Gangnam eel rice bowl after work on a Friday, Ganghwa-do eel: Unagiwa

The perfect restorative meal after work on the last Friday of the week! Eel rice bowl!!! I went and paid my respects.

They say the eel is slow-grilled over charcoal every morning in the Nagoya style, then steamed once more to keep it moist — and you can taste all that effort in the tender, chewy texture. It was genuinely moving. Yeoksam's Unagiwa was such a satisfying hit!

Where is Unagiwa and what are its hours?

• Address: 71 Bongeunsa-ro 30-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea (4-minute walk from Yeoksam Station)
• Hours: Mon-Fri 11:00-21:00 (break time 15:00-17:00)
• Closed every Saturday and Sunday
• Naver reservations available, groups welcome, solo dining welcome, valet parking available

It's about a 4-minute walk from Yeoksam Station, so it's perfect for an after-work get-together or dinner spot. And above all, it's a genuine, flavor-guaranteed favorite for Gangnam eel rice bowls!

Inside Unagiwa: the dining room

Walking in, I felt the calm, warm atmosphere of a Japanese restaurant!

The clean, tidy vibe made for a relaxing, almost healing meal after work!

Antibiotic-free Japonica eel from Unagiwa's own Ganghwa-do farm

Unagiwa says it only selects top-grade Japonica eel with healthy, firm flesh, raised eco-friendly and antibiotic-free at its own farm in Ganghwa-do!

What comes with Unagiwa's hitsumabushi set

The hitsumabushi looked amazing!! It came with shiitake egg custard and salad, plus neatly arranged seaweed and perilla leaf, scallions and gungchae (Korean lettuce), and a red umeboshi plum sauce to go with the eel! It even came with miso soup and broth for ochazuke, so it was a tidy, substantial spread!

Charcoal-grilled and steamed the Nagoya way

Unagiwa makes hitsumabushi (eel rice bowl) the way it's made in Nagoya, its birthplace! Every morning the eel is slow-grilled over charcoal, steamed once more to stay moist, then brushed with a centuries-old Nagoya-style tare sauce imported directly from Japan and grilled again.

The moment I lifted the lid, the faint charcoal aroma and sweet sauce scent rose up! Biting into the eel, the outside had that chewy, charcoal-grilled texture while the inside was moist, blending beautifully with the sauce — genuinely delicious! Texture is the thing I care about most in an eel rice bowl, and you could really feel the care that went into the traditional cooking method!

Four ways to eat the hitsumabushi at Unagiwa

The staff showed me four ways to eat the eel rice bowl! You divide it into quarters, crosswise, and try each quarter a different way!

1. Eel, rice and sauce on their own

First, the original way — eel and rice as is! The sweet-savory eel sauce had soaked nicely into the rice, and the chewy, tender eel came with a savory flavor and a faint charcoal aroma. The sauce wasn't too strong either, so the balance between rice and eel was just right!!

2. With perilla leaf, scallion and seaweed flakes

Second, topped with perilla leaf, scallion, and seaweed flakes! Adding the perilla leaf and seaweed flakes made the fragrant perilla scent burst through the rich, savory eel flavor, while the seaweed added a salty, nutty note that made it much more layered!

Eel itself is a fairly oily food, but the perilla leaf cut through it cleanly in the middle, making it feel lighter than expected!

3. As ochazuke with hot broth poured over

Third, poured with broth and eaten like ochazuke! The flavor completely changes when eaten this way! Pouring in the warm broth, the distinctive savory aroma and umami of katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) seeped between the grains of rice, and the eel's seasoning softened even more. Spooned up with the broth, it went down moist and smooth — a nice change of pace toward the end!

My partner said the ochazuke way, number three, was the tastiest.

4. With umeboshi plum sauce

Last, the fourth way, with umeboshi plum sauce. Sweet, tangy, and fragrant with the distinctive scent of umeboshi, it refreshes the oily richness of the eel. After a few bites, it was great for cleansing the palate!

Which of the four ways tasted best?

Splitting it into four ways to eat made it clear how different the same eel rice bowl could taste, and comparing them was genuinely fun. If you want to taste the eel itself properly, go original; if you want fragrant and clean, go with perilla leaf and seaweed; if you like savory, go ochazuke; and if you want a refreshing finish, umeboshi plum sauce suits well! My personal favorite for the true, essential eel rice bowl flavor was number one — haha!

At Unagiwa, the eel's chewy yet tender texture and its own natural flavor came through, with the sauce soaked in just the right amount — I felt like I'd properly restored my energy by the end! If you're looking for a hearty dinner in Gangnam, or an eel rice bowl near Seolleung or Yeoksam, try Unagiwa's hitsumabushi!