Gwanghwamun kaisendon lunch with mom at the counter seats: Ilpum

My mom and I were watching TV when a kaisendon (raw seafood rice bowl) came on screen and she said she wanted to try one 🥹 So this unfilial daughter set out to play the good daughter for once and found Ilpum Gwanghwamun, supposedly the best kaisendon spot in Seoul.

The visuals on the kaisendon here are no joke..! The ingredients are fresh, the quality is great, and it's already known in Gwanghwamun as an upscale Japanese restaurant — plus (important) it has parking on a hot day like this, so I took my mom along ✨

Where is Ilpum Gwanghwamun? Hours and parking

• 📍 19 Jong-ro, B2 223, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Ilpum Gwanghwamun
• ✔️ Mon–Sat 11:00–21:30 / break time 15:00–17:30 / last order 14:00, 20:00
• Closed every Sunday
• 🚘 2 hours free parking available
• 📝 Naver Reservation
• 🍾 One free corkage bottle with Naver booking

Finding the entrance in Le Meilleur Jongno Town

Ilpum ✨ sits on B2 of Le Meilleur Jongno Town, close to both Jonggak and Gwanghwamun stations. I drove and they applied 2 hours of free parking, so it was really convenient!! There was a wait when I visited around lunchtime 😱 such a popular spot…! I had a reservation so I got seated right away — everyone, please book ahead 👍

Inside Ilpum Gwanghwamun: counter seats for two

Since we were two, I booked counter seats, and table seats are also available for parties of 3 or more.

The best part of counter seats is watching the chefs work 👀 My mom and I kept watching while we ate, haha.

Menu and prices at Ilpum Gwanghwamun

From kaisendon to unagi don (grilled eel rice bowl), sushi omakase, futomaki (large sushi roll), and sashimi — Ilpum has every kind of delicious, upscale Japanese dish!!

They give you 2 pieces of croquette free if you leave a receipt review, so everyone should take part ✨

The chawanmushi (steamed egg custard) that came out first 💛 Really smooth and sweet, best appetite booster.

Premium kaisendon (37,000 won) vs basic kaisendon (26,000 won)

We ordered the premium kaisendon at ₩37,000 and the basic kaisendon at ₩26,000, and they made them right in front of us, so it was packed with freshness!

The one above is the signature, the one below is basic. The basic has white fish like salmon, tuna, flounder, and sea bream, plus raw shrimp and flying fish roe as standard toppings ✔️ The signature seemed to add abalone, uni (sea urchin), salmon roe, and toro (fatty tuna) haha. So fancy…🫧

✨ If the basic kaisendon lets you enjoy a balanced mix of various aged sashimi and seafood, the premium kaisendon adds luxury ingredients like toro, uni, abalone, and salmon roe for a richer, more upscale flavor ✨

You can lift the sashimi off the top onto a small plate and enjoy it alongside the rice.

My first bite was, of course, my beloved salmon…💛 The rice was already seasoned enough that just a dab of wasabi on the sashimi made a perfect combo! The sashimi tasted clean and refined — truly a top-notch (ilpum) dish.

I stole a piece of uni from my mom 🤭 Rich and smooth — I wanted to eat nothing but uni after that 🫶🏻

Wrapping it in seaweed or topping it with gamtae (dried green seaweed) gave a whole different savoriness! Every combination worked well together 💗 The seaweed was especially thick and nutty — eventually I was just wrapping plain rice in it 🤤

Chawanmushi, cold udon, tamago and mango panna cotta

Midway through, they also serve a cold udon topped with karaage (Japanese fried chicken) as a meal course 👍 By the time we finished, I really thought I'd burst.

The finish is always sweet tamago (Japanese omelet) 🍳

As the meal wound down, they served mango panna cotta for dessert. This one was genuinely delicious 💛💛 Not too sweet, with the fresh cream flavor spreading smoothly in your mouth…🫶🏻 A completely perfect finish.

Is Ilpum Gwanghwamun worth it for lunch with your mom?

At Ilpum Gwanghwamun, my mom and I enjoyed delicious kaisendon and had an upscale date for the first time in a while 🤍🩶 If you want to spend a special meal in a refined atmosphere, I'd recommend this place 🫧