Wood-fired pizza in Gwangjin, Seoul: Osteria Hyeon’s Melanzane

Osteria Hyeon (오스테리아 현) is a wood-fired pizza restaurant I have visited several times across from Children’s Grand Park. This time, I went near the end of lunch with a close friend and had Caesar salad, Melanzane pizza, and chicken steak.

Is Osteria Hyeon near Children’s Grand Park, and is parking available?

The sky had an autumn feel on the day I visited, and I thought it would be nice to walk around Children’s Grand Park. Osteria Hyeon is directly across from the park, at 1F, 237 Neungdong-ro, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul.

Parking was free for two hours at the time of my visit. Reservations could be made through Catchtable and Naver; the original post listed hours of 11:00 AM to 9:30 PM, with Mondays closed.

How was the seating for groups or meals with children?

When we arrived near the end of lunch, guests had just left the group table. There were customers dining in groups, and it felt to me like a comfortable atmosphere for a meal with children, too.

When the weather was nice, some people ate on the terrace. It still felt a little warm that day, though, so we chose an indoor table.

Because we had reserved, name cards were prepared at our table. The manager was kind, and I ended up exchanging greetings whenever I visited. There is a wood-fired oven in the restaurant, so I ordered pizza again this time.

What were the menu prices?

The original post recorded salads from ₩25,000 to ₩38,000. The Caesar salad I ordered was ₩25,000; the gorgonzola mushroom salad was ₩28,000; the grilled chicken thigh salad and basil pesto buffalo mozzarella salad were ₩29,000 each; and the grilled pen shell and shrimp salad was ₩38,000.

Pizzas ranged from the ₩29,000 Margherita to the ₩45,000 Korean beef tenderloin gorgonzola pizza. The Melanzane pizza I had was ₩37,000; the porcini mushroom pizza was ₩34,000; and the prosciutto fig and quattro formaggi pizzas were ₩38,000 each. The menu listed truffle mushroom cream risotto at ₩32,000 and seafood tomato risotto at ₩42,000.

Bread before the meal came as a standard offering, along with olives. I also liked dipping the bread in olive oil.

I ordered a Coke to drink.

What did the Caesar salad and Melanzane pizza taste like?

The Caesar salad that arrived first was generously topped with crisp bacon. Overly salty salad dressing can make a salad difficult to eat, but the seasoning was just right for me, and I liked the bacon’s texture as well.

I ordered the Melanzane pizza again because I had liked it before. It had a chorizo-based sauce topped with dried eggplant, ricotta cheese, and basil.

The combination of ingredients reminded me of norma pasta, which I usually enjoy. It was best while warm, but even after it cooled as we talked and ate slowly, I still enjoyed it.

How satisfying was the chicken steak alongside the pizza?

I also wanted a meat dish, so I ordered the chicken steak. The skin was crisp, while the inside was cooked moist and tender.

My friend said it was delicious, too. It went well with the vegetables underneath, and it was also good with the salad that had arrived first.

Time passed quickly as I ate and talked with a close friend. Office workers nearby also came here, and to me, the atmosphere suited not only a meal with friends but also a date or family meal. The available parking was another reason I would return.