Sooksoodoga

02What to order

• Jeongchan course AHanwoo 1++, 150 g of sirloin (deungsim) or tenderloin (ansim) within a modern Korean menu; ₩96,000.
• Aged jeongchan course BThe same format with aged beef, 150 g; ₩106,000.
• Aged sirloin or aged tenderloinÀ la carte, 1++, 150 g, ₩68,000 each, with banchan and clam soup (jogaetang). The sirloin is the house signature.
• Hanwoo yukhoe1++ beef tartare, 200 g, with Grana Padano; ₩46,000. Chadolbagi, thin-sliced brisket, is 150 g for the same price.
• Doenjang-jochiSoybean-paste stew made with doenjang from Gangwon; ₩12,000.

03The beef

The animal is Hanwoo graded 1++(9), the top of the scale, and within it the most expensive, according to the house. Two cuts are aged: deungsim, the sirloin and house signature, and ansim, the tenderloin. The method is its own. MICHELIN describes ageing of 46 to 720 hours with control of temperature, humidity and contact with air, plus a fermentation; on Naver the house gives 720 hours, or 30 days, of dry ageing with fermentation (geonjo-balhyo sukseong), changing the ageing environment 30 times. The beef is checked daily for the five days before it is served. The chef argues that classic dry ageing loses 20–30 % to trimming, while his shorter method loses almost nothing, so he can buy a higher grade for the same price. The number: 46 to 720 hours.

04The fire

Cooks grill at the table, and only those with more than two years in the house; they adjust heat and time to the day's piece. The fuel is not published.

05The story

Chef Kim Sae-gyeol, who signs the house blog, trained in global Korean cuisine at Woosong University and worked as butcher and ageing master at Cheongdam Wooga; he also holds meat-processing, sommelier and HACCP qualifications. He designed every dish of the jeongchan himself as modern Korean cooking, among them abalone aged in kombu with a Jeju prawn bisque. In 2024 he said it was one of only two aged-beef houses in the Korean MICHELIN Guide. No opening year has been published.

06The practical

Sooksoodoga is on the ground floor of 28 Dongsomun-ro 17-gil, Seongbuk-gu; Naver points to the basement car park of The Seoul hospital as the nearest. It takes only 9 tables a day, seated every 30 minutes, so book through Naver or on +82 10-8231-2627; CatchTable and Instagram @sooksoodg are linked too. Hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 12:00–15:00 and 17:00–22:00; closed Sunday and Monday. Private rooms seat 2 to 10, a group table 18 to 24, and corkage is charged.

Address

1F, 28 Dongsomun-ro 17-gil, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul

Phone

+82 10-8231-2627

Website

app.catchtable.co.kr

Directions

Google Maps ↗

07In Seoul’s selections