# City Hall ramen restaurant after a Namsan walk: Mentsuru shio ramen - By Sohye (https://superchart.com/en/@checkered-tablecloth-00f5/) - Written Sep 18, 2026 - Local places › Restaurants › Jung-gu, Seoul - Sponsored: This post was written as part of a paid store visit sponsorship. - English edition: https://superchart.com/en/@checkered-tablecloth-00f5/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-8349/ - Also in: [한국어](https://superchart.com/ko/@checkered-tablecloth-00f5/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-8349/index.md) ## In short Mentsuru City Hall Branch is a Japanese ramen restaurant near Exit 10 of City Hall Station in Jung-gu, Seoul, with a wide range of ramen on the menu. Coming down from a walk on Namsan, the writer ordered the tori paitan shio ramen and the plain shio ramen: the chicken broth was rich and the shio broth clean, each clearly its own thing, and a bowl of rice came free on request. With no break time, bar seats on the first floor and extra seating in the basement, Mentsuru City Hall Branch is an easy place to eat ramen alone near City Hall Station. ## Good to know - **Location**: Short walk from Exit 10, City Hall Station - **Hours**: Daily 11:00 AM–9:30 PM, no break time - **Seating**: First-floor bar table (solo seats) plus basement seating - **Ordering**: Kiosk - **What we ate**: Tori paitan shio ramen, shio ramen - **Rice**: Free on request *as written by the visitor on Sep 18, 2026* ![Signature bowl of ramen at Mentsuru City Hall Branch](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-01-i3eg9-1200.webp) With the weather getting a little cooler these days, it really does feel like fall is on its way. I went up Namsan for the first time in a while, and on the way down I was trying to decide what to grab near City Hall Station. Since it's oddly gotten cold for September, I kept craving warm soupy food, and that day I was especially in the mood for Japanese-style ramen. I was just looking for a place to grab one bowl of ramen when I found a spot with a huge variety — Mentsuru City Hall Branch. ## Where is Mentsuru City Hall Branch, and what are its hours? ![Exterior of Mentsuru City Hall Branch near Exit 10 of City Hall Station](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-02-1as80-900.webp) Mentsuru City Hall Branch is in a great spot, an easy walk from Exit 10 of City Hall Station. It's genuinely close to the station, so a lot of office workers from nearby seemed to stop by for lunch!! It's open daily from 11:00 AM to 9:30 PM with no break time, which I loved! ![First floor interior of Mentsuru City Hall Branch with a Japanese ramen shop atmosphere](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-03-lails-900.webp) ## Bar seats and basement tables for solo diners at Mentsuru Walking in, I could feel that distinct atmosphere of a Japanese ramen shop, and what caught my eye especially was the bar table set up for solo dining. ![Bar table seats at Mentsuru City Hall Branch, ideal for solo diners](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-04-n11gk-900.webp) A lot of people go to ramen restaurants alone, but sitting by yourself at a big table can feel a little awkward sometimes, you know? Mentsuru City Hall Branch had a great vibe for sitting at the bar table and comfortably enjoying a bowl solo! ![Overview of seating at Mentsuru City Hall Branch](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-05-1uh81-900.webp) There's seating in the basement too, not just the first floor, so the place is spacious — great for coming with a friend or coworker without any wait! ![Basement seating area at Mentsuru City Hall Branch](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-06-1s40p-900.webp) ![Ordering kiosk at Mentsuru City Hall Branch](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-07-1yxg2-m-900.webp) ## What's on the kiosk menu at Mentsuru City Hall Branch? You could order easily through the kiosk!! The menu was more varied than I expected. There's shoyu ramen and shio ramen, and if you like rich chicken broth there's tori paitan, or if you want something spicy there's spicy shoyu ramen or motsu ramen, among other options! There are also donburi (rice bowl) dishes like gyudon and hormone-don, so it's easy to pick something even if you're with someone who's not into ramen!! ![Ramen menu board at Mentsuru City Hall Branch](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-08-ccbrv-900.webp) ![Menu listing shoyu ramen and shio ramen](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-09-ihurv-900.webp) ![Menu listing tori paitan and motsu ramen](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-10-1jv2e-900.webp) ![Menu listing gyudon and hormone-don rice bowls](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-11-4ev2d-900.webp) You could add spice to the base ramen, or add toppings like extra noodles or egg, so it was nice that you could tune it to your taste. That day I wanted to really taste the broth itself, so I went with the tori paitan shio ramen. ## How was the tori paitan shio ramen? ![Bowl of tori paitan shio ramen with pale broth](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-12-1htyu-900.webp) The tori paitan shio ramen had a pale, rich-looking broth from the start that looked pretty appetizing. Tori paitan is known for its rich chicken broth made by simmering chicken for a long time, and with a bit of spice added it was so good!! ![Rich chicken broth of the tori paitan shio ramen](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-13-pyefs-900.webp) You get the deep, rich flavor of chicken broth first, and the seasoning finished cleanly. ![Close-up of perfectly cooked ramen noodles](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-14-1olo3-900.webp) The noodles were also cooked just right, and they went perfectly with the broth. ![Thinly sliced chashu topping](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-15-1x79n-900.webp) On top of that, there was thinly sliced chashu (braised pork) as a topping, so it was easy to enjoy without feeling heavy! The chashu was thin so it just melted in your mouth! ![Ramen topped with a soft-boiled egg](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-16-1yyux-900.webp) The egg was soft-boiled too, and it was so good! Something I personally liked was that you can ask for free rice if you want it! When there's a little broth left after finishing the ramen, mixing in rice lets you enjoy it in a whole different way. We didn't add it separately since the portion was big, but it sounds great! ## How does the plain shio ramen broth taste? ![Bowl of shio ramen with clean, light broth](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-17-19npf-900.webp) With the shio ramen, the first sip of broth was cleaner and lighter than I expected. It has that salty shio seasoning, but the broth isn't heavy, so you keep spooning it up without getting tired of it. ![Lifting up noodles from the shio ramen broth](https://img.superchart.com/images/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-18-178aw-900.webp) If you like rich ramen but find overly greasy or heavy broths a bit much, I think the shio ramen would work well for you. ## Is Mentsuru City Hall Branch worth it for solo ramen? One of Mentsuru City Hall Branch's strengths is definitely how many menu options there are. As the weather cools down, of course a warm bowl of soup comes to mind, and Mentsuru City Hall Branch hit the spot exactly! If you're looking for a ramen restaurant near City Hall Station where you can comfortably eat alone, with plenty of variety to match whatever you're craving that day, it's worth stopping by Mentsuru City Hall Branch. Address: 2 Seosomun-ro 11-gil, 1st floor, Unit 1, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea ## Where it is - Mentsuru City Hall Branch (멘츠루 시청점) - 2 Seosomun-ro 11-gil, 1st floor, Unit 1, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea - 서울특별시 중구 서소문로11길 2 1층 1호 - 37.5629944, 126.9731249 - Google Maps: https://www.google.com/maps/search/%EB%A9%98%EC%B8%A0%EB%A3%A8%20%EC%8B%9C%EC%B2%AD%EC%A0%90/@37.5629944,126.9731249,17z --- Superchart · https://superchart.com/en/@checkered-tablecloth-00f5/menzuru-city-hall-tori-paitan-shio-ramen-8349/ · https://superchart.com/llms.txt