Gardenfive Japanese dinner: steak pot rice & fried shrimp, Gomemui

After shopping or running errands at Gardenfive, you naturally start looking for somewhere to eat. This time I tried Gomemui Hyundai Gardenfive (고메무이 현대가든파이브점), inside Hyundai City Mall Gardenfive.

Gomemui Hyundai Gardenfive: location, hours and parking

Gomemui Hyundai Gardenfive is at 66 Chungmin-ro, Songpa-gu, Seoul, on B1. It is open daily 10:30–20:30, with a break from 15:00 to 17:00, and last orders at 14:30 and 20:00. Parking is available too.

Is there a wait at Gomemui in the evening?

I visited in the evening and the place was full of customers~ Luckily there was a seat open, so we sat down without any wait.

Cutlery, napkins and wet wipes are set out on the table~ While waiting, I looked around at what the other tables were eating, and pot rice (solbap) was definitely the popular pick.

Gomemui menu and what we ordered

Gomemui's main menu is pot rice, tonkatsu (breaded pork cutlet), curry, and udon/soba.

I wanted to eat curry and soba, but the curry was sold out, so sadly I couldn't have it T_T Guess I'll have to come back for the curry, haha. So here is what we ended up ordering.

• Steak pot rice
• Spicy maze udon + tonkatsu set
• Fried shrimp

How are the set tonkatsu and fried shrimp?

The tonkatsu that came with the spicy maze udon set looked tender even just by eye, haha. And the breading was super crispy!

The fried shrimp were plump too, and there's a garlic-flavored...? I think it's a sauce, and it was delicious dipped in it.

Is Gomemui's spicy maze udon really hot?

Gomemui's spicy maze udon is a mixed udon dish that's spicy but not too strong, so it's easy to eat. It also came out right away. Maze udon (mixed noodles) isn't a soup udon; you toss the noodles with the sauce, so it felt different from regular udon~ The spicy kick really wakes up your appetite.

Mix it well with the egg yolk!

The thick, rich sauce has a great texture, and the spice keeps it from feeling heavy. Best of all, the noodles are totally bouncy and chewy. The heat isn't too strong either, so it didn't bother my stomach at all?!

How to eat Gomemui's steak pot rice

Gomemui's steak pot rice takes time to cook, so expect 10 minutes or more~

There are friendly instructions on how to eat the steak pot rice, so you just follow them, haha.

I thought the sauce was the same as the tonkatsu sauce, but it's a dipping sauce for the steak! The steak pot rice comes with pollock roe (myeongran), young radish kimchi (yeolmu-kimchi), salted seafood and a soup.

I broke the yolk and mixed it well into the pot rice. Then you move the rice into the bowl provided and pour warm water into the pot ahead of time~

Is the steak in the pot rice tender?

If meat is cooked badly it gets gamey or tough, but I took one bite of the steak pot rice and was surprised at how tender the meat was. My husband usually prefers pork to beef, but he tried the meat and said it was soft and delicious, and ate it up, haha.

I love pollock roe, so I put some on top, and it added a salty, savory depth~ The pot rice is on the mild side, so it's fine eaten with the side dishes, and it also went well with the spicy maze udon!

The water you pour into the pot comes in a tumbler~

Why we picked Gomemui in the Gardenfive restaurant area

We finished with nurungji tea (sungnyung, scorched rice water)~ it settles your stomach. B1 of Gardenfive is a restaurant floor with lots of places grouped together, so there were plenty of options, but Gomemui felt even more flexible since you can choose either rice or noodle dishes! I'd recommend Gomemui Hyundai Gardenfive when you want a filling meal after shopping or a date at Gardenfive, or as a spot for a family meal :)