Grilled lemon cold ramen at Yongsan I'Park Mall: Menya Seoul

Today's one-line summary: on the 7th floor of Yongsan I'Park Mall, one bowl of cold ramen piled with a whole giant prawn tempura ends the late-summer heat 👇

Hi everyone, it's Mappu, out here demolishing restaurants haha. It's September but it's still hot during the day, right? So Pori and I went to Yongsan I'Park Mall and instantly agreed we needed something cold to eat lol.

But finding a cold noodle dish inside the mall besides naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles) turned out to be surprisingly tricky. Then on the 7th floor, we stopped in our tracks — this is it, this is the place. It was Menya Seoul Yongsan I'Park Mall Branch.

We each ordered the summer-only giant prawn cold ramen. Bottom line: the look of this dish alone means you have to try it before summer's over haha.

26m from Yongsan Station — how to get there

The location is genuinely easy. It's only 26m from Exit 2 of Yongsan Station (Line 1/Gyeongui-Jungang Line). The station and I'Park Mall are directly connected, so you never have to step outside. Nice for rainy days too — you don't even need to open an umbrella.

Once you're in the mall, just head up to the 7th floor food court. Look around near the central escalator and you'll spot the red sign from a distance. This used to be the spot for Horang-i Ramen, so if you've been before you'll know exactly where to go. It's also a perfect stop before or after a movie at the Yongsan CGV IMAX.

• 📍 7th floor, I'Park Mall, 55 Hangang-daero 23-gil, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
• 🗓️ Daily 11:00 - 21:00
• ⏰ Last order 20:50

Good to know before you go

This place hasn't been open that long, but it's already getting a strong response. Naver visitor reviews have already passed 1,700. For a mall restaurant, that's a solid turnover rate.

Here's one tip that would be a shame to miss: if you leave a receipt review, they add a 48-hour aged ajitama (soft-boiled seasoned egg) topping for free.

Let's cover the facilities too.

• Separate men's and women's restrooms
• Wifi
• High chairs available
• Waiting area
• Wheelchair accessible

They have high chairs, so quite a few families with kids were around.

The red sign is visible from far away

The sign hanging from the ceiling catches your eye right away. It's black-framed with clear Korean and English lettering. Below it, there's a rotating digital menu board with photos, so you can decide what to order while you're in line. With the exposed ceiling pipes, it has kind of an urban feel even though you're inside a mall.

Seating is bar-style — long white tables with black chairs lined up in a row. There's a long red panel running along the wall with a white logo on it, and it photographs really well. It's a layout that makes solo dining totally comfortable, and in fact plenty of people were eating alone. Of course it was also easy for Pori and me to sit side by side haha.

You order at the counter and get a buzzer for pickup. It runs like a food court, self-service style, so the food comes out really fast. When you're on a tight schedule before a movie, there's no better option.

Chili oil and lemon dashi are self-serve

There are two clear sauce bottles on every table, each clearly labeled in Korean so there's no confusion. The dark one is rayu (chili oil), and the yellow one is lemon dashi. Both are free, so you can add as much as you like.

Rayu is chili oil. Add a few drops to the broth and instead of heat, a nutty aroma jumps up front. Lemon dashi is basically a lemon-scented broth vinegar. Add it to the cold ramen broth and the finish becomes much cleaner.

Here's what the menu looks like

The menu board on the wall is laid out in a neat grid, with photos and prices for both ramen and side dishes, which makes ordering easy. Broth comes in three levels — mild, spicy, or mala — and note that the spice level itself can't be adjusted, so if you're unsure, mild is the safe bet.

There are food models displayed in a case near the entrance, which is actually pretty helpful since you can see the real portion size and toppings before ordering. The signature here is the dongpo pork chashu ramen at ₩12,900 — the one topped with a whole thick slice of pork belly. The spicy version is the same price, and the heat is said to be about Shin Ramyun level.

If you want something without broth, there's the pork belly mazesoba at ₩11,900 — a mixed noodle style topped with minced meat, chives, egg yolk, and seaweed. There's also jambon chashu ramen, mala dongpo pork ramen, crispy karaage, and a sweet soy sauce chicken rice bowl, plus set combos that pair ramen with a side.

But what really grabbed our attention was elsewhere — a summer menu sign with a blue background scattered with ice and lemons. It's split into COOL NOODLE and HOT NOODLE, and in this weather, there was no way we were walking past the COOL side lol. So Pori and I both ordered the same thing.

🍤 Giant prawn cold ramen ₩12,900 🍤 Giant prawn cold ramen ₩12,900 ━━━━━━━━━ 💰 Total ₩25,800

The giant prawn cold ramen — the look alone is unfair

Seeing two bowls side by side makes for a great picture haha. The table mats even have the MENYA SEOUL logo printed on them. We'd just come from the Chiikawa pop-up store that day, so we took a photo with the figures next to the ramen lol. Pori got so into setting up the figures that the broth almost went cold haha.

There's genuinely a lot piled onto one bowl — crispy giant prawn tempura, bright red chashu, a soft-boiled egg, chopped scallion, and even a slice of grilled lemon. The striped bowl makes the colors pop even more. For ₩12,900, this spread already earns its visual price.

Grilled lemon and clear cold broth

Let's start with the lemon. It's not just a raw slice — there are slight char marks on the surface. Maybe because it's been touched by fire once, the sourness spreads out rounder instead of feeling sharp. Dip it in the broth and pull it out, and the aroma jumps right up.

The broth is a clear golden color, light enough on oil that you can practically see the bottom of your spoon through it. It comes cold, but unlike naengmyeon broth it isn't sour — the dashi flavor is deep. Think of it as keeping all the umami of a ramen broth but just dropping the temperature. One spoonful of this on a hot day genuinely cools you down.

Giant prawn tempura, chashu, and soft-boiled egg

And now the real star of this cold ramen — the giant prawn tempura. Long, plump, and fried to a golden color. Even sitting on top of cold broth, the batter never gets soggy. It's best eaten right after a quick dip in the broth.

The chashu is sliced thin and wide, topped with sesame seeds and scallion for extra aroma. I like wrapping it around the noodles and eating it in one bite lol. The noodles held their bounce all the way through, even sitting in cold broth.

The soft-boiled egg looks like the yolk would run like honey the moment you touch it with chopsticks. With sesame seeds and seaweed flakes floating on the broth, scooping it all up together doubles the nutty flavor. If you can add an extra one, you definitely should.

A swirl of lemon dashi halfway through

Add a swirl of lemon dashi partway through and the flavor shifts again. Start with the dashi-forward taste, then bump up the acidity once you're about halfway through the bowl. It's basically two flavors in one bowl, so I'd definitely recommend trying it. If you're craving spice, drop in a few dots of rayu too.

Mappu's final verdict

Recommended for:

• Anyone needing a fast meal before or after a movie at Yongsan CGV IMAX
• Anyone who still finds hot broth too much in this lingering heat
• Anyone looking for a ramen restaurant that's comfortable for solo dining
• Families needing a place where kids and adults can eat together

Restaurants inside malls are so often just fine, nothing more. But this giant prawn cold ramen genuinely had something special. It's a summer-only item, so once the season ends it might disappear — better hurry. Menya Seoul Yongsan I'Park Mall Branch, Mappu approved ✅

Next time I'll try the signature dongpo pork chashu ramen and bring back another review haha. If any of you have been here, let me know in the comments which menu item you liked best 😆