Eel grill near Gwangju's Donggok Reservoir, wasabi sauce: Yuil Jangeo

Where is Yuil Jangeo and how is the parking?

Yuil Jangeo (유일장어) is an eel grill restaurant at 343 Donggok-ro, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, on the first floor. It is open from 11:00 to 21:00, and the parking lot is seriously huge!!!

A hot weekend, eel in nearby Donggok with Mom and my daughter

The weather was getting hotter, I was lazing around with my kid on the weekend, and I couldn't be bothered cooking, so I told my mom, let's eat out~ But I didn't want to go far!! It isn't far from our place, so I took my mother and the family to Yuil Jangeo, an eel restaurant in Donggok, Gwangsan, Gwangju!!

My mom and I both love eel, so we went with high expectations, and the whole family was happier than I expected!!

A good spot for a drive by Donggok Reservoir

Yuil Jangeo is near Donggok Reservoir, so the surroundings are quiet and the air is fresh, which makes it a nice place to visit as part of a drive. You only have to head a little way out to the outskirts and it feels like an outing!!

The big parking lot meant we could walk in without any parking stress, and the inside was tidy with wide spacing between seats, so it seemed good for families dining together.

Yuil Jangeo in Gwangsan, Gwangju: grilled eel, a summer stamina food

How do you choose eel at Yuil Jangeo?

At Yuil Jangeo you can see the eels in person, and the prices are all posted, so you can choose to suit the number of people. So we picked plenty.

The eels we ordered were fresh and thick, and when my mom saw them she said, wow~ they're plump!! She'd had eel at a friends' get-together recently and said it was so good, and that she wanted to take the family for eel sometime, so she was delighted that today's menu was such a good choice!!

I kept saying pick more, and my mom stopped me, saying this much is plenty haha. I had no sense of the amount.

A grill restaurant that's clean, and my daughter noticed first

Even though Yuil Jangeo is a place where meat gets grilled, the restaurant was pleasant, spacious and clean, which I liked. My little girl is such a neat freak that she gets picky if a restaurant is even slightly dirty. But the first thing she said when we walked into Yuil Jangeo was, "Mom, this restaurant is big and clean," haha.

Pre-seared eel and strong charcoal mean less grilling work

The eel at Yuil Jangeo comes pre-seared, so you don't have to spend time grilling, and the family eating with me could focus on eating. Otherwise one person always has to focus on grilling the meat, right?

As you can see in the photos, the eel is plump and good quality!! When you pick some sloppy eel and put it on the grill, it shrinks up and looks sad with no volume... but the eel at Yuil Jangeo in Gwangsan, Gwangju was plump and delicious.

The charcoal passes too!! The fire is strong.. good haha. Apparently it's always this good lol. Like when you go to a tasty restaurant even the water tastes good.. everything went smoothly and was delicious, so it was a fun meal.

Why it worked as a stamina meal for parents

Mom seemed to like it so much that she said she wanted a beer too!!! As parents get older, they need to eat stamina food like this. Seeing her eat so well made me think I should bring her often. It's close, so I'll bring her from time to time.

The side dishes at Yuil Jangeo aren't fancy, but they are all things that go with eel, so the table stayed neat, which was nice.

Yuil Jangeo, Gwangsan, Gwangju

How does the eel taste, and what combo is best?

The eel at Yuil Jangeo is fresh and thick, so it looks appetizing just sitting there! The staff kindly checked how the meat was grilling, so we could eat comfortably, and when I bit into the golden eel, the soft texture and nutty flavor filled my mouth.

I put eel on lettuce and perilla leaf, piled on shredded ginger and ate it with the sauce, and it was even better. Also, Yuil Jangeo has wasabi as a sauce, and this is the kicker. It never got boring and I could keep eating to the end.

A cheerful cheers all together~~!!!!

Eel soup, nurungji and rice dishes to finish

Yuil Jangeo has eel soup and nurungji (scorched rice) for dessert, plus separate rice dishes, so we ordered a bit of everything and were happy through to the end of the meal. Not just grilled eel, I think it would be great to come for an eel soup lunch too! My child ate eel better than I expected, so it was a satisfying meal for the whole family.

We had a good, lively time the whole meal, saying how delicious it was. Tasty food really does seem to make a family happier.

Who is it recommended for?

I'd recommend Yuil Jangeo in Donggok, Gwangsan, Gwangju to anyone who needs a stamina boost or is looking for a place to take their parents. The taste, atmosphere and service were all satisfying, so I think we'll be back for special days or whenever we want a family meal out!