Braised skate and sungnyung at Yeseoban, a Gwanak Korean restaurant

I was craving braised skate so I went looking for Korean food and ended up at Yeseoban in Sillim.

Where is Yeseoban, and what are the hours and parking?

Yeseoban in Sillim sits 418 meters from exit 1 of Seowon Station. If you're taking Line 2, it's about a 10-minute walk from Sillim Station. A decent spot for a meal around the Sillim area.

Yeseoban also has parking. You get 1 hour free before 6pm!

• 🕑 Hours: Daily 11:00 - 21:00 (break time 15:00 - 17:00)
• 💡 Extras: Takeout, Wi-Fi, waiting area, group-friendly, parking

Inside Yeseoban: the room and the menu

Inside, Yeseoban had a cozy, comfortable neighborhood Korean-restaurant vibe. The space is mostly 4-person tables, well suited to family meals or a visit with friends. Lots of older guests were there eating too — you could tell it's a place people have been coming to for a long time.

Yeseoban's signature menu items in Sillim are braised pollack, braised pollack with dried radish greens, and braised skate. They come in 2-, 3-, and 4-person sizes. The solo menu has hot stone bulgogi and a seasonal kongguksu (cold soybean noodle soup). Yeseoban also does takeout, which works out a bit cheaper.

Braised skate for two, 40,000 won with cauldron rice

Braised skate for two is 40,000 won. We ordered the small size of braised skate, a portion sized well for two. Best of all, ordering the braised skate comes with cauldron rice as a default side.

We didn't need to add a separate bowl of rice — we could enjoy the braise and the cauldron rice together. The warm cauldron rice paired really well with the braise.

The rice from the cauldron gets scooped into a bowl first, then water is poured into the pot to make sungnyung. After the meal, you get to enjoy a warm, nutty bowl of sungnyung as dessert.

How spicy is the braised skate at Yeseoban?

Looking at the red sauce, I expected Yeseoban's braised skate to be quite spicy. But once I tried it, it was more sweet-spicy with deep umami than sharply hot.

Even if you normally can't handle spicy food well, this reads more like a savory, mildly spicy braise than something truly hot. Spice lovers can dig in, and if you really can't do spicy, you can ask for it milder.

The flesh was fairly thick, so it was fun picking off piece by piece. The meat was soft and moist, and the seasoning had soaked all the way through — delicious.

Rice cake, tofu, radish and bean sprouts in the pot

Inside the braised skate, along with the skate itself, there was also garaetteok (cylindrical rice cake), tofu, and radish. From the chewy sauce-soaked rice cake to the tofu, everything went well with the braised skate.

The skate flesh is really soft. No dryness or toughness at all — just a moist, tender texture.

I'd recommend mixing the default bean sprouts into the braise sauce rather than eating them plain. Crunchy bean sprouts plus spicy sauce went really well with the cauldron rice too.

Who will like Yeseoban near Seowon Station

Even first-timers with skate will likely enjoy it thanks to the soft texture. The spicy sauce comes generously loaded with skate, rice cake, tofu, and radish, so it's a filling meal. Cauldron rice comes alongside the braise, and you finish with a nutty bowl of sungnyung. If you're craving a hearty Korean meal in Sillim or want to try a braised fish dish, Yeseoban is worth a visit.