Seoul Station Japanese restaurant for lunch with mom: Ichigyu

Ichigyu Seoul Station Branch basics

• Hours: Daily 11:00 AM – 9:30 PM
• Break time: 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
• Last order: Lunch 2:00 PM, dinner 8:30 PM
• 3 minutes from Seoul Station Exit 10, in the LG building
• Reservations: Naver Reservation, Catch Table
• Paid parking

Ichigyu Seoul Station Branch, close to Seoul Station

Ichigyu Seoul Station Branch is quite close to Exit 10 of Seoul Station, so it was easy to find. It also seemed convenient if you need to catch a KTX train or grab lunch near Seoul Station.

How to get from the LG building to the restaurant

Enter through the main entrance of the LG building, look to the right, take the escalator down to B1, and turn right immediately

and it's right there as you round the corner past the GS convenience store~ My mom and I had errands near Seoul Station today and were trying to decide where to have lunch. Looking for something clean and nice for a mother-daughter date near Seoul Station, we ended up at Ichigyu Seoul Station Branch, a well-known spot around here.

I usually love gyukatsu anyway, and since you get to grill it yourself at the table, I thought it'd be fun to go with my mom.

Waiting and reservations

If you're planning to visit during an odd afternoon hour, it's a good idea to check the hours in advance. When there's a wait, you can use Catch Table, so checking ahead before the lunch peak might save you some hassle. Naver Reservation works too! For group bookings, they say calling the restaurant directly will let them confirm availability.

Clean, calm interior

Walking in, the whole place felt clean with a subtle Japanese atmosphere.

What caught my eye right away was that every table has its own small tabletop grill. When the gyukatsu arrives, you use the grill to cook it to your own preferred doneness — probably one of the reasons people come to Ichigyu~^^

What we ordered and the prices

Ichigyu gyukatsu set ₩19,500 Sutekidon (steak bowl) ₩19,500

We ordered the Ichigyu gyukatsu set and the sutekidon that day. Since gyukatsu is Ichigyu's signature menu, I'd recommend giving it a try at least once on your first visit.

Gyukatsu grilled to your own doneness on the tabletop grill

Gyukatsu comes with a thin fried coating on the outside and a medium-rare center, so when it first arrives you can see the bright red interior. Rather than eating it as is, you grill it bit by bit on the tabletop grill to your taste. If you like meat well-done, just grill it longer; if you prefer a juicier texture, lightly searing just the outside works fine too.

When you put the French butter on the grill, it melts slowly in the heat and a savory aroma rises up. You place a piece of gyukatsu on top and grill it on both sides — even the sound of it was delicious. As it sizzled and the butter aroma mixed in, it felt completely different from just grilling meat plain.

Salt versus itame special sauce with wasabi

Everyone has their own preference when it comes to eating meat. I've always liked dipping meat in salt — it doesn't mask the flavor, so you get the full taste of the meat and its juices, with the butter's richness and a touch of salty savor that kept me reaching for more.

I also tried Ichigyu's own signature sauce. It's called itame sauce, a special house sauce, and it wasn't too salty or overly sweet, pairing surprisingly well with the meat. Topping it with a bit of wasabi gave a completely different feel again. The umami of the special sauce combined with a sharp hit of wasabi at the end cut through the richness and brought out even more of the meat's flavor. If salt is for enjoying the meat's plain flavor, the house sauce with wasabi is great for when you want something more layered.

How was the sutekidon?

If gyukatsu is the fun of grilling each piece yourself on the grill, sutekidon is the comforting dish of warm rice with beef. The beef sits temptingly on top of the rice, and you can eat rice and beef together in one bite, which made it easy to share with my mom.

It was close to Seoul Station and easy to get to, and I especially loved the savory richness of the butter-grilled beef and its juicy, tender texture. If you're like me and enjoy dipping meat in salt, definitely try that combo too. And the combination of Ichigyu's own sauce with a touch of wasabi was surprisingly delicious, so I'd recommend alternating between the two.

Ordering both gyukatsu and sutekidon together was just right for sharing with my mom, and it made for a satisfying, filling meal.

Restroom and parking info

The restroom is just outside the restaurant — turn right and follow the restroom sign.

Parking is available but it's paid. ₩1,000 for the first 10 minutes, an additional ₩1,000 per 10 minutes, up to a maximum of ₩144,000. *Please note that this is paid parking per building policy. Parking is available on basement level 2 of the building. ₩1,000 per 10 minutes / ₩6,000 per hour.