Yakiniku behind Sejong Center: couple's course and beer at Hwarodam

Charcoal beef dinner in Gwanghwamun: why Hwarodam

Hwarodam (화로담) is a wagyu yakiniku (Japanese-style grilled meat) restaurant in the back alleys behind Sejong Center in Gwanghwamun. I had errands downtown, so I ended the day with beef at Hwarodam with my husband.

I thought I knew the Gwanghwamun alleys pretty well, but I think this was the first time I'd seen the Lady Justice statue in the back street behind Sejong Center. I'd been looking for a dinner spot near Gwanghwamun and wanted a beef course, and that's how we ended up at Hwarodam, a Gwanghwamun wagyu favorite.

There are so many restaurants around Gwanghwamun that it's hard to decide where to eat. That day I really wanted meat grilled over warm charcoal.

Hwarodam location, hours and parking

Hwarodam, a binchotan charcoal yakiniku restaurant, is on the 2nd floor of the building at 9 Saemunan-ro 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul. It's open Monday to Saturday 11:30–23:00 and closed every Sunday.

• Address: 9 Saemunan-ro 5-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea (2nd floor)
• Hours: Mon–Sat 11:30–23:00, closed every Sunday
• Facilities: reservations and group visits available
• Parking: not available

It's about 98 m from Exit 8 of Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5), and only a 3–4 minute walk from Gwanghwamun Square.

At the entrance, the menu is posted from lunch sets to the grilled dishes, which helps you pick what to order once you're inside.

Hwarodam atmosphere and seating: first customers after the break

We walked in at 5 o'clock, right when the break time ended, and we were the first customers. Every table has its own charcoal brazier, so you grill the meat yourself in a Japanese yakiniku style. Inside, the whole mood felt more like a place for drinks and course meals than an ordinary Korean BBQ joint.

Because it's in Gwanghwamun, it seems like a spot for office dinners and gatherings. There's a private room that comfortably fits about 6 and, I heard, outdoor seats for 8, but we sat down right away and started eating, so we didn't get to look at the group or outdoor seating. There were also plenty of bar seats around the central kitchen.

Hwarodam menu and prices

The beef courses are the Wagyu Special Course at ₩80,000, the Hwarodam Course at ₩60,000 and the Hwarodam Set Meal at ₩45,000. The menu is broadly split into grilled dishes (beef, chicken and others), à la carte items and lunch sets.

• Grilled (beef): Wagyu Special Course ₩80,000 / Hwarodam Course ₩60,000 / Hwarodam Set Meal ₩45,000
• Grilled (chicken and others): chicken neck ₩19,000 / beef tongue ₩30,000 / Australian lamb ribs ₩30,000

Drinks range widely: sake, wine, house wine, Korean soju, whisky, beer, Japanese shochu, highballs and soft drinks. We ordered the Hwarodam Course at ₩60,000 for two.

In what order does the Hwarodam Course come?

The Hwarodam Course is served in this order: salad, chohoe (a small vinegared starter), assorted beef, seasonal soup, shrimp tempura (with sweet potato tempura), gimmaki (seaweed maki roll) and buckwheat noodles. Three sauces come with it: green tea salt, yakiniku sauce and shio tare (salt sauce), which the staff explained is imported directly from Japan.

Pickled ginger, jalapeño pickles and danmuji (yellow pickled radish) come as basic side dishes. The first dish out was the chohoe: cooked cuttlefish with thinly sliced purple onion in a balsamic sauce.

The assorted beef and the order to eat it

For the beef platter in the Hwarodam Course, the staff told us to eat in this order: sirloin, galbisal (rib meat), salchisal (chuck flap), scallops, then chicken neck. The meat and side dishes were prepared together.

The meat on the table had a vivid color, so I was excited before we even started grilling, and the vegetables and sides made the spread feel generous. Instead of a lineup of nothing but meat, you can mix in other flavors along the way, which I liked.

Is the Hwarodam Course for two enough food?

At a glance the course might look small, but grilling it in order was plenty for two people. Once the charcoal came up and the tableware was set, it felt like dinner had properly begun.

The braziers and tables are set around the seats, and the warm lighting made it comfortable to eat. When I put the meat on the heated grill, the sizzle and a savory aroma greeted us first. I flipped each piece so it wouldn't overcook and ate one bite at a time; the charcoal scent was subtle, so it was easy to enjoy the true flavor of the beef.

Alternating with the side dishes made the flavors much more varied. We grilled a little at a time and chatted, and since it's so different from an ordinary BBQ place, it felt like a date.

A day without the car: a glass of Terra beer

We had Terra beer with the charcoal beef at Hwarodam, and the Terra was so refreshing and cold. It was a day out without the car for once, so we decided to have a beer too.

I poured it into glasses and shared it with my husband; it went well with the meat and made the evening even more fun. It had been a while since we could have a beer without worrying about driving, so it felt extra nice.

Individual oden soup and tempura

The seasonal soup in the Hwarodam Course is oden (fish cake soup), and I liked that it was served individually. Eating the fish cake and konjac along with the broth seemed to make the meat go down even more easily.

Besides the grilled dishes, seafood and side dishes came out too, so the flow of the meal never got monotonous.

It was fun to watch the items on the grill cook, and being a course, we could share lots of different things, which made it a good meal with my husband. If you're looking for a Gwanghwamun wagyu place and imagining a nice dinner, I recommend a course like this.

The tempura is served individually too, and the chips alongside were sweet potato tempura and cassava chips. The crunchy cassava chips were hard to stop eating. The sauce that came with them was tasty too.

Finishing with flying fish roe maki and noodles in a star bowl

After the meat in the Hwarodam Course comes maki packed with flying fish roe, and it ends with buckwheat noodles floating in ice. The star-shaped bowl was so cute.

You can see the Gwanghwamun street out the window.

Is Hwarodam in Gwanghwamun worth going back to?

From serving pu-erh tea instead of plain water to the course layout, I liked everything, and the beef quality was great and tender. I'd recommend Hwarodam as a Gwanghwamun beef course restaurant. It's a Gwanghwamun BBQ place I'd like to visit again when I get the chance.

After errands downtown, Hwarodam gave us a hearty charcoal beef dinner. The Hwarodam Course for two, with meat and side dishes plus beer, made for a satisfying evening. If you're searching for Gwanghwamun BBQ or a Jongno beef course, Hwarodam is worth adding to your list of candidates.