Counter-seat pork omakase lunch in Magok, rigatoni 3 ways: Don Tamguso

Don Tamguso

If your dates near Magok Station always end up at the same grilled meat place or café, why not try something a little different this time? While looking for a fun Magok date spot to try with my mom, I found Don Tamguso, a restaurant serving pork omakase. When you hear "omakase," you usually think of sushi or beef first, right?

But Don Tamguso, true to its name, is a pork omakase specialist that serves pork in all kinds of different ways. What really caught my eye was that lunch is in the 20,000-won range, so you can enjoy a course meal at a Magok date spot without breaking the bank.

Where is Don Tamguso, and what do lunch and dinner cost?

Don Tamguso is located at 11 Magokjungang 6-ro, Gangseo-gu, Seoul. The lunch course omakase is 26,000 won, and the dinner course omakase is 58,000 won.

Don Tamguso is close to Magok Station, so it's easy to get to for a date. It's within walking distance of Exit 3, so it's nice to take a walk around Magok before or after the meal, or head on to a café afterward.

Inside Don Tamguso: counter seats facing the chef

Don Tamguso isn't a huge, flashy space — it has a clean, cozy atmosphere where you can comfortably enjoy an omakase-style Magok date meal. Especially if you visit as a pair, there's the added fun of sitting at the counter seats where you can watch the chef cook up close.

Getting each dish handed to you one by one with an explanation while on a date definitely feels different from just going out for a plain meat dinner.

Is a 26,000 won pork omakase lunch good value?

What I liked most about Don Tamguso was, of course, the lunch price. People tend to assume omakase means an intimidating price tag right off the bat, but Don Tamguso's lunch is in the 20,000-won range, so it's relatively low-pressure to try once on a date.

The Don Tamguso lunch course, from soup to bubble salad

Don Tamguso's lunch course starts with a chestnut, mushroom, and cream soup. A warm soup to gently open up your appetite without feeling heavy. It was nice to start light before the meat courses, haha. It had great umami depth — totally my taste!

Salad – dried persimmon, orange, apple, basil prosciutto

Next up is a salad with fresh fruit and prosciutto. It was refreshing and cleansed the palate nicely, making me even more excited for the meat dishes to come.

Under the bubbles were these bright, fresh fruits and prosciutto!

The main: shio koji pork tenderloin with sides one at a time

Finally, the main event of the pork omakase! Don Tamguso's main is made up of shio koji, tenderloin, mushroom, and sun-dried tomato. It was fun to enjoy pork in so many different ways, different from the usual grilled pork I'm used to.

From here you get to taste the pork main dishes one by one, and this is where Don Tamguso's charm really shows.

A thick, juicy piece of tenderloin as the main, paired with a side of sun-dried tomato, broccoli, or mushroom for each bite —

it makes every bite feel like a new dish. I especially loved eating it with the sun-dried tomato. Rather than just grilling up a few slices of pork, it felt like the chef was building a rhythm through the course by varying the cut and cooking method.

There was also a side dish that came with the main — it looked ordinary but was sweet and tangy and honestly delicious, a perfect match for the main. The meat main had little sweetness, but paired with this side, the balance felt just right.

How do you eat the nacho rigatoni? Sprinkle, wrap or dip

Rigatoni – con carne, nachos, rigatoni. After Don Tamguso's main dishes came a special course. Enjoying pork-based dishes in a course format made me realize how varied a single ingredient can be.

I never imagined rigatoni could be eaten this way. It's a meat-based rigatoni served with nacho chips, and since it was my first time trying anything like it, my first thought was, "Wait, how do I eat this!?"

Luckily the chef kindly explained, and I tried it exactly as instructed —

• Sprinkle-eat – crush the nachos and sprinkle them on top
• Wrap-eat – pile the rigatoni onto a nacho chip and wrap it
• Dip-eat – dip the nacho into the sauce like a dip

Personally, wrap-eating was the tastiest, haha. Honestly, before visiting I had a bit of a "can pork really work as omakase?" doubt, lol. But once I actually ate it, I realized pork can be enjoyed in so many different ways.

Select course: signature burger or cheonggukjang cream risotto

For the select course in Don Tamguso's lunch, you choose between the signature burger and the signature risotto — my mom and I each ordered one so we could share.

Signature burger – house-made patty, onion, maple syrup, bourbon whiskey. This signature dish is unmissable at Magok date spot Don Tamguso — the burger! They described it as "a burger that's like brunch," and I wondered what that even meant, but once I picked it up, I got it immediately — ah, this is why they call it a brunch-like burger, haha.

A glossy, shiny bun — the bun has to be good for the burger to be good, and this one was soft and moist and delicious.

The sauce has bourbon whiskey and maple syrup, giving it a sweet yet deep flavor. Overall, it's a burger with a fresh feel.

I cut it in half to share with my mom, and it was such a thoughtful touch that there were plastic gloves at each seat, so we could eat comfortably!

Signature risotto – cheonggukjang (fermented soybean) cream sauce, bangpung namul (glehnia herb), Grana Padano.

It's a risotto with a unique flavor from the cheonggukjang cream sauce — familiar yet new, and I liked it a lot.

The bangpung namul comes lightly fried on top, which was also a fresh and fun touch. If there are two or more of you, I'd recommend ordering one of each so you can both try them, haha.

Dessert of the day: milk pudding

A milk pudding topped with blueberry jam —

Personally, I loved this one so much, haha. The pudding was nutty with a rich milk flavor, and the sweet, plump blueberries paired with it perfectly.

How was lunch at Don Tamguso as a Magok date spot?

Normally when I think of pork, I default to grilling — samgyeopsal or mokgeungi cooked straight up. But because Don Tamguso serves it as a course, it was fun to see how the same pork feels completely different depending on the cooking method and what it's paired with.

So I think it'll especially suit people looking for a Magok date spot who've already been to most of the usual meat restaurants, or who are looking for something a bit more special.

Who should book the Don Tamguso lunch course?

First, couples looking for a different kind of date near Magok Station. Instead of the usual samgyeopsal or pasta, you can enjoy a full course for around 20,000 won, which makes it a great date menu choice.

Second, anyone who wants to try omakase for the first time! If high-priced omakase always felt intimidating, starting with Don Tamguso's lunch might be a good, low-pressure way in.

Third, anyone who loves pork. Rather than plain grilled pork, you get to enjoy it in a variety of ways, which is genuinely fun if you already like pork. And with a lunch course in the 20,000-won range, it's also a solid option for office workers wanting a special lunch on a particular day.

If you're like me and want to eat well while also keeping the date mood going, Don Tamguso's lunch course is worth trying, haha. If you want to enjoy familiar pork in a slightly special way, add Don Tamguso to your Magok date spot list!