Baby-chair ramen dinner with a 25-month-old in Gwangjin: Mentsuru

These days, when I eat out with my 25-month-old, taste matters, but so does whether the place is easy to eat at comfortably with a toddler. Today my husband, my 25-month-old and I went to Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch (멘츠루 어린이대공원점). I was craving ramen near Children's Grand Park and looked it up, and it was so much better than expected that I want to introduce it as a place I'd love to go back to.

Where is Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch, and how busy is it at 6 PM?

Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch is near Children's Grand Park Station, so it was easy to find. It's also close to Sejong University and Konkuk University, so it seemed like a good option when looking for lunch or dinner nearby.

We went at 6 PM and tables were about 70% full. Most people were dining alone, and since it's noodles, they finished quickly so turnover was really fast! Even with a crowd, it clears out quickly, so it seemed worth the wait.

Inside, it had a Japanese ramen shop feel without being too cramped or stuffy. There were seats good for solo dining as well as seats for 2 to 4 people, so it worked fine both for solo diners and for a family visit like ours.

Baby chairs and table ordering: is Mentsuru easy with a toddler?

We visited with our 25-month-old and it was convenient that we could order from the table. Having a baby chair was such a plus! Eating out with a toddler can get chaotic starting from ordering, so being able to look at the menu and order right at our seat was surprisingly convenient too.

What we ordered at Mentsuru

Today we ordered shoyu ramen, shio ramen, and takoyaki. For the shio ramen you can choose between regular and spicy flavor, and we picked regular.

Shoyu ramen with extra noodles and 2 pieces of pork belly chashu

We tried the shoyu ramen first, which arrived first. Shoyu ramen has a soy sauce-based broth, and it was clean yet savory. Rather than tasting sharply salty, it was more mild and easy to keep sipping the broth. My husband usually feels a bit short on noodles when eating ramen, so he added extra noodles, and it turned out to be a good call.

We also added 2 pieces of pork belly chashu, which made the bowl look noticeably heartier. The noodles went well with the broth, and with the chashu on top, it felt like a proper full bowl!

Personally, of everything we ate that day, the shoyu ramen was my favorite.

Shio ramen at Mentsuru: clean and light

The shio ramen had a different feel from the shoyu ramen. Being salt-based, the broth tasted a bit more mild and clean. You can choose a spicy version too, but we ordered the regular flavor, and since it wasn't spicy, it was an easy choice when dining with our toddler.

If shoyu ramen leans a bit more toward savoriness, shio ramen would suit people who prefer a relatively clean flavor. Ordering both let my husband and I swap bites and have fun comparing. We both enjoyed our bowls, so next time we want to try other menu items too!

Takoyaki as a side dish

It felt like too little to just have ramen, so we ordered takoyaki too. The outside was soft and the inside moist, making it a good side to pair with ramen.

A sip of ramen broth followed by a bite of takoyaki turned out to be a nice combo. Our 25-month-old had one too and ate it up well!

Eating at Mentsuru with a 25-month-old

When eating out with a 25-month-old, the atmosphere and seating of a restaurant matter quite a bit. We were able to eat comfortably, and it was a good spot to have ramen with our toddler along!

Of course, ramen itself is an adult dish, so it's worth checking the seasoning and temperature separately when feeding it to a child, but it was fine to visit as a family. It would be especially good for anyone looking for a place to eat near Children's Grand Park after playing with their kid!

Why we'd go back to Mentsuru near Children's Grand Park

This was our first visit to Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch! The shoyu ramen was clean with great savoriness, and the shio ramen's mild flavor was lovely. Adding extra noodles and pork belly chashu made it a filling meal, and with takoyaki on the side, it was plenty for the two of us.

Most of all, we enjoyed it so much that we said, "let's come here again next time." I'd recommend it as a Children's Grand Park favorite and a Konkuk University-area favorite~