Italy Guksi Seongsu: Korean-Italian Fusion Pasta

TL;DR: Italy Guksi Seongsu is a Korean-Italian fusion restaurant near Ttukseom Station, best known for charcoal-grilled daechang hot-stone pasta and creative Korean takes on pasta, pizza, and risotto. It suits adventurous diners and date nights. Skip it if you want strictly traditional Italian cooking or dislike rich offal dishes.

Italy Guksi Seongsu reworks Italian comfort food through Korean ingredients and serving styles, pairing pasta and risotto with charcoal-grilled intestines, bulgogi, Cheongyang chili, gochujang, and hot stone bowls. For international visitors, it is an approachable way to explore bold Korean flavors through familiar dishes in one of Seoul’s most popular dining neighborhoods.

Italy Guksi Seongsu pairs familiar pasta, pizza, and risotto with charcoal, fermented seasoning, Korean barbecue, and sizzling stoneware.

Table of Contents

• What Is Italy Guksi Seongsu?
• What Should You Order at Italy Guksi Seongsu?
• How Much Does Italy Guksi Seongsu Cost?
• How Do You Get to Italy Guksi Seongsu?
• Is Italy Guksi Seongsu Worth Visiting?
• Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Verdict
Who Should Visit	Travelers who want creative Korean flavors in a familiar pasta-and-pizza format
Who Should Skip	Traditional-Italian purists, very light eaters, or diners who strongly dislike offal
Best Dish to Order	Charcoal-Grilled Daechang Hot Stone Pasta (숯불대창돌솥파스타)
Price Range	₩₩–₩₩₩, roughly US$15–26 per person before drinks
Reservation Required	Not always, but recommended for evenings and weekends

• Address (English): 3F, 18-1 Wangsimni-ro 8-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Address (Korean): 서울특별시 성동구 왕십리로8길 18-1 3층
• Nearest Subway: Ttukseom Station Exit 7, about 2 minutes; Seoul Forest Station Exit 1, about 5 minutes
• Operating Hours: Daily 11:30 AM–9:30 PM; weekday break time 3:00–5:00 PM; confirm weekend break details before visiting
• Phone: 02-464-0950; some Korean listings also display 0507-1411-0950
• Price Range: About ₩20,000–₩35,000 per person before alcohol
• English Menu Available: Not confirmed; ordering is commonly handled through an NFC/mobile menu
• Reservations: Available; recommended for peak dinner periods
• Information verified: September 2026

Current hours, contact information, menu pricing, and reservation availability were cross-checked against recent Korean restaurant listings.

What Is Italy Guksi Seongsu?

Italy Guksi Seongsu (이태리국시 성수) is built around the idea of making Korean-style pasta rather than simply adding Korean toppings to Italian dishes. Guksi (국시) — a regional Korean word for noodles — is combined with “Italy” in the brand name; a Woosong University profile of the brand’s founder describes the concept as using Korean ingredients to create new pasta dishes.

Charcoal-grilled meat sits over spaghetti, rice cakes meet ragù and burrata, and hot stone bowls replace the usual pasta plate. Cheongyang gochu (청양고추) — a hot Korean green chili — cuts through rich sauces, while Gochujang (고추장) — fermented red chili paste — adds sweet, savory depth.

Our guide to Korean gochujang explains how fermentation creates that complexity, while the Korean perilla leaves guide shows why Kkaennip (깻잎) — aromatic Korean perilla — pairs naturally with grilled meat.

Italy Guksi’s identity is not “Italian food with Korean toppings,” but familiar Italian formats rebuilt around Korean flavors and eating habits.

What Should You Order at Italy Guksi Seongsu?

The menu is wide, but three dishes explain the restaurant clearly.

Charcoal-Grilled Daechang Hot Stone Pasta

Daechang (대창) — beef large intestine — is rich and fatty, with a crisp exterior when grilled well. Italy Guksi pairs it with grilled green onion, spicy oil, and spaghettini in a heated stone bowl.

The charcoal aroma and sizzling presentation make this the clearest expression of the restaurant’s Korean-barbecue-meets-pasta concept. The current listed price is ₩26,500.

Charcoal Bulgogi Wrap Pizza

Bulgogi (불고기) — marinated grilled beef — comes with bocconcini and fresh vegetables on a pizza designed to be folded like Ssam (쌈) — a Korean wrap.

Instead of relying only on cheese and meat, the fresh vegetables create the same richness-and-freshness contrast found in Korean barbecue. The pizza is currently listed at ₩25,000.

Basil Seafood Soup Pasta

This Seongsu-specific pasta combines basil pesto, seafood, clam broth, and mafaldine. Its brothier profile makes it a useful contrast to the richer daechang pasta, particularly when two or more people are sharing dishes.

Another notable crossover is the burrata ragù hot-stone Tteokbokki (떡볶이) — chewy Korean rice cakes — made with gochujang rosé sauce, ragù, burrata, and conchiglie. Korea’s official tourism organization describes tteokbokki as one of the country’s representative spicy street foods, traditionally centered on rice cakes and red chili paste. Read VISITKOREA’s introduction to tteokbokki

For more context, explore the history of Korean tteokbokki or compare the restaurant version with our cheesy tteokbokki recipe.

