2pm Korean BBQ in Mapo, Seoul: staff-grilled LA galbi at Usijang

I was looking for somewhere near Mapo Station to eat beef with the family and ended up at the Mapo Station main branch of Usijang Hoegwan (우시장회관). It's such a famous beef spot near Mapo Station that my expectations were already high!

What is on the menu at Usijang Hoegwan, and what does it cost?

Usijang's 3-person assorted set lets you try grilled beef, yukhoe sashimi (raw beef) and gukbap (soup with rice) all in one go. You order through a table kiosk, and there's a separate table setting fee of ₩1,500 per person.

The first thing that caught my eye when I arrived at Usijang was the warm, old-school exterior~

Right at the entrance, the sign for kkotgalbitang (flower short rib soup) grabbed my attention — a rich broth simmered in a cast-iron pot, already sounded promising.

Ordering was easy through the kiosk on the table. We went with the 3-person assorted set that lets you try grilled beef, sashimi and gukbap together~ The wall menu showed pretty reasonable prices for individual dishes too, but just a heads-up that the table setting fee of ₩1,500 per person is charged separately!

The basic side dishes were pickled perilla leaves, kimchi, and pickled peppers — the perfect lineup to go with the meat, so I didn't feel like anything was missing.

How did the jingalbisal, raw beef sashimi and gukbap taste?

Usijang's yukhoe sashimi apparently only uses the kkuritsal cut from clean-region Gangwon-do female Korean beef cattle. The grilled jingalbisal was tender like tenderloin, while the sogalbisal had a slightly chewier texture.

The place's pride, the yukhoe sashimi, apparently uses only the kkuritsal cut from clean-region Gangwon-do female Korean beef~ Only 2kg comes from a single cow, so that rare-cut detail made me even more curious.

And finally, the yukhoe sashimi in front of me! The bright red marbling was truly a work of art, and the stickiness I felt when I picked it up with chopsticks was no joke.

Dipped lightly in the accompanying special sauce, the chewy texture and the spicy-sweet seasoning came together so well that I kept reaching for more.

The jingalbisal served for grilling was a cut I was trying for the first time — tender like tenderloin, but with the savory fattiness typical of striploin, filling my mouth completely~

The smell of the meat sizzling away over the charcoal was so intense! Grilled just lightly enough to keep the juices in, it was delicious even dipped only in salt.

Next was the sogalbisal! It had a chewier texture than the jingalbisal and was packed with savory flavor, so I didn't even bother cutting it with scissors and just ate it in one big bite!! So good!!

Is Usijang Hoegwan a good place to eat with kids?

The thing the kids liked best at Usijang was the seasoned LA galbi, which a staff member grills for you at the table. That said, there are no baby chairs or baby dishware available, and break time starts at 3pm.

When you visit for a family meal out, kids' taste buds are always the biggest concern, but here the sogalbisal was crunchy and got more savory the more you chewed, so the kids happily piled it on rice~

The seasoned LA galbi in particular was a hit — the sweet sauce soaked all the way into the meat, and it was clearly the number one dish for the kids' taste buds!

A staff member comes over and grills the LA galbi for you with real care, so all you have to do is enjoy it~ Thanks to that, we could look after the kids and still eat at a relaxed pace. Just keep in mind that there are no baby chairs or baby dishware available. We visited around 2pm and it was quiet, so it was a good time to eat leisurely with the kids. Break time starts at 3pm!!

What makes the clam beef gukbap taste so clean and refreshing?

The finishing dish of the 3-person assorted set was clam beef gukbap. It was generously loaded with clams — practically endless — which was great for washing away the richness after all that meat.

The gukbap served to finish the meal was clam beef gukbap, and it turned out to be a genius move!

It was so generously loaded with clams that they just kept coming.

The broth was so refreshing and deep that it completely washed away the slight heaviness left over from the meat — it would make a fine hangover cure too~ My son had fun picking out the fresh clam meat and cleaned his whole bowl of rice, making for a satisfying meal right to the end.

From the tender jingalbisal to the chewy yukhoe sashimi and the refreshing clam gukbap, nothing in this lineup fell short, so I'd happily recommend it as a spot for a family meal out or a work dinner near Mapo Station's beef restaurants~ There's also sweet LA galbi for the kids, so it's worth a stop on a weekend outing!