Last-night trip birthday dinner with rice cake patty, seaweed soup
Usu is a hanwoo (Korean beef) omakase restaurant in Mapo, Seoul, near Gongdeok Station, with every seat in a private room. On the last night of a trip and for a birthday, the writer worked through a dinner course from beef-and-chicken porridge to hanwoo tteokgalbi (grilled short rib patty), abalone five-color gardenia noodles, 1++ hanwoo grilled tableside, and a hanwoo seaweed soup rice table, plus birthday photos, a celebration dessert and two glasses of champagne arranged after noting the birthday at booking. For a quiet, private-room celebration dinner in Mapo, Usu is a strong pick.