Korean course near Bangbang Intersection with ox-foot skewers: MUSEO

MUSEO is a great pick for a date in Gangnam, with a polished Korean course and a lovely atmosphere. It would also suit a wedding-invitation get-together, and I had a really enjoyable meal there.

Where is MUSEO?

MUSEO is in the basement of a building near Bangbang Intersection, a 5-minute walk from Yangjae Station Exit 1.

You just follow the stairs down, but they're very steep, so be careful going down!!

What are the atmosphere and seating like at MUSEO?

You'd never guess it's a basement; the interior is really upscale and beautiful, and I thought it would be a good spot for a company dinner in Gangnam too.

(I've never actually been, but) I imagine a fine dining restaurant looks something like this, haha.

There's a bar-style table in the middle of the restaurant that seats 8, and each pair of seats is spaced fairly far apart, so the meal felt cozier and more comfortable than I expected.

There's also a table area at the back that feels private, and I could see why MUSEO is a go-to place for wedding-invitation gatherings in Gangnam.

MUSEO lunch menu and prices

The lunch menu has just two kinds: a baekban (Korean set meal) and course meals. Prices are on the higher side, but after eating there, I felt it was fairly reasonable for a tasty Korean course in the middle of Gangnam.

Each person's table is neatly set on a wooden tray! It's a bar-style table, but the chairs are cushy and tall, so nothing was uncomfortable during the meal. Nice!

Cold water comes in a clear glass, and side dishes of kimchi, myeongnan-jeot (salted pollock roe) and pickles are set out.

MUSEO appetizers: steamed egg, mulhoe and Hanwoo ox-foot skewer

The MUSEO course starts with three kinds of appetizers: steamed egg, seafood mulhoe, and a skewer of Hanwoo (Korean beef) ox-foot and aronsatae (beef shank)!

The soft steamed egg comes topped with salty stir-fried anchovies and Pohang-cho (Pohang winter greens) with a gentle sweetness.

The tangy mulhoe has sweet shrimp, sea squirt and sea cucumber in it!!!

The Hanwoo ox-foot and aronsatae come skewered, haha. The texture is bouncy like pudding, and the sauces served alongside are a lentil doenjang (fermented soybean paste) sauce and a scallion salad.

The harmony of the Pohang greens, which get gently sweeter as you chew, and the steamed egg that's reeeeally like pudding!

The seafood in the mulhoe was so fresh that even I, who usually don't enjoy sea squirt or sea cucumber, ate it happily, haha.

The texture of the Hanwoo ox-foot dipped in the nutty lentil sauce was great!

What does the banga leaf lemon cleanser sorbet taste like?

Before the main dishes, MUSEO serves a banga leaf lemon cleanser sorbet to cleanse the palate.

The yellow bits of lemon you see here and there seem to be ground up with the peel, giving it a fresh, slightly bitter taste that cleaned my mouth out completely. Banga leaf (a Korean herb) is strongly scented like cilantro, so at first I went "oh!", but later I really enjoyed it, haha.

MUSEO boyang gukbap: abalone, free-range chicken and gosari

MUSEO's boyang gukbap (stamina soup with rice) is said to take its motif from Jeju's gosari yukgaejang (fernbrake beef soup).

It's a hearty gukbap with abalone and free-range chicken; it's best to eat the solid ingredients first and then add the rice to the broth.

A clean-tasting gukbap flavored with gosari (fernbrake) and free-range chicken!

The boyang gukbap comes with Hanwoo yukhoe (seasoned raw beef) and jeyuk-bokkeum (spicy stir-fried pork) as the default side dishes.

There's fried Samchi (Spanish mackerel) from Goheung, served with a tartar sauce made with chopped pickled chili peppers that cuts right through the greasiness of the fry! When I first saw the rice I thought it was a small portion, but as I ate it turned out to be plenty, lol.

MUSEO Hanwoo yukhoe namul bibimbap

The brightly colored MUSEO yukhoe namul bibimbap (rice bowl with seasoned raw beef and vegetables) arrives too!!!!

The yukhoe uses Hanwoo kkurit-sal (a cut from the shoulder area), which is low in fat, so the texture was chewy and so good, haha. And it comes with a colorful variety of namul (seasoned vegetables), which is great!

I loved that there was so much namul! Hehe.

The yukhoe namul bibimbap comes with enoki doenjang soup and jeyuk-bokkeum as side dishes.

How did it actually taste?

In the boyang gukbap, the abalone and gosari were seriously so tender, so good!!!!

You can really taste the rich flavor of the free-range chicken too, so it felt like having samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) ahead of Boknal (the hottest days of summer)?! Haha.

The yukhoe itself is super fresh and delicious, and I heard the gochujang (chili paste) for the bibimbap is made in-house.

If you're Korean, you can't not know this flavor!! It's even nuttier and tastier wrapped in gopchang-gim (crinkly seaweed), hehe.

The jeyuk-bokkeum had a nice spicy kick to its seasoning and went really well with rice.

The fried Samchi was also so tender and delicious!!!!

Putting the rice into the rich broth and eating it up is great for a hearty, restorative meal!

MUSEO dessert: non-alcoholic makgeolli ice cream

For dessert, MUSEO served non-alcoholic makgeolli (milky rice wine) ice cream, topped with pickled chamoe (Korean melon) and a soy sauce–based crumble, so you get a sweet-and-salty combo.

It really tastes like makgeolli, yet it's non-alcoholic, which is amazing! Haha. That was MUSEO, a Gangnam restaurant where I enjoyed a lovely Korean course. If I get the chance, I'll visit again! Hehehe.