Guwol-dong ramen shop: smoked jambon in mild tonkotsu, Menya Seoul

On an in-between weekend afternoon, I didn't want anything too heavy, just something warm and noodly that would hit the spot fast but still leave me full. So I headed down to the basement food court. Today's spot is Menya Seoul, a well-known ramen restaurant at Lotte Department Store Incheon famous for its distinctive style!

Instead of the usual pork belly char siu you'd expect at a typical ramen shop, this place tops its bowls with unusual things like dongpo pork or jambon (ham) — I'd been curious about it for a while!

Where is Menya Seoul in Lotte Department Store Incheon, and where do you park?

Menya Seoul sits toward the back of the Food Avenue on basement level 1 of Lotte Department Store Incheon, directly across from Outback Steakhouse! Since it's inside the department store, parking is easily covered through the store's parking registration.

Menu models and the signature dongpo pork char siu ramen

Out front, there's a display of realistic, full-size menu models that look genuinely appetizing. With a text-only menu board it's often hard to picture the portion size or look of a dish, so being able to see the actual models made choosing so much easier!

The restaurant's signature dish is the dongpo pork char siu ramen — 100g of pork belly braised tenderly, a secret broth simmered from apparently 25 different ingredients, and a whole ajitamago (soft-boiled egg) aged in special sauce for 48 hours.

Menya Seoul set discount, toppings and broth choices

• Set discount: order ramen with one of 3 sides (karaage, crispy gyoza, or small sweet soy chicken rice bowl) for ₩3,900 off
• Add-on toppings: noodles, ajitamago, rice, king shrimp tempura (2pcs)
• Broth choice: mild (basic tonkotsu base), spicy, or mala — pick to taste (mala broth comes with cilantro by default, so ask them to leave it out if you can't eat it!)

For the summer season, they also had a refreshing king shrimp cold ramen and a rich pork belly mazesoba, so there was a huge range to choose from.

Store-only counter seats built for solo dining

What I really liked was the seating layout — Menya Seoul has its own counter seats wrapping around the open kitchen! No need to carry a tray around a shared food court table, awkwardly scanning for an empty seat — you just sit right down at the store's own bar counter. It's a setup that's completely optimized for eating alone.

To order, you prepay directly with staff at the counter. Once you order, they hand you a buzzer, and when it goes off you pick up your tray at the pickup counter.

<Today's order> Jambon char siu ramen set (+crispy gyoza)

On the counter, there was tangy lemon kelp vinegar and spicy rayu (chili oil) available for people to drizzle onto their mazesoba, cold ramen, or spicy ramen to taste. I'd chosen the mild broth today to enjoy the flavor as is, so I skipped the seasonings.

First look at the jambon char siu ramen set

The buzzer finally went off, and I brought back today's star — the jambon char siu ramen, eye-catching from the first look!

On the tray, alongside the neat bowl of ramen, came pickled radish as a basic side. For the set's side dish I chose the crispy gyoza, and true to its name, they came out cooked so well you could see the crispiness just by looking.

I've been to a lot of ramen restaurants, but this was the first time I'd seen smoked jambon as a topping — so visually it felt really fresh!

How the mild tonkotsu broth and hosomen noodles taste

First I scooped up a spoonful of the pale, rich broth. The deep umami of slow-simmered tonkotsu spread through, clean and savory with no pork off-flavor at all! Ramen made in the authentic Japanese style can often be too heavily seasoned and salty, but Menya Seoul's mild broth wasn't overly salty — just pleasantly seasoned. The gentle saltiness of the thinly sliced jambon blended with the broth perfectly, hitting exactly the right balance!

For the noodles, they use classic thin straight hosomen. Not undercooked and stiff, nor overcooked and mushy — they kept a bit of bite while staying smooth, making for a great texture for slurping. The rich broth soaked into the thin noodles beautifully, giving a flavor that clung nicely to every bite!

Does smoked jambon work as a ramen topping?

The topping I was most excited about — jambon! Normally I only eat this kind of ham in a jambon-beurre sandwich or as a cold wine snack, so I wondered if it would work in ramen broth. But once softened in the warm meat broth, the texture turned much more tender. Unlike fatty char siu, it was lean and chewy with a lovely hint of smokiness, and wrapping it around the noodles like a little roll made for a real delicacy.

48-hour aged ajitamago and a bowl of rice

And another point that impressed me — the ajitamago! True to its description of being aged for 48 hours, it was deeply infused with a sweet-savory special soy seasoning. The yolk had absolutely no dryness, flowing smoothly like a soft jelly in a perfect soft-boiled state, melting the moment I bit in. The quality was so good I regretted not adding an extra egg topping.

Rice is a paid add-on, so I didn't order it separately, but as I spooned up the rich broth left after finishing the noodles, I thought a warm bowl of white rice mixed in would have made it perfect, just like a hearty rice soup.

Crispy gyoza, the side chosen with the set

The crispy gyoza side dish was a good portion size to fill in the gap after a noodle dish, which can leave you hungry again quickly. Crunchy dumpling skin with a full meaty filling!

Once I finished eating, all that's left is returning the tray to the return station set up in one corner of the restaurant!

Be sure to leave a Naver receipt review — you can get a free ajitamago topping for it!

Verdict: is Menya Seoul worth it for eating alone?

The clean, rich broth with no off-flavor, the unusual jambon topping that paired perfectly with it, and the comfortable, judgment-free counter seating for solo diners all made this a very satisfying meal. If you're shopping at Lotte Department Store Incheon and looking for a simple, filling place to eat alone, or want to try a different flavor from the usual char siu ramen, definitely stop by Menya Seoul, one of the best ramen restaurants at Lotte Department Store Incheon!