Yukhoe Hanjip

Some days in Korea are just too hot to cook, especially in the late summer months. Yukhoe Hanjip is a restaurant that embodies the idea of fresh food minus the heat, with a menu built primarily around raw beef. For adventurous diners, Yukhoe Hanjip is a great place to try something new without breaking a sweat.

Atmosphere and Service

Decorated with sake bottles and posters for Japanese craft beer, Yukhoe Hanjip looks more like a modern sushi place than a beef restaurant. Service was quick and attentive; as few things on the menu are cooked, the food comes out fairly quickly.

Food

The best way to dive into eating raw beef is to try the hanu modeum, or assorted beef set. The first part of the set to come out was yukhoe or beef sashimi. The yukhoe makes an impressive presentation as a mound of raw, lightly-seasoned beef strips topped with a raw egg yolk. To eat, stir the yolk into the beef and then use this mixture to make small wraps with dried seaweed squares, sticks of pear, hot peppers and triangles of American cheese. The combination of raw beef and American cheese is more than a little odd, but it seems to be normal at many yukhoe restaurants. If the vaguely cheese-like substance is not to your taste, the dish works just as well without it. The thin slices of beef sashimi were also delicious, with a much milder flavor than cooked beef.

The next dish was not only the one disappointment of the meal, it was also the only cooked dish. The beef chobap, or beef sushi, featured thin strips of beef placed on rice balls which were grilled with a torch and topped with mayonnaise and a soy-based glaze. Normally, beef cooked this way gets a nice, smoky flavor from the quick searing, but the amount of mayonnaise on top completely drowned out any beef flavor.

The final dish, which was not part of the set, was the yukhoe bibimbap. Not only is this a good way to ease into eating raw beef, it can also be a good way to add some vegetables to a meat-dominated meal. The beef’s subtle flavor barely stands up to the pepper paste, but it does add a nice bit of bulk to the dish.

The beef set is available for 42,000 won and includes everything featured here except the bibimbap, which costs 7,000 won. Dishes may also be ordered à la carte.

Directions

From the Eunbit Village bus stop, turn around to see Public House directly across from the bus stop. Walk straight past Public House to find Yukhoe Hanjip on the left.

Address: 광주광역시 광산구 수완동 1396번지/ 1396 Suwan-dong Gwangsan-gu Gwangju

Tel: 062-954-1396

Hours: 5:00 – 12:00, closed Sundays

Bus: 10, 12, 72 (Eunbit Village Stop)