Tonkatsu date in Myeonmok with sesame cabbage refills: Katsu Monster

A kid-free half day off and a tonkatsu date at Katsu Monster Myeonmok

Katsu Monster Myeonmok (카츠몬스터 면목점) is an authentic Japanese-style tonkatsu restaurant in front of Seoil University in Myeonmok. My wife and I took a half day off for the first time in ages and went on a kid-free date, and we stopped here for lunch before a movie. We were searching for a place nearby and heard it was a great tonkatsu spot, so off we went.

Every family with little kids knows the drill: you order tonkatsu at whatever restaurant you go to because of the kids' meals, and then you finish the cold leftovers they don't eat. But Katsu Monster Myeonmok was the place that, for the first time in a long while, let us taste real Japanese-style tonkatsu again.

Where do you park for Katsu Monster Myeonmok?

Katsu Monster Myeonmok is right next to the Myeonmok Bondong police box, and parking in front of the shop is a bit difficult, so keep that in mind. We visited at lunchtime and used the roadside parking zone next to Dongwon Traditional Market.

The market's public parking lot is cheap at ₩600 per 30 minutes, but it was full, so we couldn't use it. Instead there is a roadside zone where parking is allowed except 7–10 am and 5–8 pm. We parked within the allowed hours, and the restaurant was only about 200 meters' walk away.

An 8-seat Japanese tonkatsu spot in front of Seoil University, good for solo dining

Katsu Monster is a chain, but this Myeonmok branch sits in front of a university and is a small restaurant with seats for about 8 people, which makes it a nice place to eat alone quietly. Even among chains, the atmosphere differs a lot from shop to shop. And I'd say this one captures the feel of the countless tiny restaurants in Japan quite well.

For the first time in ages, my wife and I sat side by side instead of facing each other, and it reminded us of our early dating days.

Every seat is set up for table ordering, so ordering was easy too. The place seems to have a reputation among students as a Seoil University favorite: while we ate, students kept coming and going for takeout orders or to eat solo.

Ordering the solo set: rosu katsu, cold soba and a taster curry

The Katsu Monster Myeonmok solo set lets you pick one katsu and one noodle dish. We chose rosu katsu (made from pork loin) and cold soba (buckwheat noodles) to cool us down in the sweltering early summer. In case it wasn't enough, we also added a taster-size curry.

My wife and I loved Japanese-style tonkatsu even before we married and went hunting for it a lot, and we always judge a place by its most basic tonkatsu. To give you the result first: if you're looking for a tonkatsu spot near Myeonmok Station, I strongly recommend visiting at least once. I really wanted to try the ramen too, but it was so hot that we saved it for next time.

Katsu Monster Myeonmok menu

The unusual item at Katsu Monster Myeonmok is the sangrosu katsu, a tonkatsu made with gabrisal (a cut of pork near the shoulder loin). Since it was our first visit, we went with the basic rosu katsu.

• Katsu: rosu (loin), hire (fillet), cheese, sangrosu and more
• Noodles: ramen, udon, soba
• Sides: karaage (Japanese fried chicken), menchi katsu (minced meat cutlet), curry

There was a nice spread of Japanese dishes to suit different tastes.

With all that tasty-looking food in front of us, we snapped photos quickly and then went straight for the tonkatsu!

How is the rosu katsu at Katsu Monster? Fresh wasabi and sesame cabbage sauce

The thick pork at Katsu Monster Myeonmok was cooked perfectly, and topped with the fresh wasabi served alongside, it was really delicious. I care a lot about the natural flavor of the meat, so I take a bite before any sauce or salt gets near it, and what do you know, there was fresh wasabi ready for me!

You know wasabi goes really well with pork, right? Wasabi doesn't overpower the meat, so I put a pinch of fresh wasabi on it, and the slightly rich, clean-tasting pork with the wasabi was truly delicious. Highly recommend the wasabi! It was seriously good wasabi.

My wife kept saying how good the tonkatsu was as she ate. And the cabbage sauce, the most important thing for me, was a well-balanced mix of nutty sesame oil and soy sauce that cut through the slight greasiness. Some tonkatsu places have cabbage sauce I don't like, but at Katsu Monster even the cabbage sauce was totally my taste. It was so good that I got a big refill of cabbage, but that's a secret...

Generous cold soba and a mild Japanese-style taster curry

The cold soba at Katsu Monster Myeonmok was a bigger portion than I expected, and the taster curry was a mild, authentic Japanese-style curry. I wolfed down the tonkatsu and then cleansed my palate with the soba and curry.

If you have a big appetite, you can add extra noodles to the set menu, so judge from the photos. For reference, we loved it, but we were so full that we left without finishing the cold soba broth ㅠㅠ.. I put the leftover cabbage from the tonkatsu into my soba, and it made it even cleaner and fresher to eat.

Is Katsu Monster Myeonmok worth it for a tonkatsu lunch in Myeonmok?

If you're nearby and craving a tonkatsu lunch in Myeonmok, I recommend giving Katsu Monster Myeonmok a try. Thanks to the refined taste of authentic Japanese-style tonkatsu and the cozy atmosphere, you can finish a good-value meal feeling, if only briefly, like you're on a trip to Japan.

Next time I plan to go back for the ramen and the sangrosu katsu. I'll try other menu items and write again.