Sweet potato cheese katsu near One Mount, Ilsan: Jeongseong Katsu

Let's fully recharge with gochidon at Jeongseong Katsu, a KINTEX pork cutlet spot that's perfect as a lunch place for One Mount. Most people go there for a hearty meal before swimming, so I introduced it first as a great lunch option — but I actually stopped by Jeongseong Katsu in the evening, planning to eat leisurely and generously after having a blast at the waterpark.

How long is the walk from One Mount to Jeongseong Katsu?

Jeongseong Katsu Ilsan KINTEX is about a 6-8 minute walk from One Mount. Even under the blazing summer sun, the surrounding buildings cast effective shade over most of the path, which is a nice bonus. You don't want to be dripping with sweat again after a refreshing swim and shower, right? But with the cooler weather after ipchu (early autumn), the walk to Jeongseong Katsu was all flat and shaded, so it was easy to stroll.

This Ilsan KINTEX restaurant, great for a One Mount lunch, is located near KINTEX Station, which is quite convenient for those visiting the waterpark by public transportation. Eating inside One Mount itself tends to be pricey, so this is an even better fit for those who want to focus purely on the water and not worry about a growling stomach.

Where Jeongseong Katsu fits into a KINTEX day out

The real charm of Jeongseong Katsu is that it sits right at the center of the main visiting routes in this area, making it easy to branch out anywhere. It pairs perfectly with One Mount Waterpark, where I went, but it also works if you want to fill up before checking out Ilsan's Garosu-gil street and then heading over to Lake Park for a relaxed day. In front of Jeongseong Katsu are Hyundai Department Store and Lakeince Mall, so it's also a great fuel stop before shopping for those who find an outdoor summer outing too much.

There's also Starfield Market on the Jeongseong Katsu side, in case you'd rather avoid the weekend crowds there —

you can drop by Jeongseong Katsu, eat well and leisurely, and then finish your shopping happily afterward.

What comes with the Western-style king pork cutlet set?

This place fries every cutlet with real care, from the traditional gyeongyangsik (Western-style) king pork cutlet to the fusion star, sweet potato cheese katsu — everything comes out genuinely delicious. First, the retro-flavored king pork cutlet set I chose came out fried whole, and its sheer size looked filling just to look at. Once it was all cut up, the visual strength unique to a king cutlet that fills the whole plate really showed.

How does the sweet potato cheese katsu (gochidon) taste?

After deciding to visit this KINTEX pork cutlet spot, gochidon was what I was most looking forward to. This sweet potato cheese katsu was the most well-made sweet potato katsu I've had so far.

They didn't skimp on the sweet potato mousse, piping it on generously, which really brought out the gochidon look I consider ideal. They even packed in plenty of pale, creamy cheese before frying, so each piece — and each bite — was incredibly filling. The sweetness of the sweet potato mousse, the saltiness of the cheese, and the savory quality of good meat all come together for an explosive flavor.

Pork cutlet sauce, wasabi or salt: which combination won?

One reason eating gochidon at Jeongseong Katsu was even more enjoyable was the variety of sauces. Instead of just serving the standard pork cutlet sauce, they also provide wasabi and salt, and I discovered that salt actually pairs surprisingly well with sweet potato katsu. It's like it instantly boosts the sweetness of the sweet potato.

Dipping it deep in pork cutlet sauce with a little wasabi on top also gave it a special, treat-like feel. Since a dish that's already tasty on its own can be enjoyed in so many sauce combinations, it added extra fun to the meal.

Adding extra katsu pieces two at a time

What made this KINTEX pork cutlet spot even better was that you can order extra pieces. Wherever I go, special fusion menu items like gochidon often come in disappointingly small quantities, probably because of ingredient costs. Here, you can add extra pieces in units of two, so I customized my own six-piece katsu. The two extra pieces ended up going to Jaerog, but I'm mentioning it because it really shows just how substantial and generously sized each and every piece of katsu at Jeongseong Katsu is.

I'd like to come back in winter to try Jeongseong's own gimdonna, and before that, I plan to work my way through the other menu items one by one with the assorted katsu set. I noticed a lot of delivery orders coming in too, so I'll probably be in that queue myself soon.