Tonkatsu near Yeoju Sky Bridge: shrimp katsu set at Gyugyu Donkatsu

Today I visited Gyugyu Donkatsu, a lunch spot in Yeoju. It's a place where you can enjoy both tonkatsu and ramen, and after trying it myself, both the tonkatsu and the ramen were delicious — so I wanted to share it with anyone trying to figure out where to eat lunch in Yeoju! It's also only about 10 minutes by car from Yeoju Premium Outlets, so it works well as a meal before or after shopping.

Hours: Tue–Sun 11:00–21:00 / Break time 15:00–17:00 / Closed every Monday

Where is Gyugyu Donkatsu, and where do you park?

Gyugyu Donkatsu is about 5 minutes by car from Yeoju Sky Bridge and about 10 minutes from Yeoju Premium Outlets — a great spot for a meal after visiting Yeoju's well-known attractions. What I really appreciated was how easy parking was. There are spaces right in front of the restaurant, plus a large lot behind the building, so it was convenient to visit by car.

Inside Gyugyu Donkatsu: the dining room and noodle-making room

The interior was bigger and cleaner than I expected! The tables weren't cramped and the space felt comfortable overall, so it seemed like a good place for a family meal or a casual lunch in Yeoju.

On one side there's even a room where they make their own noodles. Gyugyu Donkatsu makes its noodles in-house and uses Yeoju-grown rice too. Eating Yeoju rice in Yeoju itself felt extra nice.

Unlimited Yeoju rice at the self-serve refill bar

There's also a self-serve refill bar off to the side. Side dishes, salad, soup, and other things that go well with tonkatsu are all neatly laid out, so you can help yourself whenever you want more. And best of all — unlimited Yeoju rice! Sometimes while eating tonkatsu you find yourself craving a bit more rice, and it was great being able to grab as much as I wanted without hesitation.

What's on the menu at Gyugyu Donkatsu, and what does it cost?

Gyugyu Donkatsu has good-value set menus along with a range of tonkatsu, ramen, and rice bowl dishes. We ordered the solo chashu ramen set for ₩19,000 and the ebi loin katsu for ₩17,000.

They were also running a receipt review event, and the tables had tips for enjoying the ramen and tonkatsu even more.

Each table came with tonkatsu sauce and various seasonings, so we could customize things to our taste.

Ebi loin katsu, 17,000 won — a huge shrimp cutlet

First up, my boyfriend's order — the ebi loin katsu! This dish comes with a big shrimp cutlet and a pork loin cutlet together.

It comes with rice, soup, kimchi, pickled radish, and salad as standard, so it's a filling, well-rounded meal.

And the shrimp was genuinely huge...! I haven't seen a shrimp cutlet this big in a while. The outside fried up nice and crispy, while inside was packed with plump shrimp meat, so you could really feel that bite as you chewed.

The loin katsu was great too. Gyugyu Donkatsu's family runs a butcher shop, apparently, and they use fresh meat delivered daily to make the tonkatsu. Even with a thick cut, the inside was moist and tender, without any dryness, and it was delicious.

Dipping it into the tonkatsu sauce with sesame seeds mixed in was pure bliss~~ If you want to try both shrimp katsu and pork katsu, I'd recommend the ebi loin katsu!

Solo chashu ramen set, 19,000 won — loaded with chashu pork

I ordered the set that comes with both chashu ramen and tonkatsu. I wanted tonkatsu but didn't want to give up ramen either, so being able to have both at once was perfect.

I started with the tonkatsu — crispy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside, and honestly really delicious. Even though it was thick-cut, it wasn't chewy or dry, and the breading wasn't overly thick, so the flavor of the meat really came through. Genuinely one of the more memorable tonkatsu I've had in the Yeoju–Icheon area — totally my type!

After working through most of the tonkatsu, I moved on to the chashu ramen. Right away, the amount of chashu piled on top was generous.

Sometimes ordering ramen means getting just a couple of thin chashu slices, but Gyugyu Donkatsu really piles it on, so I could keep eating meat with the noodles all the way through. I tried the broth first — thanks to their signature secret stock, it had a rich yet clean flavor. It wasn't too greasy or heavy, so it paired well with the tonkatsu, too. The egg was cooked just right, and eating it with the broth was great.

The chashu itself was very tender and clean-tasting, so it went well eaten together with the noodles.

After finishing the noodles, I grabbed a little Yeoju rice from the refill bar and mixed it into the leftover broth — and that turned out to be a real treat...! The rich ramen broth soaking into the rice meant I could eat well right to the very end.

Is Gyugyu Donkatsu worth a stop in Yeoju?

Overall, Gyugyu Donkatsu was a satisfying lunch spot in Yeoju, from the tonkatsu to the ramen! The tonkatsu was thick yet moist and tender, and the shrimp katsu was big and plump with great texture. The chashu ramen also had plenty of chashu, with a broth that was rich yet clean, pairing well with the tonkatsu. On top of that, they make their own noodles and use Yeoju rice, plus you can freely eat as much Yeoju rice as you want at the refill bar, making it a filling place for a meal. It's also only about 10 minutes from Yeoju Premium Outlets, so if you're looking for a place to eat before or after shopping, or searching for a good tonkatsu-ramen spot in Yeoju, it's worth a visit.