Seocho Korean course weekday lunch, parking & melon dessert: MUSEO

Today I had a pretty meal that's fun to look at as well as delicious. MUSEO has bar seats and private rooms, so it works well for get-togethers, and the lighting is just right for the mood. Here's my weekday lunch review of this Gangnam favorite!

What are MUSEO's lunch and dinner hours?

The lunch course runs 11:00–14:00 (last order 13:00) and the dinner course 17:30–22:00 (last order 20:00). Break time is 14:30–17:30.

Getting to MUSEO and where to park

By public transit, MUSEO sits between Gangnam Station and Yangjae Station. If you're driving, just search 'MUSEO' in your navigation app.

Lots of Gangnam restaurants and company dinner spots have no parking, but MUSEO has lots right next door. The left photo is the lot on the left as you face the restaurant: the Daemyeong Building lot (1340 Seocho-dong), ₩1,000 per 10 minutes, and MUSEO covers 1 hour. The right photo is the lot on the right, which is free, so it may be full at mealtimes.

MUSEO is in the basement of the Udaepo building, so you walk down one flight of stairs. I used the stairs on the left side of the building, which are a bit narrow and steep, so if you're with older family members I'd recommend the stairs on the right. That's the pretty entrance ^^

MUSEO's interior and seating

The moment I walked in, I noticed artworks and a lovely scent. The space and mood made me wonder, "Is this really a Korean restaurant?" and my expectations for the food went up.

These are the bar seats and the hall tables. There were two of us, so we sat at the bar; for 4–7 people you can have a large table to yourselves. For 7 or more, a private room can be reserved, so ask the restaurant and book ahead! At tables, ordering MUSEO's signature course is the default, and the private room has a ₩100,000 room charge, which is waived if you spend ₩150,000 or more per person on food and drinks.

The tables inside have a really nice atmosphere too. It isn't a French restaurant, yet you can have Korean food as a course, and the calm mood fits that nicely. There are coat hangers as well, so it should be comfortable even in winter with thick coats.

The flower arrangement in the middle of the bar separates the kitchen from the dining seats, and it also adds an accent to the rather dark room. The bright flowers suited summer and looked lovely.

MUSEO is a good-value course restaurant even by Gangnam standards, so even on a weekday lunch it was busy with mothers' gatherings, wedding invitation meetups and dates, and people were still asking about meals after last order.

What's on MUSEO's lunch menu and how much is it?

The summer baekban set (Korean set meal) is ₩32,000 per person, and the Premium Baekban is ₩49,000 per person. The menu isn't fixed; they keep developing new dishes with seasonal ingredients.

• Baekban set (summer, ₩32,000 per person): pre-meal steamed egg, Sindongjin rice, Hanwoo pork jeyuk-bokkeum (spicy stir-fried pork), Haenam gopchang gim (seaweed), fried Goheung Spanish mackerel, assorted side dishes and soup, dessert
• Premium Baekban (₩49,000 per person): the regular baekban plus starters, with yukhoe namul bibimbap (beef tartare and seasoned greens over rice) instead of plain rice
• Add ₩11,000 to switch to boyang gukbap (stamina rice soup)

We ordered the Premium Baekban for two, and only I switched to MUSEO's boyang gukbap.

Premium Baekban starters: steamed egg, seafood mulhoe and ox foot

The Premium Baekban starters were steamed egg, seafood mulhoe (cold raw seafood soup) and ox foot. While you sit there, the staff bring out each dish at the pace of the course.

This is steamed egg with Pohang spinach and anchovies. The salty anchovy and seasonal Pohang spinach blended with the soft egg, and it was a great way to open up the appetite.

The seafood mulhoe had sweet shrimp, sea cucumber, sea squirt and more, and went so well with the tangy cold broth that it really got my appetite going. I don't usually like sea squirt, but this had no fishy taste at all and was clean.

The ox foot had a texture like pyeonyuk (pressed sliced boiled meat). It came with a salad and a lentil sauce: the salad was gochujang-based with a nice tang, and the lentils felt like peanut butter.

Mint and lemon came out cold. Before moving on to the main baekban spread, a mint sorbet cleanses the palate.

Yukhoe namul bibimbap vs boyang gukbap: what's the difference?

The yukhoe namul bibimbap and MUSEO's boyang gukbap share the same side dishes, jeyuk-bokkeum and doenjang soup; only the main differs.

Hanwoo kkurit-sal yukhoe namul bibimbap (beef tartare rice bowl)

This is yukhoe bibimbap made with Hanwoo (Korean beef) kkurit-sal, which is the front leg cut of the cow. It's packed with seasonal namul (seasoned greens) for lots of different flavors, plus the nuttiness of sesame seeds, so it was fun to look at and tasty. The gochujang for the bibimbap comes separately in a clean container so you can mix it to your taste.

MUSEO's boyang gukbap with native chicken and abalone

The boyang gukbap with native chicken and abalone has a deep flavor from a richly simmered native chicken broth, with shredded chicken and beef stirred in. You can tell it's stamina food just from the ingredients, and it'd be great for the coming Chobok, Jungbok and Malbok (the three hottest days of summer).

The gosari (bracken fern) I love was stewed until soft too, so every ingredient was tender. The side jeyuk-bokkeum was a bit spicy, and eating it with the gukbap balanced it out nicely. Overall the seasoning is moderate and almost nothing is harsh, but the kick of the jeyuk-bokkeum hits suddenly, so people who can't handle spice might find it hard, haha.

These are the basic side dishes of my boyang gukbap set. Fried Spanish mackerel and Hanwoo yukhoe came out too.

I think the Hanwoo yukhoe is kkurit-sal as well. It was my first time trying kkurit-sal and it was tender, and since it came with a salad, the seasoning had a rich savory flavor.

Goheung fried Spanish mackerel, loved even by a fish skeptic

I don't really like fish, but MUSEO's fried Spanish mackerel is something else. The fish is mild and tender, and the batter isn't thick and stays crispy. Even if they sold this as a main dish, I'd order it.

MUSEO dessert: Korean melon with soy sauce crumble ice cream

Dessert at MUSEO was served as ice cream. It was topped with crumble simmered in soy sauce and chamoe (Korean melon) flesh, and the finish was tasty in the classic sweet-and-salty way.

Is MUSEO a good Gangnam spot for a wedding invitation get-together?

You walk in charmed by the atmosphere and scent, fall for it again when you see the pretty food, and leave happy after tasting it. If I'd known about MUSEO before my wedding, I think I would have picked it as a Gangnam spot for my wedding invitation get-togethers.

Check the lunch and dinner last order times, reserve ahead, and have a lovely time ♡