Are you looking for a place in Korea where you can enjoy a special omakase meal at a reasonable price during your trip? So please pay attention to today's content! Today's featured place is 'Okaya,' where you can enjoy fresh sashimi and premium charcoal-grilled dishes at reasonable prices.
OKAYA
Information
Hours: Monday - Friday 11:30 - 21:50 | Break Time 14:30 - 17:30 | Last Order 19:50; Closed on Saturday, Sunday
Reservation Available: (Reservation Unit: 1 hour): Monday - Friday 12:00 - 13:00, 18:00 - 19:00
Languages Available: Korean, English
Address: 9 1F, World Cup North Road 50-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul
Why We Recommend It
Enjoy casual omakase at reasonable prices in a comfortable setting with seasonal and fresh dishes.
Savor aged sashimi and premium charcoal-grilled dishes, along with appetizers and desserts.
Relax in a stylish, cozy ambiance, perfect for any occasion with friends, partners, or family.
Fresh ingredients are selected daily to ensure the best flavors in every dish.
Located in Digital Media City, it's a popular spot near major attractions and shopping areas, perfect for a meal after shopping.
Our Visit
Today I visited Okaya, located near Sangam-dong Digital Media City Station. Okaya is an omakase Japanese restaurant where you can taste a variety of dishes from sashimi course to grilled dishes. It has also appeared on famous YouTube channels and is famous for its high-quality omakase restaurant.
There is a waiting area for waiting customers in front of the entrance.
The interior of the store is clean and has a sophisticated atmosphere. During the day, it's nice to feel warm and cozy because of the daylight, and in the evening, it feels even more luxurious because of the lighting, making it perfect for enjoying light drinks.
Okaya's attention to detail and sophistication can be seen even in the bathroom. From goggles to starting, dental floss, cotton swabs, hair ties, deodorant sprays, and other meticulous custom services that consider the convenience of customers stand out.
Okaya Course
I ordered two servings of Okaya Course today. Okaya course consists of otoshi, sashimi 14 kinds, futomaki, robatayaki 12 kinds seafood ramen, dessert 3 kinds.
First, I tasted otoshi. Otoshi is an appetizer you can enjoy while waiting for the main menu. According to the season or trend, the ingredients changes, but on the day I have visited, buckwheat soba with chopped tuna and salmon was served.
Buckwheat noodles mixed with tuna and salmon in soy sauce and sauce, harmonizing well with smooth raw fish and buckwheat noodles. The first bite tasted the original flavor, and the next bite wrapped in seaweed added another layer of deliciousness. Octopus is made into gambas and potato salad using various ingredients, so it's fun to taste different menus each time.
After finishing the otoshi, I tried a total of 14 different kinds of sashimi. Basic sashimi is almost the same, but it can be slightly changed to enjoy more deliciously depending on the season. Okaya's sashimi is aged for at least 7 days to provide the best taste. It's aged without spoiling, so the freshness and chewiness are really delicious!
When eating sashimi, you can taste it in any order according to your preference, but white-fleshed fish has the mildest flavor so we recommend trying it first. Okaya's sashimi is served so that you can taste each part per person, allowing you to try all the different parts, which is really nice.
This time, I tasted sweet shrimp with a unique sweetness and crispiness. As the name 'sweet shrimp' suggests, as soon as you put it in your mouth, you can feel the full sweetness and flavor. Once you put it in your mouth, you can feel the sweetness and flavor that matches the name 'sweet shrimp'.
Just eating sweet shrimp is delicious, but I also tried a combination that can only be tasted at Okaya recommended by the owner. Place tuna (otoro or chutoro) on top of the rice, then add sweet shrimp and sea urchin on top, finally sprinkle a little wasabi. Delicious food on top of delicious food, all the ingredients blend perfectly in your mouth to create a fantastic taste!
