Seolpum 설품 @ Seoul

After a nice visit to 덕수궁 Deoksugung Palace 德寿宫, there’s plenty of nice eating places around the palace grounds.

Seolpum is a Korean restaurant specialising in premium Yeongju Hanwoo beef. Yeongju Korean-bred beef comes from cows raised with the clean waters and clean air of Mt. Sobaek’s natural environment. What is special about this particular brand of Hanwoo is the introduction of flaxseeds in the cow’s diet.

If you have watched the Oscar-winning “Parasite,” you would be familiar with this type of semi-basement. Semi-basement (“banjiha” in Korean) flats refer to homes that are built halfway below ground level.

Originally required to be built in each building in the 1960s as air-raid shelters, the building code was amended in the 1970s to offer an affordable housing option for low-income urban dwellers. However after the flash floods of 2022, Seoul Metro Government outlawed these housing after a family was drowned in their banjiha. Many of these are converted to different usage, like this restaurant.

Hanwoo Dogani Kkori Gomtang 한우 도가니 꼬리곰탕 Ox Knee Tailed Beef Soup

This is the classic Korean hangover soup called kkhori gomtang 꼬리곰탕 (oxtail soup) with Hanwoo beef brisket and tailbone simmered for a long time to extract every ounce of flavour. Oxtail has lots of soft and juicy meat inside, so it’s very popular among Koreans. The soup by itself is clear and not greasy, so you will feel refreshing after eating it.

It comes with a special dipping sauce that would reduce all remaining greasiness from the great marbling of the Hanwoo (Korean beef).

And there’s some banchan to go with the steamed white rice, nothing fancy – kkakdugi 깍두기 (cubed radish kimchi), gat-kimchi 갓김치 (mustard green kimchi) and sigeumchi muchim 시금치무침 (boiled spinach).

Hanwoo Yukhoe 한우 육회 Korean Beef Tartare

Korean beef tartare or Hanwoo yukhoe is a real test of the freshness of the beef and the marbling of the meat. Fresh round eye steak is julienned and marinated with sesame oil, salt and pepper. The marbled beef is served with julienned Korean pear and topped with a raw egg yolk for a perfect pairing.

Before eating, the whole thing is tossed and mixed together. Unlike the French or Western style beef tartare that depended on Worcestershire sauce for flavours, the Korean version let the beef takes centre stage..

I came alone, and they actually stopped me from ordering their casserole. I will definitely come back for their casseroles as they looked so good from the next table. I would recommend this restaurant after a visit to the nearby Deoksugung Palace, or go for a walk in the palace after a nice meal in this restaurant to burn the calories.

Seolpum Traditional Korean 설품
7, Deoksugung-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea
Tel : 070-4060-3417 (Reservations)

Visited Feb 2025