Gangnam Japanese restaurant with springy eel rice bowl: Manmok

It was time for lunch near Seolleung Station, so I went looking for a great eel rice bowl—and found somewhere so delicious it could be dangerous!!

The requirements for a restaurant my husband and I wanted! Within a five-minute walk of Seolleung Station, neat and orderly (I absolutely hate hectic places), and a lunch where we could get plenty of protein.

Manmok’s lunch and dinner menus near Seolleung Station

Manmok near Seolleung Station

For lunch, they offer just one item: the eel rice bowl. For dinner, there are options such as eel nabe (Japanese hot pot), Korean beef nabe, and premium grilled eel, so it seems like a perfect place to have a drink with your meal, too.

An interior suited to dates, family meals, and team dinners

The atmosphere inside Manmok, home of the eel rice bowl

This is exactly the kind of restaurant atmosphere I love. There is lots of space between tables, and each one feels nicely separate. At the front of the restaurant, there are even seats for solo diners!!

The sofa where I sat was spacious enough for about six people to eat together. Great for a family meal or a date. And the wide, long table in the middle made me think it would be just right for a team dinner.

Eel rice bowl set price and what comes with it

The price of Manmok’s eel rice bowl set

This is the full set with one whole eel rice bowl (₩39,000). Dessert comes later too, so I was really full. It was so generous that, even though I eat a lot, I gave a few pieces to my husband.

Even the water is barley tea, which is easy on the stomach, and the salad has a nutty sesame dressing. It feels perfect as an appetizer. There are also radish, ginger, wasabi, and sansho (Japanese pepper), all amazing accompaniments for the eel rice bowl!!

If you are wondering what to have for lunch near Seolleung Station, I recommend Manmok’s eel rice bowl for a healthy meal packed with protein. My husband and I had lunch at Manmok and weren’t hungry again until well into the evening... hahaha. You all know that good feeling when you have a really satisfying, delicious meal, right?

Eel rice bowl with sansho

At one end of the table, there is a stylish little object—and it is sansho powder. If you find eel a little rich, try sprinkling some on. It is such a special treat, seriously haha. My husband loves sansho powder, so he had lots of it!!!

A satisfying set, right down to the steamed egg and sides

Honestly~ you know one way to tell whether a Japanese restaurant is good is to check the steamed egg, right? At Manmok near Seolleung Station, the steamed egg is a masterstroke from the start. When that soft, silky steamed egg goes into your mouth, it is springy too—I thought, wow, they really can cook!

I think Manmok’s thoughtfulness shows in details like this. Even though they gave us radish and ginger!!!!!! They also served white kimchi and shredded radish salad, so this kimchi fanatic did not feel deprived. How did they know I am someone who cannot eat rice without kimchi....ㅠㅠ

Even the soy sauce poured over the rice is so delicious.... You could mix rice with that sauce alone, without any eel, and it goes down so easily with just the right sweet-and-salty flavor.

Manmok eel rice bowl’s chewy, springy texture

What sets Manmok’s eel rice bowl apart

I love eel rice bowls, so I have gone out to eat quite a lot of them, and Manmok’s is distinctly different. It is all about the texture. Usually, the moment you put it in your mouth, the smoky charcoal aroma hits you, while the eel feels soft on your tongue.

But Manmok’s eel rice bowl has both that charcoal aroma and a soft yet “chewy, springy” texture!!! It really made me think the chef knows how to make the most of ingredients....!! How do they make eel this chewy and springy at the same time?? I think my dad would love it for a family meal!

It was such a delicious lunch that I will absolutely recommend Manmok for an upcoming team dinner. It is exactly the kind of place department managers would like, and I think younger junior staff would enjoy it too. Just thinking about ordering eel nabe and getting warmly full sounds perfect haha.

A full eel meal that even includes ice cream for dessert

What makes Manmok really worth the price is that they even give you dessert. Dessert as part of a full set.... There are not many restaurants like this... My husband praised me all day for finding such a good restaurant!!

For dessert, you can choose matcha or black tea ice cream. It has such a proper Japanese feel~~~ Both the black tea and matcha ice creams were incredibly delicious... They felt homemade, so what are we supposed to do when they taste even better than the kind you buy?

Who I recommend Manmok near Seolleung Station for

• People looking for a healthy, delicious lunch near Seolleung Station
• Anyone planning a family meal or date that calls for a neat, polished setting
• When you want to treat people you care about
• People looking for a venue for a team dinner near Seolleung Station
• Solo diners near Seolleung Station

I am 200% willing to return to Manmok near Seolleung Station, and my husband and I decided to go again next month hahaha. I recommend that you experience the eel’s soft yet chewy texture, too :)