Park Bistecca House
Hanwoo ribeye at Park Bistecca House, on a quiet Sunday afternoon in Seoul.
We came to Park Bistecca House on a Tuesday because the calendar was kinder than the weekend. The room was three-quarters full and somehow more honest for it.
The room is exactly what you want it to be: Gangnam tower, white-glove service. We were seated near the back, given menus we hardly needed, and brought a small bowl of olives without being asked.
We started with burrata with peaches and basil, which set the tone — generous, unfussy, and confident enough not to crowd what was coming. With it we ordered a Burgundy that arrived too cold and rewarded patience, and were glad of both.
Then the main event: hanwoo ribeye, the dish that puts Park Bistecca House on every short list. There was a thumb of butter melting into the cross-hatch, and a single sprig of thyme on top, and not one thing more. The signature touch — Korean beef at its highest grade, dry-aged in-house — is not a gimmick; it is the reason to come.
For sides we asked for fried okra and a dab of remoulade and pommes Anna. Both arrived hot, both arrived early, both were exactly large enough to overdo it. We overdid it.
Dessert was a wedge of chocolate cake to share, fork divided, mostly because the waiter raised an eyebrow when we hesitated. He was right to.
A perfect Sunday lunch, which is what I came for.
Filed by Walter Halligan