes. You can even charge your phone there!

Eulji Darak menu and what we ordered for two

The menu includes omurice, pasta, steak, gnocchi, katsu sando, and fries, among other things.

We ordered spicy crab risotto for ₩19,000 spicy cream pasta for ₩19,000 katsu sando for ₩12,000.

For some reason we were both craving spicy food that day, so we ended up ordering everything spicy except the sando lol.

Pickles come out if you ask for them separately, and they're sweet and tangy, so definitely request some to eat alongside haha.

How spicy is the crab risotto at Eulji Darak?

Looking up reviews, this spicy crab risotto has a ton of 'insanely good' comments!

There's real crab leg in it, and it looks super thick and rich just from the look of it.

I took a bite and — yep, this is the real deal! It's spicier than I expected (at least past Shin Ramyun level), and with the crab in there the umami is out of control.

It's spicy, thick, and full-on addictive — there's no way a Korean person wouldn't love this flavor.

Just from this dish alone, you immediately get why Eulji Darak is a go-to Gangnam Station restaurant lol.

There's meat in the crab leg too, so it's fun to pick it apart lol. It's seriously thick, rich, and delicious, so if you like spicy food, you have to try this!

Spicy cream pasta: mild enough for spice-shy eaters

Spicy cream pasta and rose pasta are my favorite kinds of pasta, so seeing spicy cream pasta on Eulji Darak's menu, I ordered it immediately!

It was so pretty-looking that it practically demanded a photo lol.

It's a rich, flavorful cream sauce with a spoonful of spice added, and it's milder than the spicy crab risotto, so even someone who can't handle spice well could enjoy this comfortably.

There are five plump shrimp in it, with zero fishy smell — just plump and delicious.

The noodles were cooked just right too, and since the sauce is thick, it clings well to the noodles.

Eating the shrimp, noodles, and sauce together made for a great combo — I really enjoyed it.

Katsu sando: the palate cleanser between two spicy dishes

Feeling like we'd only ordered super spicy food, we got the katsu sando as a side!

The portion was bigger than expected and the meat was surprisingly hearty.

It comes with pickles, cherry tomatoes, and sauce.

The bread is soft and chewy, the fried cutlet inside is really crispy, and the meat is tender.

And when you add the tangy, nutty onion sauce on top? Ridiculously good.

The fatty part on top especially was so nutty that I nearly teared up eating it lol.

The meat wasn't dry at all, and it was so good that I'd definitely order it again next time.

Is Eulji Darak Gangnam Station worth a date visit?

If you're looking for a great-atmosphere pasta restaurant in Gangnam, this is the place!

The interior is pretty and the atmosphere is great, making it perfect for a date or a wedding invitation meetup — and the food being good plus the staff being friendly made me like it even more.

Everything we ordered was tasty overall, but the spicy crab risotto was especially the real deal! That said, the katsu sando and spicy cream pasta were also great, so it's honestly hard to give up any of them lol. I'd definitely come back!!!