Tonkatsu for two near Olympic Park Station: half-and-half sets at Riae

This is the best tonkatsu spot I've ever eaten at: meat texture, juiciness and pork aroma all preserved. Let me introduce Riae Premium, an Olympic Park tonkatsu favorite.

Riae Premium hours, reservations and parking

Riae Premium Olympic Park Branch is open from 11:00 to 20:00, at 1F Unit 1-1, 46 Seongnae-ro 18-gil, Gangdong-gu, Seoul. You can book through Naver Reservation or CatchTable, and you can park in front of the restaurant.

• Hours: 11:00 – 20:00
• Address: 1F Unit 1-1, 46 Seongnae-ro 18-gil, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Reservations: Naver Reservation, CatchTable
• Parking: available in front of the restaurant

Riae Premium is popular on weekends and at lunchtime, so there can be a wait, but if you book through Naver or CatchTable you can eat without waiting. It's a great fit as a restaurant near Asan Medical Center, and as an Olympic Park Station favorite too!

Is the inside good for solo diners and groups?

Inside Riae Premium there are bar seats where you can eat lunch alone. It's near the Gangdong-gu Office, so lots of people come for lunch. A Gangdong-gu Office favorite!

The space is open and airy with 4-person tables too, so it works for groups, and the kitchen is open, so you can trust the hygiene.

The mood is nice, so it's a good pick for a date around Olympic Park with a tonkatsu meal. They also sell draft beer, so you get a real Japanese-restaurant vibe. That's Riae Premium, Olympic Park tonkatsu.

What's on the menu at Riae Premium?

The signature dish at Riae Premium is the "Premium Special Loin." The aged loin katsu is made from a 2.2cm-thick loin that is aged and then fried to order, they say. Beyond that there's fillet katsu, menchi katsu (minced-meat cutlet), plus a range of curries, cold soba, fish katsu and shrimp katsu. Everything you'd want from a Japanese restaurant is here.

How do two people order three kinds of katsu?

At Riae Premium, if two people order two Signature sets (two kinds, half and half, ₩22,000 each), you can taste the special loin, fillet and menchi hamburg katsu. There's the signature premium special loin katsu the restaurant is proudest of, the Riae signature menchi hamburg katsu, and the filet mignon (fillet) katsu. There were only two of us but we wanted all three, so we went with the half-and-half sets.

Premium special loin katsu + fillet katsu: Signature set ₩22,000

Riae Premium says its pork comes from carefully selected YBD Eolluk Doyaji pigs and Cheongdo persimmon-fed pigs, and that it manages aging and cooking time to bring out the best of each cut. The more I chewed the loin, the more I could feel the flavor and grain of the meat.

Can you see the grain of the meat and the glistening fat? The savory fat layer, and the moist, rosy, juicy meat the moment you bite in, fill your mouth with bliss. The fat sits in a golden ratio, and just as the rich pork aroma bursts out from the crispy coating, a little sharp fresh wasabi on top means it never gets greasy.

The more you chew, the more that chewy-yet-tender loin texture comes alive, and the juices, wasabi, ponzu sauce, tonkatsu sauce and truffle oil lift the flavor even higher.

Fillet katsu + Tokyo menchi hamburg: Signature set ₩22,000

We wanted menchi katsu, fillet katsu and curry, so we ordered a set for the second one too.

The Riae Premium fillet katsu is a tender cutlet finished with just a pinch of salt. It looks fluffy and perfectly cooked. The outside is fried light and crisp, and the inside is full of pink, medium-well juices, so tender it feels like you could chew it without teeth.

To taste the clean, deep flavor of the fillet itself, I dabbed it in crystal salt and truffle oil. The first taste is salty, then the plain sweetness and savory depth of the meat bursts out and fills your mouth. No greasiness, just clean and mild. It's the textbook of tonkatsu.

Next is the menchi hamburg katsu, with juices bursting through your mouth and a tender flavor. The ultimate crispy-outside, juicy-inside, it hides the rich charm of minced meat inside coarse, crunchy breadcrumbs. Touch it lightly with chopsticks and the trapped juices pour out like a waterfall.

The minced meat and vegetables are bound in a golden ratio, so you barely need to chew; it melts in your mouth. With a savory meat aroma and the mild sweetness of onion, it's deeply flavorful on its own, and dipped in the special sauce that comes with it (it tastes similar to the Goblin sauce at Goobne Chicken), it's addictive, perfect with rice or as a beer snack.

Is the spice curry worth adding?

The Tokyo bite-size (hitokuchi) spice curry at Riae Premium is ₩5,500, and the writer calls it the best side dish you can't skip here. It's a rich, deep curry that doubles the flavor of the tonkatsu. A meat curry simmered a long time to a deep, dark brown, with garlic flakes added for even more depth.

Scoop up a big spoonful and mix it into rice, and a gentle heat comes with the rich savory depth of the meat, wrapping your mouth. Dipping the tonkatsu in it is great too. The mild spiciness goes well with the katsu and doubles the savoriness.

Riae Premium overall review

• 1️⃣ A true best-ever tonkatsu place: Riae Premium in Seongnae-dong
• 2️⃣ Don't miss the premium loin katsu, with crazy-good meat texture and juiciness and tender fat
• 3️⃣ The spice curry is the best side dish, found only at Riae Premium
• 4️⃣ On pure taste alone, I very much want to revisit this Olympic Park tonkatsu!