Yongin lamb barbecue dinner date with mala tang: Hwaro Yangmi

I think lamb restaurants are remembered less for how they look in photos than for that first bite. Last Saturday, my girlfriend and I were looking for dinner in Gwanggyo and ended up at Hwaro Yangmi Gwanggyo Sanghyeon Station Branch (화로양미 광교상현역점).

At first, it was just, “Let’s go have some good lamb.” But the moment the meat started cooking over charcoal and smoke rose up, I changed my mind a little. “This place is more serious than I expected?” We had the Special Assorted Set, Harbin Beer, mala tang, and egg fried rice. We really went for it between the two of us, so I took quite a lot of photos too. Let me walk you through it in the order we ate it.

Hwaro Yangmi, the lamb restaurant we sought out in Gwanggyo

The first thing I noticed on arrival was the large Hwaro Yangmi sign. Even from the outside, it clearly felt more like a lamb specialist than an ordinary barbecue place, and seeing “charcoal-grilled lamb specialist” at the entrance got me excited before we even went in. The inside looked more spacious than it did from outside, and the atmosphere did not feel intimidating for a Saturday evening date.

A cleaner, more comfortable dining room than expected

Inside, every table had an exhaust hood, and there was some separation between seats, making it comfortable for the two of us to eat. A charcoal-grill restaurant can bring to mind a crowded, bustling mood, but the tables here were neatly arranged, so it was easy to eat slowly while talking with my girlfriend. One more thing caught my eye personally: the restaurant notice said it specializes in charcoal-grilled lamb and uses chilled lamb.

By then we were getting hungry. We ordered the Special Assorted Set, mala tang (spicy numbing soup), egg fried rice, and Harbin Beer. In the end, we were quite happy with this combination.

The Special Assorted Set raised expectations at first sight

The Special Assorted Set we ordered as our main arrived first. Personally, I still think this is such a good photo. Thick cuts of meat, bone-in pieces, and marinated cuts all came on one platter, with wooden labels on top identifying each cut.

This was not the kind of lamb served in thin slices; it was visibly substantial. Looking closely at the color and marbling before it was cooked, I could see why it was called the Special Assorted Set. There were also big mushrooms on the side. Once the brazier arrived, we were all set.

Lamb grilled over charcoal by the staff

The charcoal in the brazier glowed red, and just looking at this photo brings back the heat. Rather than frantically flipping the meat ourselves, the staff watched it and grilled it for us. The instant it hit the charcoal, it sizzled and smoke billowed up. From then on, I really could not wait. When we first came in, my girlfriend and I were chatting about this and that, but once the meat went on, we both naturally found ourselves staring only at the grill.

The surface slowly cooked, and smoke began to rise as fat dripped onto the charcoal. This scene was much better in person than in photos. Because it was grilled directly over charcoal, the exterior picked up a strong grilled aroma, while the thick pieces stayed moist inside.

Changing it up with salt, wasabi, and sauce from the first bite

As the meat cooked, its surface started taking on the right color. Even with several cuts cooking at once, the staff watched their cooking times and took them off in order, which made things easy for us. They placed each fully cooked piece on our plates. With that done, the real main event began. The meat was not dry, and juices and fat remained on the surface. I would not say lamb has no distinctive aroma at all, but it was not so overwhelming that the meal became difficult to enjoy.

Just a touch of salt

Salt and spices to eat with the lamb were ready too. For the first bite, it is better not to pile on too many things—just dip it lightly in salt. One nicely cooked piece of lamb. Even in the photo, you can see the moist surface. The salt did not mask the meat’s own flavor much, making it the best match for that first bite.

Wasabi and spicy sauce

When I wanted a cleaner finish, I went for wasabi.

A little wasabi on top gave a sharp hit through the richness, making it a combination I kept reaching for. Rather than eating it one way, switching from salt to wasabi to sauce made even the same meat less repetitive.

