Songpa tonkatsu restaurant: salmon soboro pot rice set at Gome Mui

Is there a wait at Gome Mui near Munjeong Station if you go at 11am on a weekday?

Gome Mui Songpa Munjeong is a pot rice and tonkatsu place in the basement of Munjeong's Tera Tower, and going right at the weekday opening time of 11am meant I could sit down without any hassle. I had lunch plans near Munjeong Station so I went a bit early.

They have everything from pot rice to tonkatsu, udon, and curry, so it's a good option when you can't decide what to eat for lunch or dinner, haha.

On my way out I noticed a line starting to form around 11:30-11:40. The lunch rush from Munjeong Station office workers is no joke... If you're visiting on a weekday for lunch like me, I'd recommend going a bit before 11:30, or just going after the peak time!

Gome Mui Songpa Munjeong: location in Tera Tower and opening hours

Gome Mui, a restaurant in Tera Tower near Munjeong Station

• 📍 Tera Tower A, B1 G115, 167 Songpa-daero, Songpa-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🚇 About 296m from Munjeong Station Exit 3
• 🚗 Parking available at Tera Tower
• 👶 Baby chairs available
• 👥 Group-friendly / bar seating available
• ⏰ Mon-Sat 11:00-21:00 (last order 14:30, 20:30) / Sun 11:00-15:00 (last order 14:30)

It wasn't hard to find at all, haha. Even the directionally challenged can do it! Fighting! Come out toward Munjeong Undong Jeongwon (Munjeong Exercise Garden) next to Exit 3, then walk straight along the path on the left wall side. You'll find G115 in the basement of Tera Tower A, right next to Mega Coffee!

Seating at Gome Mui for solo diners and for groups

Looked good for everything from eating alone to office lunch gatherings!

I visited right at the 11am opening, so I got a relatively relaxed seat at first. Looking around, there were regular tables, plus bar seats that were nice for eating alone, and even 6-person tables for groups?? Haha. So it looked comfortable whether you're grabbing lunch solo or coming for lunch or dinner with coworkers!

And a small detail I personally liked. The spoon and chopsticks come individually packaged. These days that kind of thing matters to me, and having it neatly wrapped made it feel more hygienic, which I appreciated.

Ordering and paying by tablet at the table

The ordering system was also convenient. Each table has a tablet where you pick your menu and pay right away! Haha. No need to wait for staff to take your order or line up at the register after eating — you can handle everything from your seat, which would be especially handy for office workers on a tight lunch break.

With pot rice, tonkatsu, udon, and curry all on the menu, it's pretty great for groups too since everyone can pick what they feel like eating!

What comes with the salmon soboro pot rice and tonkatsu set

What I picked was the salmon sobolu pot rice + tonkatsu set. The perfect menu for someone who wants salmon pot rice but can't give up tonkatsu either, haha. The salmon sobolu pot rice on its own costs ₩17,000!

The food came out neatly arranged on a large tray, everything from the pot rice to the tonkatsu and side dishes at once, giving it that full-table-spread feel that made it easy to eat and looked pretty good too.

The side tonkatsu at Gome Mui was better than expected

Honestly I didn't expect much from the tonkatsu that came with the set. I figured the pot rice was the main event and the tonkatsu was just a side... but it turned out surprisingly good. It's a loin cut, pretty thick, with just enough fat mixed in that it wasn't dry when I chewed it — the savory flavor really came through.

They also sell roast katsu on its own for ₩14,000. Anyway, even though it was just the set's tonkatsu, I found myself thinking, "oh, I'd like to try their tonkatsu on its own sometime", haha. I came for the pot rice but ended up quietly won over by the tonkatsu.

One big chunk of salmon on top of the pot rice

And then the main event, the salmon sobolu pot rice. When you open the lid, instead of little bits of salmon scattered around, there's one big chunk of salmon sitting on top. There's also scrambled egg mixed in, and overall the portion size is pretty generous.

The way to eat it isn't complicated. Use the mini spatula that comes with it to break up the salmon and mix it evenly with the rice, then transfer it to the empty bowl provided to eat.

