500-day anniversary Korean beef course in Gongdeok, Seoul: Usu

For our anniversary, I wanted to eat somewhere a little more special than usual, so this time we went to a hanwoo (Korean beef) dining restaurant in Gongdeok! It wasn't just meat — the menu was packed with bite-sized dishes using shrimp, abalone and caviar plus full meal courses, so I really wanted to share this place with you all ♡

📍 Location — 109 Mapo-daero, B1 201, Mapo-gu, Seoul < Usu Gongdeok >

• Hanwoo dining in all-private rooms, a Gongdeok favorite
• Dinner B course with anniversary dessert and photos — a special 500-day date

Where is Usu in Gongdeok, and is there free parking?

We went to Usu Gongdeok for our 500-day anniversary date — just come out of Gongdeok Station Exit 2 and head down to basement level 2 of the Lotte Castle President building right in front of you. Gongdeok Station itself is so accessible, which made things easy. If you're driving, make sure to enter the commercial building parking lot, not the hotel or officetel parking, and remember it's 3 hours free with a meal!

The entrance already feels upscale, right?

Why Usu's private rooms work for anniversaries and family introductions

The biggest strength of this place is that every seat is a private room

Usu Gongdeok has individual rooms lining a long hallway, so you can eat comfortably without worrying about other tables' conversations or glances, and even hold important gatherings. It's great for family gatherings, wedding anniversaries or meeting a partner's parents, and since you can talk quietly through the whole course, it's also a nice Gongdeok date spot ♡

Dinner B course at Usu starts with ugye jinjuk porridge

Usu Gongdeok had a variety of menus, and we chose the Dinner B course — and when we mentioned it was our anniversary, they even gave us sparkling wine for free, which was so touching..♡

The first thing served was ugye jinjuk (rich hanwoo bone and chicken broth porridge). The porridge, deeply simmered with hanwoo ox bone and chicken stock, was filled with nurungji (crispy scorched rice), shiitake mushroom, scallion crust and asparagus — soft porridge with added texture, so tasty!

Before the course got fully underway, they showed us the ingredients that would be used today ♡ Such a gorgeous sight! I was excited to see what form they'd transform into.

Four bite-sized dishes, from bulgogi sandwich to lobster taco

Usu Gongdeok's dinner comes with a whopping four bite-sized dishes. As instructed, we tasted them one by one going counterclockwise.

• Bulgogi sandwich — the umami of bulgogi plus a hint of truffle, an intense start
• Scallop and littleneck clam — savory yet tender
• Sweet shrimp and gim-bugak (fried seaweed chip) — crispy, rich, and refreshing all at once
• Lobster taco — Korean ingredients reimagined in taco form

It was so novel and surprising that not a single one felt like a miss — every one delivered rich flavor!

Shiitake-shrimp and zucchini. Built on a myeongran (pollock roe) and tofu sauce base with chamnamul (aster) oil added, it was so fun to see Korean ingredients interpreted in so many different ways!

Yukhoe gamtae roll — yukhoe (Korean beef tartare) enjoyed together with house-made aioli sauce, fried nurungji, pickled chosuk-jam (Chinese artichoke), and cured egg. Rolled up in gamtae (seaweed) and popped in one bite, the rich flavor was outstanding ♡

A dish with red tilefish set in a broth simmered with neungi mushroom — a refreshing change of mood compared to what we'd eaten before.

Tteokgalbi and abalone with five-color gardenia noodles

Tteokgalbi (grilled short rib patty) & abalone oysaek chija (five-color gardenia) noodles. The tteokgalbi, with crushed pistachio and various sauces, was in a completely different league from your standard hanjeongsik tteokgalbi, and the noodles with plump abalone added a refreshing note that cleansed the palate — the flow of the courses was so good >.<

The main course: 1++ sirloin hanwoo grill with a rice-and-soup spread

The main hanwoo barbecue & rice spread. Along with the 1++ sirloin hanwoo barbecue, we got a full spread with hanwoo seaweed soup and rice, plus a jaecheop (freshwater clam) fish pot rice! We'd already tasted dishes using hanwoo throughout the course, but grilling and eating it properly like this really felt different!

Slowly grilling and eating the tender, juicy hanwoo, then finishing with warm soup and rice, was so satisfying and easy on the stomach — total satisfaction ♡

500-day anniversary dessert, sparkling wine and photo service

When we mentioned it was our 500-day anniversary, they followed the sparkling wine with a special dessert and even took photos for us — it meant so much...♡

Who should book Usu in Gongdeok?

Usu Gongdeok's all-private-room seating means you can eat quietly just the two of you, and with a lineup spanning bite-sized dishes, hanwoo barbecue with rice, and dessert, it's great for taking your time over a long meal. Since every room is separated, this is a must-save for anyone looking for a Seoul restaurant for meeting a partner's parents or a wedding anniversary dinner!

A place where we could mark our special 500-day milestone with delicious food and photos together — I honestly recommend it ♡