My birthday is today but my friend Phil came up from Daegu to celebrate with me last weekend. He immediately took the occasion to suggest a restaurant I’ve been wanting to try for about a year, Elbon the table in Garosugil. So we went to have their five course lunch set menu.
It is quite a beautiful establishment and the service was very comfortable. Many of the servers spoke English and they answered all my questions. The deco is sleek and interesting with its open kitchen concept. We saw the celebrity chef, Hyun Seok Choi, who owns the restaurant. (Phil couldn’t stop staring, hah…) I actually quite liked the open concept but I wonder how it is during a busy dinner rush. Probably much louder and crazier than a relaxed afternoon lunch.
The food was delicious but without any WOW. It was simply quite nice food in a really nice atmosphere. I thought the most desirable parts were the sesame “butter” served with the bread, the briny tomato seafood soup and the amazing chocolate mousse. The mojito was also right up my alley with all the mint and lemon.
The most disappointing things were the scallops with saffron sauce. The sauce had a taste so mild I would almost call it bland. And the dessert pound cake, which was too dense and very nearly hard, it tasted like a leftover. Sadface.
Everything was cooked very well though. The meat, the seafood, the veggies were all perfect. My biggest issue, again, is that I expected a bit more pizzazz or culinary showoffiness. With so many choices on the menu it is possible that I just didn’t order the dish that has that wow factor.
- You can visit the website and see their current menu. For the lunch set you can order the 3 course (45,000won) ,4 course (55,000won), or 5 course (65,000won) meal.
- They have locations at Garosugil (main), Ilsan, Itaewon.
- Call for reservations! 82-2-547-4100
Une Peach 