Seongsu ramen restaurant with tomato ramen and beef cutlet: Menya Pomo

Why I went looking for tomato ramen in Seongsu

Between Seongsu-dong, Ttukseom, and around Seoul Station, there are more than 20 ramen shops just from searching—and most are Fukuoka tonkotsu styles. Since it is the kind Koreans love most, there is lots of Hakata-style ramen, with the occasional Nagahama style too, but anyway, the conclusion is pork broth hahaha.

Out of those dozens, the one that really caught my eye was tomato ramen instead of tonkotsu ramen hahahahaha. It is that tomato ramen I tried once in Fukuoka, supposedly originating with Tokyo Taiyo no Tomato-men in 2005. Want to experience it in Seongsu-dong? Let’s go full speed.

Walking to Menya Pomo Seongsu Branch from Seongsu Station

The weather has been so nice lately—pass Olive Young at Seongsu Station and head right.

Turn left by the alley with the famous I’m Donut, then march straight down this narrow alley.

Then appears Menya Pomo Seongsu Branch, a Seongsu-dong ramen spot with an exterior that may feel a little unfamiliar—tomato ramen! Ta-da. The standing sign is a very unusual combination too. Usually ramen places go with wood interiors or noren-style curtains, but this feels like a new heavyweight in the ramen world.

It is fun that it even says, “ever tried TOMATO RAMEN? find out inside MENYA POMO.” Maybe because this is definitely not ramen that is easy to experience in Seoul. Besides the Seongsu branch, there are branches at Seoul Forest and Gangnam-gu Office too.

A dimly lit space with jazz playing

Inside, there are standing signs and calm wood tones, plus a semi-open kitchen that inspires confidence. But hahaha, interestingly, food comes out from the kitchen in the middle, with two-person tables on either side. A pretty distinctive layout.

Men means ramen noodles, and -ya means a shop—so menya is a noodle shop. What is Pomo, then? Is it inspired by FOMO, fear of missing out? Pomo means fruit in Italian, so it seems to have a little double meaning haha. Such good sense.

Solo dining seats and the self-service bar

There are two-person tables for pairs and seats for groups of three or more, all neatly organized—nice. Where should a solo diner sit?

On the left when facing the front of the restaurant is a study-café-style space for solo diners, so there is absolutely no need to feel awkward sitting at a two- or four-person table. The shop feels a little narrow, but it even has a unisex restroom, with zero smell and such cleanliness—love it.

Now let’s eat some delicious tomato ramen ㅜ

They advertise the freshness of being able to choose among five tomato ramens: beef-bone, tom yum, Indian, original, and tantan. And the thing you absolutely must add is risotto rice. It feels like cheddar cheese is piled on and blasted with a torch?

Ordering is naturally done at the kiosk. Cheese Korean-beef cutlet tomato ramen (level 1, Shin Ramyun heat) with cheese risotto rice, a Korean-beef menchi katsu set, potato croquettes, vegetable dumplings, and king prawn tempura came to the ₩46,000 range. It looks expensive like this, but the portion… seriously, even Tzuyang could not finish it hahaha.

A small bottle of Asahi is ₩7,000, which is a little pricey. There is only one beer option, but Asahi is still Asahi.

The ultimate dry karakuchi finish. A chilled dedicated glass, with 辛 kara and 口 kuchi.

The glass has an opening cut into the kuchi character, and you use that opening to pop the bottle cap—sasuga, Asahi… the attention to detail is crazy hahaha.

The self-service bar has water and cabbage pickles. Rice is unlimited, so if you do not order risotto rice, you can bring regular rice from the bar and mix it into the tomato ramen broth instead. Hahaha, with unlimited rice, the male office workers around here should seriously come running.

There is also pepper, garlic oil, non-spicy Tabasco, crushed pepper, and more at one side of the table, great for adjusting heat or seasoning. Chopsticks and wet wipes are showing off beneath the table.

The Korean-beef menchi katsu set is an unexpected powerhouse

We are really, truly starting to eat now

Mr. Korean-beef menchi katsu came out first… whoa hahaha. King prawn tempura, two menchi katsu patties, soup, and rice for ₩13,800? That is truly great value, wow. Nearby, even some strange snack shops charge ₩12,000 for so-so frozen menchi, yet this is honestly worth buying even at ₩15,000.

The moment the knife touches the menchi exterior, there is that crisp crackle, then juices seep onto the knife hahaha. You have to try it to know. A ramen shop whose minced-meat cutlet is this good—I genuinely guarantee it.

