Yeouido Japanese restaurant date with grilled gyukatsu: Hurato Sikdang

On a day when the early-autumn breeze was pleasantly cool, my husband and I enjoyed a rare, leisurely date while visiting the Banksy exhibition.

After the exhibition, I was feeling completely full of emotion—and suddenly wanted to fill up properly with delicious food, too. So we headed to a Japanese restaurant near Yeouido Station that I’d had my eye on. I was especially excited after hearing that Lee Young-ji had raved on TV that it was “better than in Japan,” and that the group Cortis used to visit every weekend during their trainee days.

Japanese home cooking in a cozy setting

After walking through the forest of office buildings and arriving on the third floor of Finance Tower, we stepped inside to find a warm space that felt completely different from the bustle outside.

• Hurato Sikdang, 3rd floor, Yeouido Finance Tower, 32 Gukjegeumyung-ro 2-gil, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul
• 161 m from Exit 3 of Yeouido Station on Lines 5 and 9
• Mon–Fri 11:00–21:30 / Sat–Sun 11:30–22:00
• Break time: 15:00–17:00

The soft lighting and wood-toned tables made me feel calm right down to my heart. I heard that Hurato Sikdang captures the warm feeling three young men experienced while traveling in Tokyo.

Maybe that’s why an ordinary day with my husband felt like a special little trip to Tokyo.

What did we order?

We placed our order easily through the NFC menu at the table, then waited.

We chose the restaurant’s most popular signature: gyukatsu (Japanese beef cutlet), crisp outside and tender inside; soft-set omurice (Japanese omelet rice) that melts gently in your mouth; plus chicken karaage and fried shrimp for an extra crunch.

Crisp-outside, tender-inside gyukatsu grilled at the table

The gyukatsu arrived crisp on the outside and rare in the middle, so grilling it yourself over the individual brazier is such fun. From the moment the meat hits the grill, that sizzling sound takes over all your senses. The beef was unbelievably tender and delicious—it simply melted in my mouth.

It’s fun to find your own preferred doneness, from rare to well-done. Dip it in wasabi, salt, or the house sauce, and the juices burst through your mouth with every bite—I couldn’t help but marvel.

There could not have been a better dish for my husband and me to grill a piece for each other and chat away over.

A meal with soft-set omurice and fried sides

The soft-set omurice comes with fluffy egg and house sauce. It isn’t overpowering, just gentle and soft, so I kept reaching for it. It was the perfect partner for alternating bites with the gyukatsu. The extra chicken karaage (4 pieces) and fried shrimp (2 pieces) were truly excellent choices, too. The freshly fried, crisp, savory karaage and plump fried shrimp dipped in sauce made the meal feel so much more plentiful. The shrimp’s coating was crunchy while the meat inside stayed plump, becoming even more savory with every bite.

In particular, if you join the receipt-review event, you can choose from one canned drink, one piece of karaage, one onsen tamago (hot-spring egg), or one piece of Isigny butter—such a nice little perk.

How can you avoid the lunchtime wait?

It’s a very popular spot, so there may be a wait at lunchtime. Make a reservation in advance through Naver Booking or Catch Table for a much smoother visit.

Hurato Sikdang, which I visited with my husband after the Banksy exhibition in the early-autumn weather, was a perfect date course in both food and atmosphere. If you’re looking for a special, delicious meal after seeing the Banksy exhibition in Yeouido, I definitely recommend stopping by.