How Much Does Italy Guksi Seongsu Cost?

Current menu listings place most main dishes between roughly ₩19,000 and ₩29,000. The charcoal-grilled daechang hot-stone pasta is ₩26,500, Hanwoo Gopchang (곱창) — beef intestine — hot-stone pasta ₩27,000, charcoal bulgogi wrap pizza ₩25,000, truffle potato cheese gnocchi ₩29,000, and the basil seafood soup pasta ₩27,000.

The charcoal galbi-and-Kkakdugi (깍두기) — cubed radish kimchi — hot-stone risotto is ₩21,500.

For two people, food will generally land around ₩40,000–₩70,000 before drinks, depending on how much is shared.

Lunch is significantly cheaper. Cheongyang bulgogi cream pasta is listed at ₩10,900 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, while perilla-seed and bacon risotto is ₩10,900 on Tuesday and Thursday. These lunch specials are unavailable on weekends and public holidays.

How Do You Get to Italy Guksi Seongsu?

The easiest route is Ttukseom Station on Seoul Subway Line 2. Exit 7 is about a two-minute walk from the restaurant, which is on the third floor at 18-1 Wangsimni-ro 8-gil. Seoul Forest Station Exit 1 is another practical option at roughly five minutes on foot.

The location works well for a half-day Seongsu itinerary. VISITKOREA’s Seoul Forest information notes that the main park is open 24 hours, although individual facilities inside the park keep separate hours.

For nearby Taste Korean Food stops, the Daelim Changgo Seongsu guide covers the neighborhood’s warehouse-café culture, while Somunnan Seongsu Gamjatang shows a much more traditional side of local dining.

Public transportation is the easiest choice for first-time visitors because parking details differ between current listings.

Is Italy Guksi Seongsu Worth Visiting?

Italy Guksi Seongsu makes the most sense for travelers who want creative Korean food rather than textbook Italian authenticity. Korean barbecue, hot-stone cooking, spicy seasoning, fermented flavors, and ssam-style eating are translated into familiar pasta and pizza formats.

The main limitation is richness. Ordering only daechang, gopchang, cream sauce, cheese, and gnocchi can become heavy, so a better table combines one rich signature dish with the basil seafood pasta, bulgogi pizza, or another lighter option.

Diners who strongly dislike offal do not need to order the restaurant’s intestine dishes just because they are signatures. The menu has enough non-offal choices to preserve the Korean-fusion concept.

The dining room is modern and spacious, with large windows, wine and beer options, and NFC/mobile ordering, making the restaurant particularly suitable for dates and small groups. Recent restaurant coverage also consistently describes the space as modern and date-friendly.

For more on fermented Korean flavors, our evidence-based guide to kimchi and gut health explains fermentation in Korean food while separating established evidence from exaggerated health claims.

For first-time international visitors, Italy Guksi Seongsu works best as a bridge: familiar pasta and pizza on the surface, recognizably Korean flavor logic underneath.

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes the daechang hot-stone pasta uniquely Korean?

The dish is Korean not simply because it contains daechang. Beef intestine is strongly associated with Korean gopchang barbecue, while the sizzling stone bowl keeps the pasta hot and encourages browning. Charcoal grilling, green onion, spicy oil, offal, and stoneware together give the dish a distinctly Korean barbecue structure.

What are the key Korean ingredients to know before ordering?

Three useful ingredients are Daechang (대창), prized for its rich fat and grilled texture; Cheongyang gochu (청양고추), a sharp green chili that cuts through cream and oil; and Gochujang (고추장), a fermented chili paste combining heat, sweetness, salt, and umami. These ingredients explain much of the restaurant’s fusion style.

How spicy is the food at Italy Guksi Seongsu?

Most dishes are not extreme by Korean standards. As a practical estimate for international diners, many plates fall around 3–5 on a 10-point spice scale, while Cheongyang-chili-forward dishes can feel closer to 6 depending on personal tolerance. Cream, cheese, broth, and meat soften the heat in several combinations.

What should first-time visitors know?

Order for contrast rather than choosing several rich dishes at once. One hot-stone meat pasta plus the bulgogi wrap pizza or seafood soup pasta makes a more balanced table. Some dishes use offal, so check ingredients before ordering. Reservations are sensible at popular dinner times, and ordering is handled through a mobile/NFC system.

Italy Guksi Seongsu succeeds when you approach it as Korean fusion first and Italian food second. Start with the charcoal-grilled daechang hot-stone pasta, then add the bulgogi wrap pizza or Seongsu-exclusive basil seafood soup pasta for contrast.

Plan your visit around Ttukseom Station or Seoul Forest, then continue through Seongsu’s cafés and design streets. Verify current hours, menu prices, break times, and reservation policies through the restaurant’s official channel before visiting, since restaurant information can change.