Jongno Korean restaurant for dried yellow corvina: Gu Table

A Korean set-menu restaurant in the alley behind Boryeong Pharmacy in Jongno 5-ga

Everyone has heard of Boryeong Pharmacy in Jongno 5-ga at least once, right? Let me tell you about my visit to Gu Table Korean Restaurant (구테이블 한정식) for dried yellow corvina! It is a Korean restaurant near Gwangjang Market in Jongno 5-ga, at the end of the alley beside Rian Hair, which you see as soon as you turn left after passing Boryeong Pharmacy—so don't walk past it!

Gu Table's atmosphere and location

I looked it up and it seems this Korean set-menu restaurant originally operated in Insadong, then moved to Jongno 5-ga not too long ago~ Whether it is a remodeled hanok (traditional Korean house), it has a courtyard and such an unusual layout that it felt like visiting a friend's home! There are lots of places to go, see, and have dessert nearby, so it is perfectly located for lunch while exploring this area. Even better, every menu item is healthy food! The menu is illustrated too, which was unusual! Haha

From set meals and à la carte dishes to dinner courses

• Dried yellow corvina set ₩40,000
• Mini dried yellow corvina set ₩25,000
• Jeolla aged-kimchi braise set ₩15,000
• House-broth handmade dumpling soup set ₩14,000
• Mussel-loaded seaweed soup set ₩12,000
• Tteokgalbi (grilled minced beef patties), 2 pieces ₩15,000
• Stone parsley, pork belly, and butter bibimbap ₩17,000
• LA galbi bibimbap ₩20,000
• Korean beef yukhoe (seasoned raw beef) bibimbap ₩16,000
• Eggplant rice bowl ₩15,000
• Cockle bibimbap ₩14,000
• Octopus rice bowl ₩14,000
• Aged flatfish cold buckwheat noodles ₩16,000
• Korean beef bulgogi mixed buckwheat noodles ₩16,000

• Steamed clams and steamed white clams ₩30,000
• Braised oxtail ₩70,000
• Grilled blue crab ₩70,000
• Whelk soup ₩38,000
• Squid sundae (stuffed squid) ₩30,000
• Braised squid and green onion ₩35,000
• Grilled eel ₩60,000
• Monkfish su-yuk (boiled sliced monkfish) ₩55,000
• Kimchi and handmade tofu ₩35,000
• A plate of today's sashimi ₩50,000
• Pollack roe and green onion pancake ₩25,000
• Extra oysters ₩6,000
• Green onion and chicken pancake ₩28,000
• Dinner Korean set-menu course ₩70,000 / ₩100,000 / ₩150,000

It is a Korean restaurant famous for its dried yellow corvina set, but it also had loads of à la carte dishes, plus Korean set-menu courses available by dinner reservation!

A generous table set with seasonal ingredients

This kind of table-filling abundance, enough to make the table legs buckle, is the biggest charm of a Korean set meal! Gu Table Korean Restaurant in Jongno 5-ga builds its menu around seasonal ingredients and traditional cooking methods, so it looks like the side dishes keep changing too!

Dried yellow corvina over green tea rice

The signature dried yellow corvina set uses gulbi (salted and dried yellow corvina) that has been carefully dried for a long time, preserving its deep flavor without making it salty. It was nutty even when I lightly mixed it into green tea rice! The fish was so plump that it still had that pleasantly chewy texture too~

Braised flounder that had me finish a bowl of rice

The seasonal braised fish is made with fresh fish of the day, so you can enjoy a different flavor each season! Today's was braised flounder, and it was so meaty and tender I could practically have swallowed it without teeth! The seasoning retained the deep flavor characteristic of Jeolla cooking without overwhelming the ingredients themselves, so it was not salty at all. I do not usually eat much plain rice, but I mixed it with this braising sauce and polished off a whole bowl! Haha

It may be a dried yellow corvina set, but it has foods from land, sea, and air—a complete spread for nutrition, flavor, and looks.

Side dishes that complete the Korean set meal

The main dishes are the most important, of course, but what really completes a Korean set meal are the banchan (side dishes) served alongside them! They were not loaded with artificial seasoning~ I loved their natural, ingredient-forward flavor. If you are looking for a Korean restaurant near Gwangjang Market in Jongno 5-ga, I recommend it :)