Gangnam Japanese restaurant beef cutlet grilling guide: Gyuen Dang

I was craving gyukatsu (Japanese breaded beef cutlet), looked it up, and found that one had opened in Seolleung 👍🏻 So off I went right away.

Gyuen Dang Seolleung Branch location and visitor information

Gyuen Dang Seolleung Branch (규엔당 선릉점) is on the second floor at 26 Seolleung-ro 86-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It is 269 m from Exit 1 of Seolleung Station on the Suin–Bundang Line.

Hours are 11:00–21:30 Monday through Friday, with a break from 15:00–17:00 and last orders at 20:30. On Saturday and Sunday, it is open 11:30–22:00, with last orders at 21:00. Group visits, reservations, Wi-Fi, separate men's and women's restrooms, and high chairs are available.

It is on the second floor, with stairs leading straight up from the street, so you will not be wandering around trying to find it.

When I entered, the space was divided into two sides, and I was shown to the left-hand side.

It was spacious and tidy, with plenty of room between the tables.

It has an atmosphere where solo diners can eat comfortably, too. The calm setting makes for an easy, relaxed meal.

Ordering tenderloin and striploin gyukatsu

I came for gyukatsu, but once I got there, the brie cheese omurice looked seriously delicious too. I will try that next time! Today, I ordered one tenderloin gyukatsu and one striploin gyukatsu.

How do you grill gyukatsu?

• Try two pieces of meat on the heated tabletop grill first, just as they are, for their natural flavor.
• Add one-quarter of the Isigny butter and grill it for extra richness.
• Bring out different sides of the meat with wasabi, salt, and the house sauce, in that order.
• If you need the grill plate replaced, please press the call button.

Not what I was eating today, but I did sneak a look at the brie cheese menu.

Ramune ordered! Ramune bottles are hard to open, but our little one is really good at it 👍🏻 Earned the right to drink it.

Tenderloin or striploin: which doneness works better?

Comparing the tenderloin and striploin, the striploin was longer in size.

At the very first bite, the difference in flavor is not huge.

There is a bit of a difference in texture, though, and the tenderloin is much softer. Gyukatsu is meant to be cooked just on the outside, then lightly grilled inside, right?

Tenderloin especially shines the closer it is to rare, because that softness really comes through. Even with just a little grilling, it is not tough and chews easily.

Striploin, on the other hand, seems to need a little more grilling. When rare, it feels just slightly harder to chew.

Striploin has more muscle grain and spring than tenderloin, so if you eat it too rare, it can be a little chewy. Grill it a little longer, though, and the fat melts, the grain softens, and it becomes easier to chew.

It felt just like the difference between raw beef cuts even outside of gyukatsu, so I understood it quickly as I ate.

Grilling one each of tenderloin and striploin makes the comparison really clear. Just looking at the cross-sections, the tenderloin looks soft.

Tenderloin is soft with just a light sear; cook striploin to around medium for fuller beef flavor and an easier texture.

I think this will be helpful when you order and eat yours!

Eating it your way with butter and sauces

Put a little butter on, grill the gyukatsu, then dip it in whichever sauce suits you at that moment. We ate so slowly that I felt bad about the flame underneath going out all the time, so later I just grilled everything at once. I am on team wasabi.

The tenderloin and striploin came with different sauces. Striploin had a sweet house sauce, and tenderloin came with ginger sauce; oddly enough, my child liked the ginger sauce.

Gyukatsu is delicious however you eat it, whenever you eat it.

The salad that came with it was really good. I want to know what that cabbage dressing was so I can have some.

It is a great menu for dining alone, dates, or a family meal. They even had a high chair ready.