We all know that NoVA’s Koreatowns in Annandale and Centreville are among the best spots in the country for Korean barbecue. Loudoun County, however, has been identified more closely with wine and cheese. But with one new restaurant, that may be about to change.
On its website, Oseyo Korean BBQ refers to the people behind it as “a family of Korean BBQ experts.” A representative for the group, who wishes to remain anonymous, explains that they’re not so much flesh-and-blood family as an investment group. “We want to be part of the Lansdowne community,” the rep said in a phone interview.
The collective of investors, mostly experienced restaurateurs, realized that there weren’t many Korean restaurants in Loudoun, let alone Leesburg. They found the long-empty former location of the French Hound Brasserie in Lansdowne was ideally suited for the Korean barbecue experience, with space for ample grill-topped tables. The dining room is decorated with panache in a lunar theme, complete with moon-like lights that echo the night skies of the art on the walls.
But none of this would matter if the meats grilling at each carefully ventilated table weren’t excellent. The Prime Combo serves two people for $96. It comes with four oversized portions of prime or Angus beef, along with rice, a variety of banchan, and a choice of sides, including blistery-surfaced corn cheese and bubbling tofu soup.
Among the small plates included, the kimchi is anything but basic, thanks to its balance of zippy acid, chile-laden heat, and just a bit of aged funk. The rotation of unusual dishes might also include tangy bok choy kimchi and white seaweed salad that’s creamy with mayonnaise.
For those with healthy appetites, it would be an error not to start the meal with mandu — fried pork dumplings with slippery vermicelli mixed in the meat — or to end with refreshingly icy mul naengmyeon, a light, beefy noodle soup sweetened with Asian pear.
In Korean, the word “oseyo” is an invitation to “please come in.” And that’s exactly what diners will want to do, whether they’re coming from Leesburg or further afield.
Oseyo Korean BBQ, 19286 Promenade Dr., Leesburg
Feature image by Michael Butcher
This story originally ran in our July Issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine.
