Hongdae sushi restaurant, aburi and cheongha pairing: Yu Iksang Sushi

My husband and I met up in Hongdae after a while apart, wandering around and checking things out, and before we knew it we were starving haha. Instead of just going wherever had a crowd like usual, I wanted to try somewhere a little different, so I started searching.

That's how I found Yu Iksang Sushi. While looking for a sushi place near Hongik University Station, I kept seeing it described as a hidden gem, plus date-recommendation reviews caught my eye. Looking at the photos, a lot of the pieces had fish draped much longer than usual over the rice, which made me curious.

Where Yu Iksang Sushi is and what the couple sets cost

Yu Iksang Sushi sits at 18-7 Wawusan-ro 23-gil in Mapo-gu, Seoul — an easy walk from a day out in Hongdae without much hassle. Our order, the Couple A Plus, was ₩56,000, and it was a nice spread of variety for two people to share.

There's also a Couple A set for ₩52,000, so you can choose based on your group size or appetite. The restaurant is open Tuesday through Sunday, so if you're planning a visit, I'd check the hours and closed days beforehand.

A tiny dining room with a steady line of overseas guests

My first impression walking into Yu Iksang Sushi was how small the space was. But while we ate, table after table of foreign customers kept coming in behind us, haha. There are so many restaurants in Hongdae that seeing this felt extra reassuring — is this place actually known to travelers, not just locals? I felt oddly proud on the restaurant's behalf. We hadn't come because someone recommended it as a hidden gem, so watching customers keep pouring in bumped up my expectations a little.

I'd also booked ahead, and that turned out to be really convenient. Whether you can reserve matters a surprising amount when hunting for a good restaurant in Hongdae. They had everything ready so we could start eating as soon as we sat down, so we didn't have to wait long while starving. When you suddenly get hungry mid-hangout in Hongdae, waiting is rough — having a reservation was definitely a plus.

What comes in the 26-piece Couple A Plus set?

For a date, I'd recommend the Couple A Plus — a generous spread built for two

We ordered the Couple A Plus. It's 26 pieces total: 4 pieces flounder, 2 pieces salmon, 4 pieces tuna, 4 pieces beef, plus tamago aburi, garlic shrimp aburi, mekagali aburi, and more. The set also comes with salad, soup, soba, and fried shrimp on the side, making it basically a full course.

Having so many different types piled onto one plate made it fun to each pick out our own favorites. It wasn't just raw fish, either — grilled pieces, egg, and beef sushi with totally different flavor directions were mixed in, which I liked.

The aburi (torched) pieces really hit my personal sweet spot. Lightly seared for extra aroma and texture on the surface, each piece melted softly in my mouth. The garlic shrimp aburi especially, where the sauce and the smoky char came together, paired really well with cheongha.

I usually go for raw fish, but that day I kept reaching for the aburi pieces instead, oddly enough. We each grabbed a bite and started handing pieces to each other's plates, and before we knew it the plate was emptying fast. Laughing the whole time, we ended up catching up on each other's lives too.

Long-tail sushi with fish past the rice, and soy sauce brushed on

The longest long-tail sushi in Hongdae

The most striking thing about Yu Iksang Sushi was the long-tail style, where the fish drapes noticeably past the rice. Seeing it in person, it has way more presence than in photos. Since you taste the texture of the fish before the rice, anyone who loves raw fish would have a lot of fun with it. Rather than dunking the whole long piece into soy sauce at once, brushing the soy sauce on with the little brush provided was fun too — it let you control exactly how much you used. The fish was so long I ended up rolling it up to eat it. 😆

Why aburi sushi and cheongha work so well together

We'd planned to eat slowly from the start, but once the plates arrived, there was even more to talk about. Sitting across from each other with good food in front of us, even small talk turned fun, haha. Add a few bottles of cheongha to that, and we lost track of time eating.

The aburi pieces especially matched cheongha well. The subtle smoky aroma paired with the soft texture, so the rhythm of a sip then a bite felt natural. What started as "let's eat something filling since we're starving" ended up becoming "let's have just a little more and keep talking." 🤣

Is Yu Iksang Sushi a good date restaurant in Hongdae?

Recommended if you're looking for a date restaurant near Hongik University Station

Hongdae has so much to see and eat that deciding where to have a meal is a whole task in itself. If you're like us — done with shopping and sightseeing in Hongdae and just want to sit down for a good meal — a small sushi place like this is worth adding to your list.

If you're visiting as a couple and want to share a variety of pieces, a set like the Couple A Plus that brings out several kinds at once is convenient. You go from raw fish to aburi, mix in sides along the way, and pick and choose according to your taste. The restaurant isn't huge, so if you're expecting a spacious, roomy layout, keep that in mind. On the flip side, if you enjoy talking over a meal in a cozy space, it should suit you well. Being able to cut down the wait by reserving ahead was a real plus too.

If you're near Hongik University Station looking for something a bit different in sushi, keep Yu Iksang Sushi in mind. It was a good stop for us when we wanted to enjoy a proper meal after being out on a date in Hongdae for the first time in a while.

What stuck with me most about that day was walking in starving, eating a generous meal, sharing dishes back and forth, and laughing a ton. Meeting up with no big plans and having good food quickly turns the mood around — isn't that half the fun of dating? 😊

If you're out in Hongdae wondering what to eat today, or if long-tail sushi and a variety of aburi sound good to you, give it a try. I'm already curious about the other menu items, so I think I'll be back. 😊