Gwanghwamun hanjeongsik course served all at once: Modam Dining

This is Praha. Last week I went on a Gyeongbokgung and Gwanghwamun outing. I stopped by Modam Dining Gwanghwamun, known for being quiet, calm, and great for hanjeongsik (Korean set-course meal), inside the Deoksugung D Palace building. Both the atmosphere and the food were satisfying.

Where is Modam Dining Gwanghwamun? Basement 1F of Deoksugung D Palace

Modam Dining Gwanghwamun is located on the basement 1st floor of Deoksugung D Palace, 10 Saemunan-ro 2-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul. It sits in the basement dining arcade, making it easy to reach if you're already doing a Gwanghwamun-Gyeongbokgung course.

It's located in the basement of Deoksugung D Palace. This was my first time visiting D Palace and it's really nice. If I had the money I'd genuinely want to live here... (it's about 5 billion won). The basement dining arcade felt just the right size and relaxed, with massage chairs too — it gave off the vibe of a low-floor-area-ratio luxury residential complex. A kind of Seoul four-gates aesthetic, I guess. I was basically scouting the dining arcade like a property agent, haha.

Corkage-free, with private rooms and well-spaced tables

Modam Dining Gwanghwamun is corkage-free. It's a great spot to enjoy hanjeongsik with a good whiskey or wine without paying corkage fees.

The entrance of Modam Dining, a hanjeongsik specialist inside Deoksugung D Palace, feels upscale from the start. The table spacing is generous and the rooms are roomy too, making it great for private dining.

The interior space was so comfortable. Lighting was just right, and even the non-room tables had good spacing, and the staff were very kind. Personally I dislike course meals that come out painfully slowly one dish at a time — but here the pre-meal dishes and the main dish were grouped and served together at once, which I really liked.

What comes with the 39,000 won Korean beef 1++ bulgogi hot pot set

What we ordered was Modam Dining's signature Korean beef 1++ bulgogi hot pot set, ₩39,000 per person.

I tried Modam Dining's signature Korean beef 1++ bulgogi hot pot set. This hanjeongsik course includes seasonal porridge, cheongyang water kimchi, yuzu-dressed seasonal salad, pine nut sauce mustard greens, seasonal raw fish with pickle ceviche, Modam tempura, perilla oil capellini, Korean beef bulgogi hot pot, steamed rice, side dishes, and dessert.

Two salads: yuzu dressing and mustard greens in pine nut sauce

I liked that there were two base salads. The yuzu dressing and the pine nut sauce mustard greens each had their own charm. The vegetables in the salads were varied and fresh, making for a great pre-meal appetizer. Broccolini, lettuce, bell peppers, and thinly sliced almonds all worked well together. Since I love salad, having two different dressings and mixed vegetables in a hanjeongsik course was really nice. The thoughtful touch of giving tongs to portion each dish was also very satisfying.

The vegetables were genuinely fresh and crunchy. The mustard greens with pine nut sauce had a dressing flavor I'd never tried before, but it grew on me — personally I found it quite fresh and unlike anything I'd had elsewhere. Since I like salad, tasting a new dressing like this left more of an impression.

The courses arrive all at once, not one dish at a time

I really liked that the basic hanjeongsik course doesn't come out one dish at a time but all together. When dishes come one by one, meals drag on and I get tired. Here, the salad and other courses come at once, finishing with the main dish, so even people who find courses uncomfortable because of how long they take can enjoy the meal without pressure. That said, it's not a rushed atmosphere either — it was a comfortable setting for slow conversation over the meal.

After the salad comes flounder sashimi, paired with a pickle sauce that gave it a unique flavor combination that worked well. A neat two pieces are served per person.

Perilla oil capellini, the dish my child ate the most of

This is the perilla oil capellini my kid loved. It's a noodle dish with a mild seasoning, well-boiled noodles, and perilla oil with sesame powder combining for a nutty flavor.

The scent of thinly sliced perilla leaves comes through, along with egg garnish, seaweed flakes, and other nutty ingredients that kids would like too. It seems especially suited to people who prefer mild, non-intense flavors.

The perilla oil capellini seems like something you could try recreating at home. Plump raw shrimp on top added even better texture. This capellini must have been so tasty that my kid ate a lot of it.

Modam fritters turn out to be mushroom tangsuyuk

The tempura course turned out to be mushroom tangsuyuk (sweet and sour crispy mushroom). Mushroom is stuffed inside the fried batter. The tangy yuzu-like sauce paired really well with the crispy mushroom, and the portion was quite large — by this point I was already pretty full.

How the main Korean beef 1++ bulgogi hot pot tastes

The main dish is a Korean beef 1++ bulgogi hot pot loaded with vegetables, served with four basic side dishes and steamed rice.

On to the main course. After the salad, the dishes came out quickly one after another, and once I'd enjoyed several Korean course dishes, the main Korean beef bulgogi arrived. It's a bulgogi set loaded with vegetables. As you can see, being Korean beef 1++, the marbling and freshness of the meat are excellent.

This Korean beef melts in your mouth — it's not for nothing that it's graded 1++. The Korean beef bulgogi hot pot comes with four basic side dishes, and the sides — doraji (bellflower root), kimchi, mushrooms — are all tidy and well made. This would be a great place to bring a foreign friend visiting Korea. The dishes really let you experience the charm of Korean food properly, so you can taste a variety of Korean cuisine through one course meal without needing to visit multiple restaurants.

With the basic sides and steamed rice served, I dug into the Korean beef bulgogi hot pot. I scooped out the crunchy vegetables first, then the Korean beef, then the mushrooms. Having already enjoyed a variety of Korean dishes, I was somewhat full, but the main dish wasn't greasy and had plenty of vegetables, so my stomach felt comfortable even after finishing.

I think choosing the Korean beef bulgogi hot pot was a really good call. Modam Dining has a variety of Korean course meals, but among them I'd especially recommend the 1++ Korean beef bulgogi set. The price doesn't differ much from the others, but since you get to eat 1++ Korean beef, it seems to be especially popular — and having tried it myself, I found it genuinely delicious.

Once you finish this tender, melt-in-your-mouth Korean beef bulgogi set, Modam Dining's course meal comes to an end. I heard many people come here for matchmaking meetings, and given how quiet the atmosphere is and how the interior and meal composition look, I can see why.

Ending with plum tea, and other sets in the 30,000 won range

The plum tea served at the end wasn't too sweet and was delicious. It was nice that even dessert came out neatly as a tea. Modam Dining offers a variety of Korean set meals in the ₩30,000s range, including the grilled deodeok pork set, bori-gulbi set, abalone tteokgalbi set, Jindo scallion bulgogi set, Korean beef 1++ bulgogi hot pot set, and abalone shrimp butter rice set.