Charcoal yakitori bar in Mapo, Seoul: tenderloin at Yakitori Shomong

No AI, no script — this post was written by yours truly, stroke by stroke.

🍽 Menu: 6-course set, tomato ragu fried eggplant, ankimo ⏳ Waiting time: None 🔁 Would revisit: Yes 📌 Location: 7-minute walk from Gongdeok Station Exit 1 🥢 One-line review: A yakitori izakaya that's better for treating yourself than for value

— Order — 6-course set for two: ₩51,600 Tomato ragu fried eggplant: ₩22,000 Monkfish liver salt gimbap: ₩14,000 Ebisu draft (1 glass): ₩13,000 Soju (2 bottles): ₩14,000 Soft drink (1 can): ₩3,000

Where is Yakitori Shomong, and what is the space like?

Today I visited Yakitori Shomong, located near Gongdeok Station and Daeheung Station.

I visited right after opening, so it was empty in the photos, but about 30 minutes later it filled right up. The place is fairly spacious, split into outdoor seating, table seating, and counter seating.

We sat at a table, and I loved that each spot had a little space built in for bags.

If you sit at the counter, you can watch the yakitori being grilled over charcoal at the yakiba (grill station).

The basic side dish is cabbage, which was salty and delicious.

How the ordering works: one course per person, 3, 6 or 9 skewers

This is the tray they bring the yakitori out on. This place has an unusual system — you have to order one course per person, choosing from a 3-course, 6-course, or 9-course set. Rather than grilling all the skewers at once, they cook each cut properly and serve them one skewer at a time. My friend Sojjang and I ordered the 6-course.

The Ebisu draft beer looked delicious so I ordered a glass. It's on the pricier side, but the quality definitely matches the price.

Interestingly, there's Ichiran's spicy seasoning powder on the table. I saw the stripes from a distance and thought, no way? — and sure enough it was Ichiran. Kind of a fun surprise to see it here, haha.

What comes in the 6-skewer course, from tenderloin to chicken skin

First up was chicken tenderloin. It looked like they'd topped it with a sauce made from umeboshi (pickled plum), and the doneness was impressive. The first bite was so tender and juicy I wondered if they'd done a wet brine — it was that moist. This makes my personal top three tenderloin skewers ever.

Next was chicken thigh topped with truffle salt, also cooked perfectly — the fatty edges were nutty and moist, and I enjoyed it a lot.

Monkfish liver salt gimbap, 14,000 won

They seem to make the ankimo (monkfish liver) in-house too — no fishy taste at all, just rich, nutty flavor throughout. It felt like eating salt-seasoned gimbap topped with ankimo, and it was delicious. If this is your first stop of the night, I'd definitely recommend it.

As we kept eating, the tsukune (chicken meatball skewer) arrived, each one served with its own individual egg yolk sauce. There was a bit of crunchy cartilage mixed in here and there too, and it was delicious.

The heart had absolutely no odor and was so tender — delicious. It was soft and chewy enough to bite through easily, which made it great.

Tomato ragu fried eggplant, 22,000 won

Everything so far had been so good that we ordered the tomato ragu fried eggplant as an extra. It was crispy fried eggplant topped with grana padano, chopped scallions, and ragu sauce — good enough to rival a dedicated specialty restaurant. The eggplant wasn't greasy and was fried nice and crisp, so it was delicious even on its own, and it paired perfectly with the umami from the grana padano.

They told us this was the skirt part of the chicken, which I'd never tried in my life. It had a strong fatty flavor with a nutty, deep aroma, and I enjoyed it fine.

Last up was the skin skewer. Rather than being fully crispy, the skin had a moist, chewy texture with a bit of bite to it, and it came brushed with tare (glaze) on the outside. Perfect for washing down with a drink. Honestly I wanted to keep eating, but I had somewhere to be, so I stopped here and left.

Is Yakitori Shomong worth the price?

Prices were on the higher side, but the interior, atmosphere, food, and service all felt worth the price. There are plenty of yakitori places out there that are expensive without being properly managed, but here, the beer quality, the skewers, everything was impressive. The tenderloin skewer especially might be close to the single best tenderloin I've ever had. Given the price point, it's not somewhere I could come often, but if you love yakitori, I'd definitely recommend visiting with someone you like.