No-sauce pork collar katsu in a Yeonnam-dong alley: Katsu Monster

I used to think that pretty much every Japanese tonkatsu place these days is good and that quality has leveled up across the board, but a recent visit to a Yeonnam-dong tonkatsu restaurant changed my mind. This is the real deal..! I went to Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch, known for its insanely crispy breading and thick, tender meat.

Where is Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch in Yeonnam-dong?

It's tucked down a really narrow alley in Yeonnam-dong, so even though I'd walked by the area many times, I never noticed a restaurant was here. It's small but has a clean vibe — this is Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch, a Yeonnam-dong tonkatsu spot.

There's a section that feels like an outdoor terrace seating area (야장), a nice cool and pleasant spot to eat in weather like this. It has a different vibe than the typical Japanese restaurant look, and the hours are long enough to cover breakfast, lunch, dinner and late-night eats.

What is on the menu at Katsu Monster Yeonnam-dong?

As if to emphasize "this isn't sauce-drenched Western-style donkkaseu, it's crispy-fried Japanese tonkatsu," the menu had "tonkatsu" written in huge letters. The menu even had appetizing food photos, which made everything look even tastier. There was a whole lineup of tonkatsu to pick from depending on your taste — loin, fillet, cheese and more.

The tables were mostly for 2–4 people, but there were also seats where solo dining was comfortable, and the utensils and sauce containers were spotless. You know that moment at some restaurants when you pick up a sticky sauce container and suddenly lose your appetite? No need to worry about that here.

Ordering the pork collar sangrosu-katsu with a spicy curry add-on

I ordered the sangrosu-katsu made from gabrisal (pork collar) and added one spicy curry — the portion was way more generous than it looks in photos!

Salad, rice, kimchi, soup and even a dessert snack came out, all really generous — even hungry and as an adult woman, the amount was almost too much to finish, so it should satisfy big eaters too.

Just look at that gorgeous sangrosu-katsu! I usually go for tenderloin or loin, so I wanted to try the gabrisal cut for a change — it's tender with just the right amount of fat, a whole different kind of appeal.

Up close it looks like this — the juices are just glistening and moist~

How crispy is the katsu eaten with no sauce at all?

The breading is super thin while the meat is thick — I tried it plain first, with no sauce, and the breading was insanely crispy. (Watch out for scraping the roof of your mouth!)

On the fattier part, I tried a bit of wasabi on top, and the savory flavor combined with the sharp aroma was delicious.

Even so, there was no greasiness or gamey smell at all, and the lean part was really tender too, so while dipping it in sauce works fine, you could genuinely eat it plain without any issue. It's not easy for Japanese tonkatsu to pull this off — it felt like it had been a while since I had genuinely delicious tonkatsu.

Was the spicy curry add-on worth it?

Curry — another dish that comes to mind with Japanese food! I ordered it to go with the rice, and even though it's labeled spicy curry, I liked that the heat wasn't too strong.

The curry was simmered until rich with a great aroma, good with rice, and it somehow also worked as a palate cleanser.

I finished the last piece off with curry, a tasty ending! Katsu Monster gave off the full feeling of properly fried Japanese tonkatsu — Yeonnam is the main branch, and there are also branches in Yeonsinnae, Myeonmok and Gangdong-gu Office, so I'd like to check out the other locations next time.