Seongsu Japanese restaurant for a movie-night dinner: Gyuen Dang

It had been such a long time since my wife and I went to see a movie and then had dinner before heading home. You know those days when it feels a little sad to go straight home after watching a film? That day, we wanted to make it feel a bit more like a date by having a meal together too.

Gyuen Dang Seongsu Main Branch after a movie date in Seongsu

That is how we ended up at Gyuen Dang Seongsu Main Branch. While looking for Japanese restaurants and tonkatsu in Seongsu for a date, we chose beef katsu for dinner, which you grill yourself over a small brazier.

For reference when you are choosing: tonkatsu is made with pork, while gyukatsu is made with beef.

The restaurant is tucked into an alley near exits 3 and 4 of Seongsu Station.

However, you cannot park in front of the building, and there is no separate parking support. If you are bringing a car, it is probably best to check this first. For reference, I was able to use a nearby building's parking lot affordably through Moduui Juchajang.

A space like a local Japanese restaurant—and a wait

When we stepped inside, it felt as though we had dropped into a neighborhood restaurant somewhere in Japan. We had simply chosen a place to have dinner together, so I was happy that we liked the space too.

Personally, when I am on a date, I pay attention to the restaurant atmosphere as much as the food. Maybe because it had been a while since the two of us had spent time together, details like that stood out even more.

There were people waiting as well. I got the feeling this was a place quite a few people already knew to seek out. If you have plans after your meal, it would be good to leave yourself a little extra time.

The striploin beef katsu and hamburg omelet rice combination

Next up are the dishes we ordered. We chose striploin beef katsu, hamburg omelet rice, and a small beer.

Since there were two of us, it felt better to put two different dishes on the table and share them rather than get two of the same thing. We could have meat and try a rice dish too, so I really liked this lineup that day.

Striploin beef katsu, grilled one piece at a time

First, the striploin beef katsu. With this dish, the process of grilling each piece yourself was part of the meal.

It was quietly fun to place each piece on the brazier in front of us, cook it, and eat it. It felt different from simply being served a finished dish. Honestly, when you are dining with someone, there are moments when you set down your chopsticks to talk and then come back to eating, right? Being able to grill only as much as we wanted at a time suited this kind of date meal really well.

Once you have grilled a piece, you can enjoy it with whichever sauce you like. Even with the same beef, the feel changed depending on what I dipped it in, so it was fun to choose. The special sauce was the one that suited my taste best.

Even after trying several options, I kept reaching for that sauce again. Personally, if you order the striploin beef katsu, I think the special-sauce combination is worth trying at least once. Of course, tastes differ, so comparing one piece at a time to find your own favorite would be fun too.

Hamburg omelet rice with fluffy egg

The hamburg omelet rice we ordered alongside it was another dish that would have been a shame to miss that day. I especially liked the soft, fluffy feel of the egg. The tenderness when scooping it up with a spoon went well with the hamburg steak inside, and it was nice to have a spoonful here and there while grilling the beef katsu.

You might think the two meat dishes would overlap, but they were fun to eat in different ways: one was grilled over the brazier and dipped in sauce, while the other was scooped up with egg and rice. If you are visiting as a pair and wondering what to order, this combination is worth considering. I think it is even better to share a little of each rather than have one dish per person.

A small beer on the side

And the small beer! I quietly liked this one too. I felt like having beer, but it was not a day when I wanted to drink a lot. The portion was not overwhelming, so it was just right as a light accompaniment to the meal. It seems like a welcome choice for days when, like me, you only want to enjoy the feeling of a drink. Sadly, I had to drive, so only my wife got to enjoy the beer.

A meal that completed our post-movie dinner date

That was my story of Gyuen Dang Seongsu Main Branch, where I stopped by with my wife after a movie. Grill-your-own striploin beef katsu, hamburg omelet rice with fluffy egg, and an easygoing small beer—it was a meal that pleasantly filled out our long-overdue dinner date.

If you are craving Japanese food in Seongsu and also care about a restaurant's atmosphere, this may be a helpful one to keep in mind.