Day drinking Korean BBQ in Seocho: minari pesto samhap at Ugojip

Today I had plans with friends and went looking for a beef restaurant near Express Bus Terminal, which led me to Ugojip, a specialty beef cuts spot — here's my post about it!!

Where is Ugojip and what are its hours?

Ugojip is a specialty beef cuts restaurant in the basement of Banpo Shopping Town Building 5, 195 Sinbanpo-ro, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Hours are 15:00 - 23:00, open every day, and it's corkage-free!!!!

Ugojip has a special story! The Express Bus Terminal branch started as a small shop opened by the owner's father in 2018, closed for a while for personal reasons, and reopened on October 13, 2025, out of a wish to keep alive 'a meal you keep thinking about.'

Maybe that's why this place felt like more than just a reopening — it felt like a restaurant carrying forward the spirit of the father who first opened it. So let's start with the way to Ugojip ✨

Ugojip is located in the basement of Banpo Shopping Town Building 5!

Right across the street you can see the Express Bus Terminal clothing wholesale market!

There are stairs, but also an elevator, so we took the elevator down to the basement!

Once we got down there, there was a noraebang (karaoke room), an old-school-vibe pub, other restaurants and more — lots to eat and do 🫢! It was raining outside today too, so we decided to just stay indoors, eat, and go straight to round two haha.

We were planning on day drinking today, so we timed it perfectly with opening time haha.

Is there a wait at Ugojip, and what is the room like?

Ugojip seems to get a wait in the evenings! There's a nicely set up waiting area, and in this kind of heat waiting outside would be rough, but since Ugojip is indoors you can wait without being too hot or too cold!!

There are easy-to-choose options like brisket samhap (three-way combo), the signature set and the couple set, which are great for couples or families — perfect for someone like me who has trouble deciding haha. There were also solid specialty beef cuts to pick based on taste, plus filling finishing dishes like doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), naengmyeon (cold noodles) and kimchi fried rice.

The interior is clean! And ventilation, which quietly matters so much at BBQ places, was great too — even while grilling meat, the smoke didn't linger indoors and cleared out fast, which kept the whole meal comfortable.

Chadolbagi samhap: minari pesto and aged kimchi make the bite

First up was the brisket samhap I'd been curious about!!! Ugojip's brisket samhap is a dish where you grill brisket, scallops and aged kimchi together.

The side dishes were also a well-matched, tidy set that paired nicely with the meat — just what you needed, nothing more! That secret sauce paired perfectly with the brisket!!

The minari (water celery) pesto, which kept the herb's fresh aroma intact, was really impressive too!! Minari's distinct fragrance blended with the richness of the meat for a fuller, more refreshing flavor! Above all, seeing them keep trying new sauces and combinations made me feel the owner's genuine care and effort for the restaurant and the food, which made me want to root for them even more 🥰

The brisket and scallops were also nice and fresh!!

And of course, good beef needs a drink to go with it!🤩

We grilled the brisket and scallops in melted butter 💕

• Thinly sliced, savory brisket
• Chewy scallops grilled in butter
• Crisp, well-fermented aged kimchi!!! (this kimchi is the kick 👊)

Each of the three ingredients keeps its own flavor, but eating them together makes for a much richer combination — you really have to try it!!😭

The cheese grilled alongside the meat was also a treat!!!🫶 Cheese browned right on the grill turned savory and soft, great tucked in between bites of meat.

Galbisal and anchangsal, then kimchi fried rice to finish

Ugojip is also known as a specialty cuts spot that uses good beef, so we ordered galbisal (rib meat) and anchangsal (skirt steak) too!

The galbisal was savory and full of juice, and the anchangsal, while not too fatty, had a deep meaty flavor that came through more and more with each chew — a perfect way to finish the grilled beef!

No meal is complete without carbs at the end. We wrapped up with Ugojip's kimchi fried rice!!!❤️

Ugojip, near Express Bus Terminal, is a place where you can feel the owner's wish to keep alive 'good meat, a comfortable atmosphere, and the memory of a satisfying meal' for a long time to come.

It's the kind of place you can drop by comfortably in the neighborhood whenever the craving hits, and get good beef!! If you're looking for a great specialty beef cuts restaurant near Express Bus Terminal, give Ugojip a visit!!!