I'm pretty sensitive to that distinct fishy smell salmon can have, but this salmon tasted clean and mild to me with no fishy taste, and eating it together with the savory scrambled egg was a really good combination ?!?! Oops, so good.

Which side dishes come with the pot rice set?

The side dishes that came with my salmon sobolu pot rice were myeongnan-jeot (salted pollock roe), gat kimchi (mustard leaf kimchi), a seed-studded jeotgal (salted seafood), gim (seaweed), and a sweet sauce. Every one of the sides paired well with the pot rice.

The myeongnan-jeot wasn't too salty, so it was nice to add small amounts on top of the rice,

and the gat kimchi had just the right sharp kick, refreshing my palate between bites of salmon pot rice.

The seed-studded jeotgal also had a nice crunchy texture — a bit of a hidden gem.

And the sweet sauce that came with it felt like a teriyaki-style sauce to me, though I couldn't confirm the exact name. Adding a little at a time to mix into the pot rice gave it a sweet-and-savory taste that was delicious, haha. I'd recommend adding it bit by bit rather than pouring a lot on from the start.

Wrapping it in gim is, without question, the classic way to eat it... so good...

Is Gome Mui Songpa Munjeong okay with kids?

The salmon sobolu pot rice at Gome Mui had almost no spice, and the restaurant has baby chairs available. The salmon is mild and comes with scrambled egg mixed in, so it should be comfortable even for people who can't handle spicy food.

Good for family visits too. Every kid eats differently and has different taste preferences, but if you're visiting with a child who needs to avoid spicy dishes, I'd recommend going for one of the pot rice options!

How to finish pot rice at Gome Mui: ochazuke, not nurungji

And here's a moment I love when eating pot rice. Once you've scooped out most of the rice, there's rice stuck to the bottom of the pot, right? Pouring the hot water from the mini thermos that comes with it into the pot lets it naturally soften while you eat, so by the end you get to eat it like nurungji (scorched rice).

But I took it one step further, haha. I deliberately left a bit of rice behind. Instead of scooping out all the pot rice, I poured the hot water in while some rice was still left, which gave it more of an ochazuke feel — rice steeped in hot broth — rather than nurungji. This has its own charm.

If you like ochazuke, don't scrape the pot completely clean — leave a little rice and pour hot water over it. That final moment was actually the part that stuck with me the most, haha.

Clearing the pot rice wasn't the end of the meal

After finishing almost the entire spread and neatly wrapping it up with the ochazuke, they brought out a yogurt drink for dessert. It's not a huge deal, but drinking a yogurt after a filling meal gave off an old-school restaurant dessert vibe, haha, and made for a satisfying way to finish the meal.

There was also a review event running at the time, where participating got you a drink. The event details may change depending on when you visit, so check the in-store signage when you go.

Weekday lunch at Gome Mui: arrive before 11:30

When I walked in at 11am on a weekday it was fine, but by 11:30-11:40, while I was still eating, a wait had started forming. The area is packed with offices, so lunchtime brings a real surge of office workers.

So if you're visiting as a lunch spot near Munjeong Station, going early between 11 and 11:20, or avoiding the lunch peak by going after 1pm, seems like the easiest approach.

Where to eat both pot rice and tonkatsu near Munjeong Station

I went with the salmon sobolu pot rice + tonkatsu set that day and was satisfied. The salmon wasn't fishy and tasted clean, mixing it with the scrambled egg made it savory, and above all, the side tonkatsu quality — which I hadn't expected much from — turned out to be quite good, haha. I also liked being able to finish it off ochazuke-style with hot water after eating the rice.

With pot rice, tonkatsu, udon, and curry all on the menu, Gome Mui in Tera Tower near Munjeong Station looked like a solid choice for everything from solo lunches to office lunch or dinner gatherings. That said, tables really fill up fast on weekday lunches, so if you don't want to wait, go before 11:30, haha. Next time, since the tonkatsu was better than expected, I'd like to try the roast katsu on its own.