CatchTable-booked charcoal beef platter in Songpa: Sutbul Seonghwa

I was craving beef, so this time I visited Sutbul Seonghwa. I figured meat is best grilled over charcoal, so I went looking for a place where I could enjoy charcoal grilling and ended up here.

Where Sutbul Seonghwa is, and its hours and parking

Sutbul Seonghwa is on the 1st floor at 17 Songpadae-ro 48-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, near Seokchon Station. It's open daily from 11:00 to 01:00, with a break time from 15:00 to 17:00.

• 📍 Address: 17 Songpadae-ro 48-gil, 1st floor, Songpa-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• ⏰ Hours: Daily 11:00–01:00 / Break time 15:00–17:00
• 🚗 Parking: Nearby public parking lot, and valet parking is also available. Evening valet is ₩3,000.

Skip the wait with CatchTable, and room for group dinners

Walking in, I felt the clean atmosphere along with the proper vibe of a charcoal grill specialist. I had to wait, so I'd recommend CatchTable! It seemed like there was a company dinner happening that day — this place looks great for group parties too.

What comes on the seonghwa modum platter?

Looking over the menu, I ordered the seonghwa modum, known as Sutbul Seonghwa's signature dish. Rather than just a random mix of beef cuts, it's a combo plate that lets you try both the seonghwa sirloin and wine-marinated rib meat (neukganssal) together. The appeal is enjoying the plain, clean sirloin and the seasoned rib meat side by side — great for comparing two very different flavors.

Here's the grill plate and the basic table setup!

The banchan (side dish) lineup at Sutbul Seonghwa

The banchan (side dishes) that go well with the meat were neatly arranged too. There was a nice variety of appetite-boosting side dishes, and the lineup paired well with the beef, so it was nice picking at them one by one.

Eating nothing but meat can get a bit heavy after a while, but the crisp, refreshing side dishes cleaned my palate in between bites, which worked really well with the beef. None of the banchan were over-seasoned either, so they complemented the meat's flavor naturally instead of overpowering it.

Everything came out plated neatly overall, so it was nice to pick at while waiting for the meat, and I could enjoy various combinations alongside the main seonghwa modum.

Also known as a Suntory highball spot

Sutbul Seonghwa is apparently also known as a Suntory highball spot. You can enjoy a highball made with Suntory whisky as its base, and a lot of people apparently come here specifically to pair one with the charcoal-grilled beef.

If you like the combo of a clean, refreshing highball with charcoal-grilled meat, it's worth trying together.

Seonghwa sirloin, dipped lightly in salt

Seonghwa sirloin

A little while after ordering, the seonghwa modum arrived. The seonghwa sirloin was an unseasoned cut, great for tasting the beef's natural flavor, while the wine-marinated rib meat had a rich red seasoning soaked in, looking really appetizing. I liked that I could grill two completely different styles of meat together.

Once the charcoal had heated up enough, they put the seonghwa sirloin on first. As the meat hit the coals and started sizzling, a savory aroma rose up that really got my appetite going.

Sirloin can get tough if overcooked, so I kept an eye on it while grilling and cooked it just right. I flipped it as soon as the surface turned golden brown, being careful not to overcook it.

Once I had a piece grilled well and tried it, the distinct charcoal aroma and the clean flavor of the beef came together nicely. Personally, I prefer beef without too much seasoning, tasting the meat itself, and the seonghwa sirloin dipped lightly in salt gave a clean, pure beef flavor.

Wine-marinated rib meat: flip it often on the charcoal

Wine-marinated rib meat

Next, I put the wine-marinated rib meat on the grill too. Since it was already seasoned, the aroma while grilling was much stronger, and it had a sweet yet deep flavor totally different from the sirloin. The wine marinade had soaked into the meat, so it was already well-seasoned without needing much extra dipping.

That said, seasoned meat can burn easily if grilled too long over charcoal, so I flipped it often. Once the surface turned golden brown and the inside was cooked through just right, I could taste both the chewy texture unique to rib meat and the flavor of the marinade.

The seonghwa modum had a clear contrast between the seonghwa sirloin and the wine-marinated rib meat, which made eating back and forth between them fun. The sirloin centered on a clean, savory flavor, while the wine-marinated rib meat added the depth of the marinade plus a chewy texture. Same beef, but the mood shifted completely depending on whether it was seasoned or not, so I got a lot of variety out of one dish.

Charcoal-grilled meat tastes best fresh off the grill, so instead of piling on a lot at once, I grilled just enough to eat at a time. Eating it hot right away let me enjoy the juices, and I could cook each piece to exactly the doneness I wanted.

A coat rack that keeps the barbecue smell off your clothes

There was also a separate coat rack, which was handy for hanging up coats or bags. At a grill house, you always worry about your clothes picking up the smoky smell, so having a dedicated spot to hang things was a nice touch.