Yeoksam BBQ restaurant with icy acorn jelly soup and LA galbi: Raviok

Looking for somewhere to have dinner near Yeoksam Station, I ended up at Raviok Yeoksam Main Branch, a restaurant specializing in LA galbi. I've always thought of LA galbi as something you eat marinated, so I was curious to try both charcoal-grilled plain and marinated LA galbi here.

Where is Raviok Yeoksam Main Branch, and what are its hours?

Raviok Yeoksam Main Branch is at 42 Teheran-ro 25-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, between Yeoksam and Eonju stations. It's open daily from 11:30 to 22:00 and doesn't close all year. The location seemed convenient for office workers dropping by for lunch or dinner.

It's a Yeoksam Station restaurant selected for the Seoul Matdong Map 2026.

Inside Raviok Yeoksam: seating and atmosphere

The interior at Raviok Yeoksam Main Branch had a warm, calm feel overall, and it wasn't too noisy even while eating grilled meat. It seemed like it would work well for company dinners or gatherings around Yeoksam Station too.

It also felt comfortable enough for a date or a family meal. Since Raviok does take reservations, it seems worth booking ahead if you're visiting during busy hours. I made a reservation before going.

Raviok menu and prices

Raviok sells a variety of menu items centered on LA galbi. The signature items are Ravi Plain Grilled Ribs at ₩22,000 and Ravi Marinated Grilled Ribs at ₩22,000, while the Snow-flake Jin Galbi, plain or marinated, is ₩29,000.

If you visit for lunch, there are also easy options like the Ravi set meal and Ravi rice bowl with charcoal-grilled LA galbi, or Ravi-tang, an LA galbi gomtang (bone broth soup). Besides the meat, there are side dishes like clam kalguksu (noodle soup), bibim kalguksu, spicy doenjang rice porridge, and iced mukbap that go well alongside the meat.

There's also a good range of drinks suited to a BBQ restaurant.

The side dishes served at Raviok

There were several side dishes to whet the appetite before the meat came out. They also went well with the meat itself, upgrading the flavor even more.

Icy acorn jelly soup with apple vinegar

Before the meat arrived, the iced mukbap came out first. It was a good dish to whet the appetite before the main meal, with bits of ice floating on top that made the first taste feel refreshingly cold. The broth had a basically clean flavor, and apple vinegar was served alongside to add in separately.

Since I could adjust the sourness to taste, I tried it plain first and then added the apple vinegar little by little to suit my palate. It was refreshing enough to whet the appetite before the meat, and it also paired well with the charcoal-grilled meat.

Two servings of Ravi plain grilled ribs, pre-seared and finished by staff

The Ravi Plain Grilled Ribs came out pre-seared from the kitchen, so there was no long wait at the table before we could start eating. Since the meat had already been grilled once, once it was placed on the grill the staff finished it to just the right doneness, so we mostly just had to watch.

It was convenient not having to keep an eye on the grill, and there was even a bit of a fire show while it finished cooking, which made it fun to watch too. They also grilled garlic scapes and mushrooms alongside, and eating them between bites of meat added variety in texture that worked really well.

Since it wasn't marinated, the flavor of the meat itself really came through, with a subtle charcoal aroma added on top that made it clean and easy to eat.

With the variety of side dishes and accompaniments served alongside, I could mix and match according to my taste. It was good dipped plainly in salt, and it also went well with wasabi, garlic sauce, chili sauce, or ssamjang (dipping sauce). Pairing it with green onion kimchi or wrapping it like a ssam was tasty too.

The meat was tender and rather lean, so even the parts attached to the bone pulled off easily. There was also the fun of holding the bone-in LA galbi in your hands, LA galbi style. Coming out pre-seared meant it could be eaten quickly, and being able to enjoy it in various ways with the side dishes made me glad I'd ordered the plain grilled ribs.

Ravi marinated grilled ribs: sweet and charcoal-grilled

This is the Ravi Marinated Grilled Ribs. Same LA galbi, but the marinade completely changed the mood. The seasoning wasn't overpoweringly strong, just moderately sweet and a good match for the meat.

The parts where the marinade caramelized slightly over the charcoal were delicious too. Eating it with rice, the marinated version really was an even better match.

If the plain grilled ribs were great for enjoying the flavor of the meat itself, the marinated ribs had a familiar, easygoing LA galbi flavor, and alternating between the two kept things from getting repetitive.

Finishing with doenjang jjigae and a bowl of rice

I ordered a solo doenjang jjigae and a bowl of rice.

It was nice that the doenjang jjigae was sold in a solo portion, and the amount was just right for enjoying lightly like a dessert after the meat, without feeling like too much. Eating the leftover marinated meat with rice and adding the doenjang jjigae made for a filling yet clean way to finish the meal.

Is Raviok Yeoksam worth a weekend reservation?

Raviok Yeoksam Main Branch builds its menu around LA galbi, which made it a good pick when looking for a slightly different kind of Korean BBQ restaurant. The tableside grilling service made it easy to enjoy without any hassle. Being close to Yeoksam Station also made it easy to get to.

If you're searching for a Yeoksam Station restaurant or a Yeoksam Station Korean BBQ restaurant like I was, and you're craving LA galbi, ordering both the plain and marinated grilled ribs at Raviok Yeoksam Main Branch seems like a good way to go.