Twoppul Deungshim, a three-restaurant chain, has hit the nail on the head with its corkage-free, B.Y.O.B. (bring your own bottle) policy and reasonably priced 1++ grade charcoal-grilled hanwoo beef.
When the first eatery opened in Nonhyeon-dong, Seoul, this January, diners took to the concept.
“People really liked the pricing, the quality of the beef and the fact that there was no corkage,” said Twoppul Garosugil general manager Lee Byoung-ouk.
Now, there are a total of three Twoppuls ― one more each in Nonhyeon-dong and Garosugil ― with another on the way.
Seoul’s B.Y.O.B. hotspot is drawing in diners with reasonably priced top grade 1++ hanwoo and a corkage-free wine policy. (Chung Hee-cho/The Korea Herald)
The third and newest restaurant, which opened in Garosugil in September, took the existing wine-and-meat menu and kicked it up a notch with a posh prix fixe deal.
“The Garosugil restaurant is the only place that features bar dining,” said Lee.
Seats for bar dining, where beef is grilled and served tableside as part of a 60,000 won ($55) course meal, must be reserved in advance. So popular is the course meal, the bar dining seats are fully booked through Dec. 15.
Clearly Twoppul is a major success and it is not hard to see why.
The tenderloin and sirloin are both top grade hanwoo (Korean beef). Apparently, 1++ is as high as it gets and that is why the restaurant is called Twoppul, which means “two pluses.”
To top it off, the beef is wet aged for 21 days. That means the beef is put in a vacuum-sealed package and stored in a controlled environment for three weeks, letting the natural enzymes break down the muscle’s connective tissue for a softer slab of meat.
Imagine 150 grams of tenderloin, thrown over a hardwood charcoal grill for chunk after chunk of flame-kissed, succulent, velvety, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth goodness.
Not only does the beef taste good, 150 grams of 1++ tenderloin costs 33,000 won and 150 grams of 1++ sirloin 29,000 won.
“That’s almost the price of eating at a butcher shop-restaurant (where meat is bought over the counter and a grill and sides are provided for an additional fee),” said Jang Hyun-ji, marketing team head for Twoppul’s parent company SG Dinehill.
“Prices for 1++ hanwoo tenderloin and sirloin at a restaurant generally range from 36,000 won to 38,000 won or more,” Jang tossed out a ballpark figure.
Reasonably priced tenderloin is not Twoppul’s only realm of expertise, the restaurant also dishes out good bulgogi.
Made from a mix of grades 1 and 1+ hanwoo sirloin, the bulgogi (25,000 won for 150 grams) is juicy and tender. Add a 2,000 won order of buckwheat noodles and let those strands soak up those sweet, beefy juices pooled up around the pan’s rim before digging in.
Of course, aside from the good beef, there is also the restaurant’s corkage-free policy.
“Lots of places now charge corkage by the glass and not by the bottle,” said Lee. “We decided to go all out and make it free.”
By Jean Oh (oh_jean@heraldcorp.com)
Twoppul Deungshim Garosugil
● Address: B1 Yehyoung Building, 532-9 Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
● Contact: (02) 515-5712/www.dinehill.co.kr
● Hours: Open from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
