한옥그레이스 — Restaurant in Seoul

We took a cooking class in Seoul, and the chef recommended this place “Hanok Grace” for BBQ. It was a bit hard to find with Naver maps as it’s tucked away in an alley. It was so worth it as it may be our most memorable dining experience of the trip.

The restaurant was full when we arrived so the manager or maybe owner said a single word in English “wait” and found 3 chairs from different parts of the restaurant for us to sit until a table freed up. We were next to a music speaker which he thoughtfully turned down.

As other reviewers noted, no English spoken, and the nuances of the menu and therefore pricing were lost on the translation apps (we tried Papago and Google Translate). I hoped they took foreign credit cards (USA), which thankfully they did later. Very reasonable for the amazing time and kind service.

We chose beef and the steamed egg and were stunned when they brought the first tray of banchan and then a few minutes later a second tray. It is not humanly possible for 3 people to finish all of it. We tried given our guilt about food waste and desire to show that we did enjoy the variety but failed miserably in emptying the dishes.

The manager treated us to bottled soda for having to wait (this would not happen in California where we are from so that was a surprising gesture). Various staff stopped by to cut and grill the meat. They also added grilled cheese and mushrooms, which we wouldn’t have known to order — the cheese was mild and almost like melty Brie in texture when grilled. Beef was good with different seasonings and sauces — salt always a favorite. My 2 teenagers are both carnivores so they were quite happy.

To top off the meal, they presented us with bingsoo “on the house” which was another surprise — I’m not sure we deserved such generosity, but it was deeply appreciated. It’s served with puffed rice “plates” which we ate afterwards. Blueberries, mango, and sweet red bean toppings. Perfect.

What stood out about this experience was the thoughtful touches and what felt like a local family taking us into their home to share food we wouldn’t know to try. We bowed when we left — it was hard to express gratitude without words other than “delicious” and “thank you” in Korean. Maybe this review can note all the things I wished...

Atmosphere is romantic yet antique. Able to experience exclusive dining in 1940-70 styled theme of Korea. Good instagram spot for the travellers.

Dishes are fairly sweeter than the normal Korean food but tasty. Fresh and healthy. The veges are incredibly fresh and delicious.

Service and the way of people dealing with the customers requires some improvement. Understood one of the serving women is from China as her intonation of Korean tells, but she needs to learn how to communicate with the customers; not to...

The place is amazing: I have no clue how long it’s been there but it’s exquisitely fully decorated in mother of pearl!! The problem, if u at e a foreigner, is they don’t speak any English and there is no English menu. At the end we understood there was beef or pork and we choose beef. Meat comes complimentary of so many sides as well as feasted! They will cooks the mean for you. I went there as I was staying at nearby hotel while visiting with n business trip: I do recommend it if u are around as it’s...