What the cheese Korean-beef cutlet tomato ramen tastes like

Cheese Korean-beef cutlet tomato ramen is ₩16,500. They grate cheese and sprinkle it softly over the tomato ramen. The rich tomato-broth base ranges from level 1, Shin Ramyun heat, to level 5, five times Shin Ramyun heat. I am personally weak with spice, so I chose level 1, but perhaps around level 2.5 would have been better with the cheese ramen? The cheese softens the heat. If I go back tomorrow, I will have level 3.

The cheese richness is intense;; The tomato broth is just slightly spicy, and it is absolutely not like the Del Monte tomato juice you imagine. There is seriously hahaha a huge amount of savory cheese in it, enough that if you close your eyes, you might think, “Oh, tomato pizza?” There is also minced meat with a nice bite, so the blessing of meat and cheese never ends, for real.

The umami and softness melt together in a deep, abundant way. Hahaha, beyond the minced meat, there is also a huge amount of ramen noodles. They seem to use noodles slightly thinner than medium, somewhat like hosomen, so the broth clings better. They appear to arrive cooked normally, and noodle firmness and thickness cannot be selected.

Being able to add cilantro is an endless blessing of joy for a cilantro fanatic like me hahaha. I cannot even imagine having cilantro with traditional tonkotsu ramen, but extra cilantro is ₩1,000, so definitely order it and try the mountain of cilantro with the noodles. It is a whole new world. This is tomato ramen! You can have a slightly Southeast Asian-style tomato ramen experience, then later the risotto turns into Italian food—magic hahaha. No, it is strange, but I am telling you, it is delicious.

How much food there was, with all three sides

All three ordered sides appeared too. The fried dumplings come five pieces, along with potato croquettes and king prawn tempura—hahaha, would not the sides alone fill you up? The dumplings had plenty of filling and were decent, and five for ₩4,000 means I could keep eating them with beer if the beer were a little cheaper. How great would a draft-beer event be..ㅠㅠ.

Then the king prawn tempura arrived. Even if it is frozen, remove the prawn head, dip it in sauce, and it is tasty.

Two potato croquettes—crisp outside and fluffy within—are ₩3,500, but considering the price, the fried dumplings feel like a bargain falling from the sky? From the menchi katsu set to three sides and cheese Korean-beef tomato ramen, the table was already buckling, so I moved dishes onto the next table to photograph it, and it was still packed. Seriously hahahahahaha.

It is not expensive at all; there is just a ridiculous amount of food. Around ₩20,000 per person… If you skip the sides and only order mains, you can eat a huge amount for the ₩10,000 range per person. Whew hahaha, calling all big eaters.

Turn the remaining broth into cheese tomato risotto

I am full, but there is still more to eat -_-

Hahahahahaha, what we have eaten so far is already insanely filling, but adding risotto rice is how this becomes a Seongsu-dong date course where you get called a big eater in front of your boyfriend or girlfriend, right?

For the risotto rice that crowns the finale, it seems you can order it when you first order ramen or later on. If you do not want that, free plain rice is available at the self-service bar. But risotto rice doubles Menya Pomo’s uniqueness, so let’s have it this way. “SAVE THE SOUP, MAKE RISOTTO.” This level of originality seems like a necessary condition for a great ramen shop in Seongsu-dong hahaha. The idea is genuinely so good.

Add the risotto rice and stir it up, and just the right amount of broth remains—and it truly becomes cheese tomato risotto hahahahaha. Who came up with this, Einstein? Once you try it, it feels less like rice mixed into ramen and more like actual risotto. If it were a little hotter, it would taste even more like risotto straight from the oven.

Lunch waits are a game of timing

Naturally, the conclusion is scraping every last bit

After making such a fuss about being full, Menya Pomo still delivered a truly delicious, substantial meal.

Luckily I went late at lunch; they say that if I had gone early, the wait would have been so bad I could not have eaten. Hmm… during peak lunch hours, you need to play the timing game haha.

The tomato acidity cuts some of ramen’s richness, making it refreshing, and Menya Pomo is the kind of place whose broth will stay with you for a long time. I often visit Yeonmujang-gil when I come to Seongsu-dong, where the main strip has long been taken over by big companies and independent operators can only slip into the alleys amid rent hell, painting their own colors with new menus. Rooting for Menya Pomo’s future….!