There was also a spicy sauce with chili peppers, so we could add it to suit our tastes.

Bone-in lamb tastes best eaten with your hands

And this was definitely the most visually impressive one: the moment you pick up meat attached to the bone. The outside was golden-brown while the inside stayed moist, so it looked especially appetizing in photos. Rather than politely eating this with chopsticks, you have to grab the bone and tear into it. It was the dish that most made us feel like we had really come out for lamb together.

A sip of Harbin Beer with a bite of lamb

Then there was the Harbin Beer we ordered that day. A cold sip of beer while eating lamb definitely made the meal feel even better. Slowly eating meat and having beer with my girlfriend on a Saturday evening made it feel less like simply coming out for food and more like a proper dinner out. Alternating the rich meat with a cold lager also freshened up the palate, so the pairing worked well.

The mala tang we thought of as a side was pretty bold

After we had eaten a fair amount of the Special Assorted Set, a dish that completely changed the mood appeared: mala tang. The color alone was bold. The red broth was generously filled with meat, bok choy, wood ear mushrooms, and more. Since it was mala tang ordered as a side at a lamb restaurant, I expected it to play only a supporting role to the main meat, but visually it felt almost unfair to call it a side.

Every ladleful brought up meat and vegetables, not just broth. A distinct red layer of chili oil sat on the soup, and ingredients such as bok choy and wood ear mushrooms made it the kind with mala’s characteristic numbing heat and oily richness.

As you serve yourself little by little, your palate shifts sharply away from the charcoal-grilled lamb. Adding a hot, spicy broth in the middle of all that meat made the menu combination itself feel quite smart.

The final meal dish: egg fried rice

It feels like something is missing if you eat meat without rice, right? And for our final meal dish, egg fried rice.

There was a generous amount of egg throughout the fluffy stir-fried rice. It is not a flashy dish, but after the lamb and mala tang, this kind of mild fried rice was exactly what I wanted.

A big spoonful helped reset the strong flavors of the mala tang and made the meal feel properly complete. The rice was not overly soggy, and the egg was evenly mixed through, so it was an easy, fitting final dish after the meat.

The banchan that worked well between bites of meat

Eating only main dishes can start to feel a bit heavy, but the banchan (Korean side dishes) served at the table did their job along the way.

Pickled onions that were easy to pick at between bites of meat. A spicy, tangy cabbage side. Myeonginamul (pickled wild garlic leaves), which looked good for adding a salty note.

There were even peanuts, good for nibbling before the meat arrived or with beer. Overall, the sides seemed designed to change up the palate now and then rather than get in the way of the main lamb.

The after-meal ice cream we picked up

“Now we really finished everything,” we said as we got up, but there was after-meal ice cream near the exit. The sign said that after paying at the table, each person could take one on the way out, but it could not be eaten inside. It is not a huge service, really, but taking one after finishing the meal does make you feel good. After lamb, mala tang, and fried rice, leaving with one ice cream made the evening feel properly complete.

Thinking back on our visit to the Gwanggyo Sanghyeon Station Branch

To recap, we had the Special Assorted Set, mala tang, egg fried rice, and Harbin Beer. At first, it was simply an evening out for lamb, but once the charcoal came up and the staff began grilling each piece, it became a meal I remembered more than expected.

• The immediacy of lamb grilled over charcoal
• Being able to focus on the meal because the staff grill it
• A menu progression that continues through mala tang and fried rice

There are places where you should be talking with your date but end up too busy constantly flipping meat, you know? Here, the staff handled the grilling, so we could sit, talk, and enjoy each bite, which was a genuinely nice point for a date meal. More than anything, the evening began with, “Shall we go have lamb?” and ended with, “Which cut should we try next time?” If you want a slightly different kind of meat date with your girlfriend around Gwanggyo or Sanghyeon, or a day to fully enjoy lamb with mala tang and beer, it is worth putting on your list.