This time, I tried a combination of abalone, shrimp, and sea urchin that is similar but slightly different. The softness of scallops, the sweetness of sweet shrimp, and finally, the creamy yet savory taste of sea urchin create a harmony overall, blending various flavors and textures.
The abalone is raw, not boiled, boasting tremendous freshness. Fresh abalone, savory sesame oil, and salt come together to create a mouthful of ocean flavor.
Tasting various parts and clearing one by one, I achieved the name tag in the cup. It's fun to clear one each time you eat!
This time, I tried a hutomaki filled with white fish, salmon, and tuna. The default hotomaki is filled with unbelievably thick slices of sashimi. Wasabi added slightly and dipped in soy sauce tastes really delicious.
After finishing the sashimi, it's time to enjoy the charcoal-grilled dish. 12 types of charcoal grills are offered as a meal, including grilled mackerel, salmon, beef, chicken neck meat, pork jowl, grilled king oyster mushrooms, grilled jumbo shrimp, rice cakes, pineapple, grilled crab intestines (kanimiso), grilled scallops with cheese butter, and smoked duck.
Okaya's charcoal uses high-quality charcoal and bituminous coal that emit a strong charcoal scent, allowing you to fully experience the flavor of charcoal grilling. Good charcoal grill with a variety of ingredients, I'm really looking forward to what it tastes like!
When enjoying the charcoal-grilled dish that offers a variety of seafood and meat, it is recommended to grill the seafood first and then eat the meat. Fresh salmon provided as a sashimi is grilled crispy on charcoal and dipped lightly in salt to eat, making the salmon seem to melt in your mouth.
Seafood is difficult to grill, so our expert staff will grill it for you, making it even more convenient. When grilled over charcoal with a sweet soy sauce glaze, it has a rich flavor that is different from when eaten raw. Shrimp is a black tiger shrimp, so it is large and full of meat, and all the shells are processed, so it is convenient to taste.
After eating all the seafood, it's time to grill saesongitonggui, garaddeok, pineapple, and meat. Smelling the delicious scent of grilling over charcoal, I can't wait to taste how delicious the meat will be after the seafood!
Well-seasoned meat lightly dipped in salt tasted. The juicy and smoky flavors that fill your mouth are felt full of flavor every time you chew.
Grilled clam with cheese butter is a delicious combination of chewy and tender clam topped with creamy and savory cheese, creating a deep umami flavor. Especially, it's fully covered with cheese, which is savory and has a deep flavor that goes really well with scallops.
Finally I tried the delicious grilled intestines (Kanimiso). Please call a staff member when you want to have Kanimiso at the end, and they will grill it for you.
When the broth boils a bit, add the egg yolk, and after it's fully boiled, remove the broth and top it with crab meat. Rich and creamy innards with smooth crab meat on top, when eaten, spreads a deep umami flavor throughout the mouth.
After eating all the grilled dishes, it's time to taste a spicy seafood ramen filled with squid, shrimp, crab, and various seafood in fish bone broth. You can enjoy a clean soup taste without greasiness by using un-fried fresh noodles.
Spicy and clean broth with a variety of seafood ingredients, so there's no way the taste could be bad. The savory taste and cleanliness of seafood ramen help to control the greasiness, leaving a clean taste in your mouth!
Lastly, homemade green tea ice cream, gyukku, and sliced fruits were served as dessert. From otoshi to sashimi, futomaki, yakiniku, seafood ramen, and dessert, you can taste a variety of dishes at a reasonable price. If you want to enjoy a casual omakase at a reasonable price, we highly recommend 'Okaya'!
How to Get There
Exit at Digital Media City Station Exit 9.
Go straight for about 60m.
Turn left.
Proceed straight for about 200 meters.
Make a right turn.
Go straight.
Turn left and enter the alley.
Go straight.
Arrival!
OKAYA
We hope that you enjoy a delicious meal at OKAYA! If you have any questions or concerns, please leave a comment below or send us an email at help@creatrip.com! You can follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook to stay updated on all things Korea!
