Magok Italian restaurant before an LG Art Center show: Romaok Magok

What kind of restaurant is Romaok Magok? Italian dining on LG Art Center's 3rd floor

Romaok Magok, near Magok Naru Station, is an Italian restaurant run by a chef formerly of a Michelin 2-star restaurant in Italy.

• 📍 136 Magokjungang-ro, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, LG Art Center Seoul 3F
• ⏰ Daily 11:00–21:30
• B.T 15:00–17:00 / Last order 14:00, 20:30
• 🚗 2 hours free parking

Romaok is an Italian restaurant where you can enjoy a variety of dishes made by a chef formerly of a Michelin 2-star restaurant in Italy, paired with wine. I'd visited the Namyangju branch before and it was so good and satisfying that I decided to try the Magok branch too. If you reserve ahead you can even choose which table you sit at, so I booked through Naver in advance and arrived right on time.

How does parking work at Romaok Magok, and how do you combine it with a performance?

The Romaok Magok building is inside LG Art Center, so the parking lot is huge and easy to use. On top of that, 2 hours of parking are covered just for dining, and if you're also seeing a performance, you apparently need to settle your parking at Romaok first in order to combine the performance's free parking with Romaok's free parking.

Inside Romaok Magok: Colosseum arches, full-height windows and outdoor tables

The interior is said to reinterpret the Colosseum and its arches. It's not just the food that feels foreign — the space itself makes you feel like you're really in Europe. The floor-to-ceiling windows on both sides give a great sense of openness, making the place feel much bigger than it actually is, and there are even group tables, so it seems great for visiting with several people! There are also outdoor tables where you can eat under warm sunlight. If you go in the evening after sunset and share a glass of wine, I think you'd really feel the atmosphere.

What we ordered at Romaok Magok and what it cost

The menu is full of special, appealing dishes, and the deep flavors and sophisticated plating raise the quality of the food even further, so satisfaction stays high no matter what you order.

• Pine nut caprese salad ₩17,000
• Abalone geou pasta ₩26,000
• Eclipse squid ink risotto ₩25,000
• Total ₩68,000

The bread served before the meal

Two pieces of warm, freshly baked pre-meal bread. The kicker at Romaok is the sauce — instead of the usual balsamic dip, it's some kind of garlic... oil, with a garlic bread-like aroma that makes you want to dunk the bread all the way in, haha.

We arrived right at opening time and the food came out really fast, so we were able to eat everything in one go.

Pine nut caprese salad, 17,000 won

A salad with cherry tomatoes, black tomatoes, pine nut fromage blanc, white balsamic, arugula, and frill ice lettuce. Of all the salads I've had recently, this one ranks among the freshest and most delicious. I don't usually enjoy tomatoes much, but the texture was great and the burst of tanginess in the mouth was pure art. Ordering a salad alongside a main dish would pair beautifully — highly recommend!

Abalone geou pasta, 26,000 won

Abalone steamed slowly in kelp, with garlic scapes, chorizo, geou (abalone gonad) sauce, and linguine noodles. The abalone's aroma spread subtly and the noodles were cooked just right — not dry, but soft and delicious. The sauce itself was rich, yet not overwhelming, and the deep flavor from the geou sauce was seriously addictive.

Eclipse squid ink risotto, 25,000 won

Grilled cuttlefish, squid ink sauce, dill oil, sun-dried tomatoes, and a squid ink risotto made with freshly harvested Sindongjin rice!! The visuals were so striking I couldn't resist choosing it after some deliberation. That white sauce gives a slightly tangy note, so it tasted a bit different — fresher — than the squid ink risottos I've usually had. There was squid and dried tomato around the rim, so I ate them one bite at a time along with the white sauce, in order! I like strong seasoning, and the umami and depth of flavor here suited my palate perfectly.

Is Romaok Magok a good date course near Magok Naru Station?

Romaok Magok lets you enjoy a special, varied menu and then catch a performance right in the same building — a place where a date course turns into a great meal too. The restaurant's atmosphere itself feels so foreign that even just sitting down for a coffee lifts your mood. Parking around Magok Naru Station is expensive and support doesn't last long anywhere else, but at Romaok Magok, if you're also seeing a performance, you get generous parking support combined together — so if you're trying to decide on somewhere nice with delicious food, I definitely recommend Romaok.