Yeouido gyukatsu restaurant past the 1pm lunch rush: Izawa dontoro-don

Soft, tender gyukatsu (beef cutlet grilled at the table) that I hadn't had in a while — the kind of place that comes to mind whenever the craving hits.

Izawa Yeouido Direct Store is right near Yeouido Station, so it's easy to get to, and with everything from their signature gyukatsu to steak-don and dontoro-don rice bowls, it's a great spot for a solo lunch in Yeouido too. If you're looking for a hearty lunch spot in Yeouido, here's everything from the location to the menu and waiting info at Izawa Yeouido.

Izawa Yeouido hours and how to find it from Exit 5

Izawa Yeouido Direct Store is open 11:00–21:00, with a break time from 15:00–17:00, and last order at 20:30. It's located in Yeouido Jonghap Sangga, right in front of Exit 5 of Yeouido Station.

It'd been a while since I'd been to Yeouido on a weekday lunch, and sure enough it was buzzing ••｡𖦹° — right in the middle of lunch hour, full of office workers out for a bite. Izawa Yeouido Direct Store sits in Yeouido Jonghap Sangga, right in front of Exit 5. Since the building houses a whole variety of restaurants, it seemed to draw huge lunchtime crowds of office workers. To get to the Izawa Yeouido store, come out of Exit 5 and it's the building right on your left.

Inside Izawa on the 2nd floor of Yeouido Jonghap Sangga: seats and waiting

Izawa Yeouido is on the 2nd floor of Yeouido Jonghap Sangga. The interior isn't huge, but it's overall clean and tidy, with seating ranging from solo tables to 2-4 person tables. Since this area draws a lot of Yeouido office workers, tables fill up fast during peak lunch hour — but going around 1pm, just past the rush, it was fairly relaxed.

What is on the Izawa menu, and what does it cost?

The Izawa menu is broadly split into gyukatsu, rice bowls, and noodles. For the signature menu, there's the basic gyukatsu (18.0), curry gyukatsu (20.0), and if you want to eat generously, the double gyukatsu (33.0) is a good call.

For rice bowls there's steak-don (18.0), dontoro-don (13.5), and gyu-don (12.0). Can't skip the ramen menu either — mazesoba (12.0), karai ramen (12.0), and basil ramen (12.0) round out a pretty varied noodle lineup, so if you're coming to Yeouido for lunch with a group, everyone can pick something to their taste.

Double gyukatsu, 33,000 won: how to grill it on the mini charcoal grill

Ordered the double gyukatsu (33.0) — with the basic gyukatsu I always enjoy it but end up wishing for just a few more pieces at the end •• The portion isn't huge, so if you want to eat plenty, I'd recommend going double. ᯓ★.ᐟ

Gyukatsu kind of looks like tonkatsu (pork cutlet) from the outside. It comes out fried crispy on the outside but rare inside, so you grill each piece on the mini charcoal grill served alongside to whatever doneness you like. ⊹˚

Since you grill just what you're about to eat, piece by piece, the appeal is that even the very last bite comes out hot and fresh •• Crispy outside, juicy inside — you just adjust the doneness however you like. ˚. ₊∙

Personally, I think gyukatsu tastes best when you don't grill it too hard — just sear the surface lightly so it stays juicy inside. Rather than loading up the grill, I'd recommend grilling just a little at a time and eating it right away - ✿ܓ

Dontoro-don, 13,500 won: the pork jowl rice bowl ordered alongside

Also ordered the dontoro-don (13.5) — the staff at Izawa recommended dontoro-don as their top pick among the rice bowls. It's a rice bowl piled high with pork jowl, finely sliced and heaped on so generously the rice underneath barely shows.

The golden-grilled pork jowl has that distinctive chewy, springy texture, with a savory, rich flavor that builds the more you chew — the meat itself is seasoned with a nice salty edge that goes wonderfully with the rice. Eating it with the crisp cabbage cut through the richness too, so it paired well. ✩⡱

Salt, wasabi and yuzu sauce: which dip suits gyukatsu best?

Time to try the gyukatsu, grilled just right on the charcoal — first I dipped it into one of Izawa's special sauces, the yuzu sauce. The savory gyukatsu with that bright, fresh flavor turned out to be a better match than I expected.

Maybe because Izawa Yeouido is a directly-operated store, the meat quality was quite good too. You can tell from the photos how juicy it looks •• The meat itself is tender and savory, honestly delicious even plain, and it went well with any of the sauces. ꕤ

When it got a bit rich, a light dab of wasabi cut through it cleanly and it was so good.

Izawa's gyukatsu apparently uses beef sirloin, and to really taste the meat's own flavor, the salt pairing was still the best. ˚ ༘ ೀ

The side salad and kimchi that came with it were also tasty eaten alongside, so I never got tired of it and was actually sad when the last piece of gyukatsu ran out.

Is Izawa worth it for a Yeouido lunch, and how long is the wait?

Visiting Izawa Yeouido for a weekday lunch after a long time. Since it was lunchtime and quite busy with Yeouido office workers, I worried the wait might be long, but the turnover was fast, and timing it well meant I could eat more comfortably than expected.

Being right in front of Exit 5 of Yeouido Station made it easy to find the moment I stepped out, and it turned out to be a warm, satisfying lunch from start to finish. If you're mulling over what to eat for lunch in Yeouido, or looking for a good lunch spot near Yeouido Station, I'd recommend Izawa Yeouido - ✿.｡.:*