Lobster sashimi finished as pasta at Momiji, a Seolleung izakaya

I went looking for a quiet izakaya near Seolleung Station where I could eat and have a drink without too much noise, and ended up at Momiji Seolleung Branch. It seemed like a solid pick for anyone looking for a spot for a Seolleung Station work dinner or company gathering, or just somewhere private, so here's an honest rundown of what I ordered.

Where Momiji Seolleung Branch is and when it opens

Momiji Seolleung Branch is about a 5-minute walk from Exit 2 of Seolleung Station. The Hoseong Building entrance is on the left of the ground floor, and once inside you can take the elevator up.

• Monday–Saturday 11:20–24:00
• Break time 14:00–17:00
• Closed Sundays

Since it's open during lunch hours too, it works well for a lunch near Seolleung Station or as an izakaya in the evening.

Parking near Momiji Seolleung Branch

On-site parking is fairly limited, so if you're driving, I'd recommend using a nearby paid lot. Seonjeongneung public parking lot charges ₩400 per 10 minutes up to 2 hours and ₩600 per 10 minutes after, with fees applied until 22:00. If you're driving, it's worth double-checking availability and rates before you go.

All private rooms: a Seolleung Station spot for team dinners and client meals

What stood out most at Momiji Seolleung Branch was that every seat is a private room. It's not the typical izakaya layout with tables packed close together — instead you eat in a separate enclosed space, which made conversation easy. It seemed like a good fit for anything from a small get-together to a company dinner, business meeting or client entertaining where you want a quiet place to eat. There are also larger group rooms for bigger parties, so if you're planning a work dinner or group gathering, I'd recommend booking ahead.

What two people ordered at Momiji Seolleung, and what it cost

Momiji serves everything from premium sashimi platters to Japanese-style nabe, robatayaki and yakitori. They also have sake and Japanese shochu, so it's a good place to have a drink with your food in the evening. We visited as two adults and ordered

• 🦞 Lobster sashimi ₩58,000
• 🍢 Odeng nabe ₩25,000
• 🍋 Yuzu highball ₩8,000
• 🥤 Cider ₩2,500

— that's what we went with.

Baek-kimchi (white kimchi) and other side dishes came out as the standard banchan. They were nice to nibble on between bites of sashimi and nabe.

Yuzu highball, 8,000 won

For a drink we went with the yuzu highball. It had that distinct yuzu citrus, sweet-tart scent, making it an easy drink to have alongside Japanese food. It worked well as a light accompaniment when you've got several dishes going, like sashimi and nabe. It'll suit anyone who wants a drink or two while eating rather than drinking heavily.

Odeng nabe, 25,000 won: the fish cakes keep coming

We ordered the odeng nabe (fish cake hot pot) alongside the sashimi. It was nice having one warm soup dish to pair with the cold sashimi. There were several types of fish cake to eat with the broth, so it worked well as a drinking snack too. Especially in a room where you're chatting slowly over the meal, having one warm nabe dish on the table like this was a good call.

The odeng nabe broth was salty and full of umami right from the start, so it was a great match with drinks. It came with a variety of fish cakes plus mushrooms, bok choy, tofu and egg, so even though it's technically one dish, there was plenty to pick through. The fish cakes especially came in different types — round ones, and ones with glass noodles stuffed inside — so the texture and flavor varied from piece to piece.

Best of all, the fish cakes were genuinely plentiful. Every time I thought, 'okay, we must be nearly done,' more kept coming out. 😂 Fishing out one savory, warm piece after another made it a great pairing for drinks, and with the yuzu highball especially, the citrus cut through nicely. If you like fish cakes, this dish lets you try a whole range of them at once, which should satisfy.

How does the 58,000-won lobster sashimi taste?

The dish I was most looking forward to that day was the lobster sashimi! Lobster served as sashimi is a real eye-catcher just visually. The meat had a chewy, springy texture and ate very cleanly.

Taking a bite, that chewy, springy texture really came through. The more you chewed, the more you could taste lobster's subtle natural sweetness, with no fishy notes — it worked well as sashimi. It's already good dipped in soy sauce or sauce on its own, but pairing it with the highball made it taste even cleaner.

Leftover lobster turned into pasta

What I liked especially was that this wasn't the end. After finishing the lobster sashimi, they used the leftover lobster meat to make pasta at the end. Ordering just one dish and getting to eat all the way from sashimi through to pasta made it more fun than your typical sashimi order. Starting with sashimi and finishing with pasta meant we didn't need to order a separate main to feel full.

Momiji Seolleung Branch: the verdict

The address is 43 Samseong-ro 85-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, 3rd floor. If you want to quietly enjoy sashimi and nabe in a private room near Seolleung Station, Momiji Seolleung Branch was a solid choice. Note it's closed for the Chuseok holiday (Sept 24–26).