CU LA Galbi Lunchbox Review [Korean Food]

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Hello! The new CU lunchbox I want to introduce today is the LA Galbi Special Lunchbox. New menus keep launching from PBICK, which has now become CU’s flagship Fresh Food lineup! Today’s is an especially unusual one among them. When I looked into whether LA galbi had ever appeared in a convenience store lunchbox, not a single one came up — it really seems to be the first! Maybe that’s why this LA galbi lunchbox felt even better, haha. So shall we take a look at what it’s all about?

Table of Contents

📋 At a Glance

Product: CU PBICK The Kitchen LA Galbi Special Lunchbox (Special Declaration line)
Brand/Store: CU
Price: 8,800 won
Weight/Calories: 401g · 783kcal (58% of the daily sodium allowance)
Main components: LA galbi (US beef), beef bulgogi (Australian beef), baek-kimchi, musaengchae, gochujang-stir-fried jinmichae, zucchini (kabocha) salad, seaweed, black rice + ginkgo nuts — seven sides
Notes: A premium LA galbi lunchbox rarely seen at convenience stores (Special Declaration line); strongly seasoned overall
Verdict: ★3.0 — The rarity of convenience-store LA galbi is appealing, but the meat portion is small, the seasoning salty, and the price a burden — a once-for-the-experience menu!

LA Galbi Lunchbox: Price and Features

When CU first changed its Fresh Food lineup to “PBICK The Kitchen,” I recall it felt like the lunchboxes now had at least one side dish done properly! Now that “CU lunchbox = PBICK,” even unusual menus like this keep coming out one after another. It’s a convenience store lunchbox with LA galbi, no less! As the name Special Lunchbox suggests, the price is also 8,800 won.

A premium convenience meal lunchbox review

The total contents come to 401g with 783kcal, and the sodium is about 58% of the daily recommended amount. Since this is a special lunchbox, the price is close to 9,000 won. Since that’s not a matter of volume or calories, the calories and contents are lighter than you’d think. Even so, it’s at almost the same level as a lunchbox costing around 6,000 won. Still, you do feel full enough after eating it.

A new premium convenience store lunchbox

For reference, this menu has two meat items — regular LA galbi and beef bulgogi! One is Australian and one is American. Since the ingredient list likely puts the most abundant component first, the “seasoned meat 1” listed at the front is probably the LA galbi! I’ll take my time confirming this later.

The premium ingredient feature of the LA galbi

LA Galbi Lunchbox: Components

So shall we check the whole composition? This menu is a seven-side composition, with the main LA galbi and beef bulgogi, four side dishes, and one piece of seaweed. The rice is black rice! And two ginkgo nuts sit on top of it.

First, the LA galbi and beef bulgogi! With the galbi, you can see about two pieces of bone, and by total amount there’s probably barely two pieces’ worth. It’s not as much as you’d think… To make up for that a bit, a little beef bulgogi is included alongside as well. The absolute amount itself isn’t much!

Anticipation for the PBICK special lunchbox

For the sides, there are four: baek-kimchi, musaengchae, gochujang-stir-fried jinmichae, and zucchini salad. Realistically, apart from the two — LA galbi and beef bulgogi — the rest are accompaniments not closely tied to the main! The meat amount isn’t that large, and the sides are relatively light-focused too, so it feels like a not-too-heavy menu.

The yellow one looks like it’s made by coating kabocha with kabocha salad! (It doesn’t seem to be sweet potato…) You could eat this last as dessert after finishing the rice. It may be a “special,” but apart from the LA galbi, it’s hard to call it particularly special!

LA Galbi Lunchbox: Taste

So after finishing the prep, I tore open the seasoned seaweed, placed it on the rice, and tasted right away. I first tried the LA galbi, which is the main and lives up to the menu’s name! By whole pieces there are about two, so it isn’t a large amount. It’s the kind of amount that disappears in about four bites!

The strengths of the LA galbi special lunchbox

For starters, the bone is cleanly separated, so there shouldn’t be much waste. The flavor is a fairly rich galbi sauce with added sweetness, so the seasoning feels very strong. Compared with the kind you grill lightly and eat as just galbi, rice is a must with this one. It’s quite salty to eat on its own!

The Saltiness and the Side Dishes

The problem is that the beef bulgogi is far saltier than the LA galbi. Probably because the galbi and bulgogi amounts are a bit small, they seem to have seasoned it saltier than usual to make you eat more rice! It’s not to the point of “ack, too salty!”, but there was a sense that it’s a touch overly salty. It seems they didn’t have to push it this far — or maybe it’s just mine? The basic flavor seems fine, though!

The jinmichae here also seems like something I’ve seen a few times in other PBICK menus, and it’s quite salty too. It’s a really good taste to eat with rice, but salty enough that eating it plain feels a bit much!

I thought this was kabocha with kabocha salad packed together, but the texture was a bit harder than expected, so I was a little “huh?” It made me wonder if it wasn’t kabocha but chestnut. The ingredient list has no specific note and just says kabocha, so I wondered. If anyone knows, please tell me!

The market response to PBICK The Kitchen

Since there’s a bit more rice than side dishes, the seaweed added like an extra is also nice to wrap and pop in your mouth here and there. If anything, wrapping the rice in seaweed feels like just the right seasoning.

Verdict — Convenience-Store LA Galbi Rarity vs. Saltiness and Price

When eating the meat, having baek-kimchi along with it here and there does bring some balance. The effect isn’t dramatic, and honestly, since the meat amount itself isn’t that large, it doesn’t become a big problem overall. Still, you should keep these points well in mind when you taste it!

A convenience store lunchbox composition comparison

Even though it was a convenience store lunchbox, I tried to savor the flavor a bit while eating the LA galbi — but because of the saltiness, I ended up eating in a rush, and all that remained was the impression of “well, I had a filling meal.” Compared to that, the price feels a touch expensive! If the saltiness really was just mine, do let me know, haha! Since the price is a bit of a burden to just settle for a single meal, it was a menu worth trying once for those who are curious. Personally, a second time would feel too wasteful, haha!

You can find more about the CU PBICK The Kitchen “Special Declaration” lineup this menu belongs to in the Hankyung press release (Korean source).

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How much does the CU LA Galbi Lunchbox cost?

The price is 8,800 won. It has 401g of total contents, 783kcal, and sodium at about 58% of the daily recommended amount. For a convenience store lunchbox it’s on the pricier side as a premium line (Special Declaration), but its highlight is that LA galbi — rarely seen at convenience stores — is the main.

Q. How is the LA Galbi Lunchbox put together?

The mains are two — US-beef LA galbi and Australian-beef bulgogi — and it’s a seven-side composition adding four sides (baek-kimchi, musaengchae, gochujang-stir-fried jinmichae, zucchini/kabocha salad) plus seaweed. The rice is black rice, with two ginkgo nuts on top. The meat amount itself isn’t large.

Q. How does the LA Galbi Lunchbox taste? Is it salty?

The LA galbi has a rich galbi sauce with added sweetness, so the taste is decent, but the seasoning is strong; the beef bulgogi and jinmichae are even saltier, so rice is almost a must. Having baek-kimchi along here and there brings a bit of balance. With a small meat portion, salty seasoning, and a burdensome price, it’s a menu I’d recommend once to those who want to experience convenience-store LA galbi.

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