Jongno Korean restaurant, office lunch gulbi and short ribs: Gu Table

What kind of Korean restaurant is Gu Table in Jongno 5-ga?

Gu Table Korean Restaurant (구테이블 한정식) is a Korean restaurant in Jongno 5-ga whose signature is the barley gulbi set (boribap gulbi, barley-dried corvina). It works for a solo lunch, an office lunch or a group dinner.

It is a neat, clean Jeolla-style Korean restaurant that uses seasonal ingredients and traditional cooking methods. It is open daily 11:00–22:00, with a break from 15:00 to 17:00.

What comes with the barley gulbi set at Gu Table?

Besides the barley gulbi made from carefully dried corvina, the set also comes with perilla-leaf sashimi and grilled beef short ribs. Even for a food lover, it was a satisfying lineup.

The side dishes were tidy Jeolla-style ones, with that clean, savory depth Jeolla food is known for.

The gulbi itself is so big! If dried corvina is this size, the fish must have been really huge to begin with. It was also dried and cooked neatly, so it looks pretty, and it came already prepared, so you just eat. It's a barley gulbi spot you can happily bring your parents or guests to.

Clam seaweed soup and multigrain rice

The set also comes with seaweed soup (miyeokguk) with clams as standard. The rice came in a small bowl, and it wasn't just white rice: it had millet, or maybe Gijang-style grain..? Anyway, it was a pretty yellowish color and the rice tasted nutty.

How was the perilla-leaf sashimi?

The perilla-leaf sashimi (kkaennip mak-hoe) was plated beautifully. The slices were quite thick, and it seemed aged, because it was really chewy and tasted better than most sashimi restaurants.

Is the grilled short rib too sweet or salty?

The grilled beef short ribs served with the set weren't aggressively salty or sweet, which I liked, and they were tender.

Size and taste of the barley gulbi

The gulbi at Gu Table was big, so there was plenty to eat, and most of the bones had been removed. The skin was savory, and the flesh kept the chewiness typical of dried barley gulbi.

It was slightly salty, a true rice thief (something that makes you eat more rice). It was a large size, almost too big for one person, so you can eat as much of this premium ingredient as you like at a Jongno restaurant~

Jeolla-style side dishes and namul

Several side dishes came out, seasoned neither too salty nor too sweet, so they were great with rice. The namul (seasoned vegetables) were especially good, and I think they'd make a nice bibimbap too.

How do you get to Gu Table?

Gu Table is in the first alley after you turn right at Boryeong Pharmacy in Jongno 5-ga. It's deep inside a narrow alley, so it can be hard to find the first time.

I loved the menu so much that I went out of my way for this Jongno restaurant, and honestly I circled around about twice, sob. I got lost because it's tucked inside a narrow alley.

Turn right at Boryeong Pharmacy and head into the first alley.

What are the interior and seating like at Gu Table?

Gu Table has a light green sign. The entrance looks a bit narrow, but inside it connects two dining rooms and an outdoor garden seating area in the middle.

This is the dining room connected to the entrance.

There is also outdoor seating between the two dining rooms. On a cool day or in the evening it seems like an atmospheric spot, so I'd guess it's popular.

Can groups or company dinners eat privately?

The dining room on the kitchen side is bigger than the one by the entrance and can be partitioned, so groups and company dinners can have a private meal.

Lunchtime was crowded, so they set up partitions here and there to make separate spaces for us. Our meal became private^^

I recommend Gu Table to anyone looking for a good lunch spot in Jongno 5-ga, anyone who wants a generous helping of barley gulbi, or anyone having a neat meal in Seoul with their parents.