Retro raw beef pub in Dongdaegu Station's food alley: Mihyang Mungtigi

Mihyang Mungtigi is a new place near Dongdaegu Station that I'd been curious about. It always has customers, even on weekdays, so it kept catching my eye. It's in the Dongdaegu Station food alley, good for dates, company dinners and get-togethers, and here's my firsthand review.

Mihyang Mungtigi opening hours and parking

Mihyang Mungtigi Dongdaegu Station branch (미향뭉티기) is open from 17:00 to 01:00 and closed on Sundays. There's no parking lot at the restaurant, so you'll need to use a paid car park nearby.

Where is Mihyang Mungtigi near Dongdaegu Station?

Mihyang Mungtigi is deep inside the Dongdaegu Station food alley, on the lane with Shinsegae Lamb Skewers (신세계양꼬치).

Even from a distance, Mihyang Mungtigi has a strong retro look that catches the eye.

The exterior reminds you of an old-style butcher-shop restaurant, so when you turn into the lane with the famous Shinsegae Lamb Skewers near Dongdaegu Station, it stands out and is easy to find.

Mihyang Mungtigi atmosphere and seating

The inside is decorated with folding screens, giving it an Eastern-style retro mood. There are 6 tables in the back and about 4 near the entrance, so a group dinner works too.

The folding-screen interior is totally my taste! I love the Eastern vibe. The place isn't big, but the 6 tables in the back are good for a group dinner, and there are about 4 more at the entrance.

Disposable chopsticks are provided, a thoughtful touch ✨

What's on the Mihyang Mungtigi menu?

Mihyang Mungtigi uses 100% same-day-butchered beef, which is why they close on Sundays, I'm told. The mains are mungtigi (hand-cut raw beef), raw chadol sashimi (brisket) and yukhoe (beef tartare), and there's a half-and-half option for eating mungtigi and chadol together.

If you can't choose between mungtigi and chadol, there's a half-and-half menu, so don't agonize! There are also plenty of unusual sides like hanwoo yukjeon (pan-fried beef), yukhoe bibimbap, yukhoe kalbibim noodles and ramyeon with beef.

I was struggling in the sweltering heat, so getting cold barley tea the moment I walked in made me so happy... I drank two glasses right there.

What comes as the free side dishes at Mihyang Mungtigi?

As soon as you order, corn salad, hardtack crackers, braised quail eggs, seasoned dried radish and gopchang gim (thick seaweed) are set out quickly. On top of that you get the mungtigi sauce and a sesame oil dip for the chadol, flat dumplings, dropwort salad, freshly made dongjeon (mini meat patties), vinegared rice and beef and radish soup, all included.

A mungtigi place that gives you gopchang gim?!

These are the heart of mungtigi: the mungtigi sauce and the sesame oil dip for chadol.

Daegu's specialty납작만두, flat dumplings (napjakmandu), come as a standard side. A place where you can enjoy mungtigi and flat dumplings, two of Daegu's top 10 specialties, all at once?! The dropwort salad is tangy and tastes great with the dumplings.

The dongjeon are grilled fresh as soon as you order and come out warm, which makes them even tastier.

They give you vinegared rice as standard so you can eat it like sushi. Look forward to the mungtigi sushi.

Then there's the boiling-hot beef and radish soup, great with drinks. I especially loved how much radish was in it, totally my style.

Mungchabanban small for ₩48,000: is it enough for two?

What I ordered at Mihyang Mungtigi was the Mungchabanban small (₩48,000). We planned to eat lightly and move on to a second round, and it was just the right amount.

It looks gorgeous...! The mungtigi in particular had every bit of sinew trimmed away one by one, and that craftsmanship was amazing. Just looking at it, you can tell how fresh it is!

Mungtigi flavor and dipping sauce

It's fresh, so what is there to say? Chewy with great savory depth. It's no exaggeration that the sauce makes or breaks mungtigi, and I liked that they packed in plenty of chili. The pieces are on the chunky side, so generous haha.

Raw chadol sashimi texture

The brisket had some fat, but it wasn't greasy; it was nutty and soft. It's sliced thin, like fish sashimi, and the tender, silky texture was impressive.

It was so good that I couldn't even flip over the mungtigi plate, and we just kept clinking glasses :( The drinks go down fast at this Dongdaegu Station mungtigi spot.

Mungtigi sushi with vinegared rice and gopchang gim

I put gopchang gim and a piece of mungtigi on the vinegared rice from earlier, and the flavor and savory depth were great. You can enjoy it in different ways to suit your taste! There's a reason people wait in line here even on weekdays.

Mihyang Mungtigi in a nutshell

• Same-day-butchered mungtigi spot near Dongdaegu Station
• Friendly staff
• Cool Eastern-style retro interior
• Good for company dinners and get-togethers