Early solo dinner poke near Gyodae Station: raw salmon, Olla Poke

Where is Olla Poke Seocho Gyodae Branch and when is it open?

Olla Poke Seocho Gyodae Branch (올라포케 서초교대점) is at 54 Banpo-daero 28-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the first basement floor, 278 m from Exit 14 of Gyodae Station. It is open weekdays 11:00–21:00 and closed on Saturdays and Sundays. Group seating, takeout, delivery, mobile payment and parking are all listed as available.

It's only 278 m from Exit 14 of Gyodae Station, so it's a quick walk and easy to reach by subway ❤️

There are two ways down to the basement shop: a gentle staircase and a steep one! I used the gentle one in case I tripped 😇 Just pick whichever suits you.

Is Olla Poke Seocho Gyodae Branch good for eating alone?

There are lots of good solo seats, plus outlet seats and even phone stands, so it's great for eating alone ✨ It's roomier than I expected 😜 and since it opened not long ago, it's clean too. The seating layout wouldn't feel awkward for a group either ❗️ I went a bit before the usual dinner hour.

Kiosk ordering and ingredient origin labels

You order at a kiosk, and the country-of-origin info is neatly posted next to it, so I could eat with confidence 🥺 I always check origins first at restaurants, so I really liked this ❗️

What's at the Olla Poke self-serve bar?

The self-serve bar has wet wipes, napkins, and sesame soy sauce to top up if you run short 💖 But they gave me so much sauce that I never ended up using it!

Calories are listed for every menu item, which dieters and weight maintainers will love 💘

What I picked from the Olla Poke menu

There are quite a few poke options, and after dithering I went with the raw salmon poke 🤣

How was the raw salmon poke on a 7:3 salad and oat brown rice base with extra toppings?

I chose a base of 7 parts salad to 3 parts oat brown rice, added avocado, shrimp and egg, and skipped the corn and lentils. I agonized over the menu for ages, but it turned out to be exactly the kind of poke I like 😆

I'd been eating delivery food and flour-based stuff lately and felt bloated, so I wanted something fresh, and this was clean and easy to eat 🥺 Honestly I added all those extras because I worried the basic bowl would leave me hungry soon, but with the toppings I ate until I was about to burst 🔥

Does the raw salmon taste fishy?

The raw salmon was fresh, so there was no fishy taste, which I loved. It was springy and tasty enough that it was good even without any sauce 💘

Sriracha mayo comes on the side

I chose sriracha mayo, and at Olla Poke Seocho Gyodae Branch the sauce comes separately in a generous amount, so you can use as much as you like. With poke, I've often had bowls where there's so much sauce it's all you taste, or so little it's bland, so this was even better 😜

The crunch of the seaweed added texture and the chickpeas added a nutty flavor, so it felt even more filling and substantial 💗

Is adding avocado to the salmon poke worth it?

The avocado I added was perfectly ripe and soft, and I was glad I'd added it ✨ Why is it so hard to ripen them at home? 🥲

The verdict on Olla Poke's raw salmon poke

The raw salmon poke at Olla Poke Seocho Gyodae Branch had ingredients that worked well together, and it made for a clean, light, no-fuss meal 🙆🏻‍♀️ After eating only greasy food, having something fresh left me full and my stomach settled, so I'm satisfied ⭐️ Thanks for the meal again today!