Weekday solo lunch ramen in Gwangjin: motsu and fried gyoza, Mentsuru

One day I had an errand near Children's Grand Park Station and it happened to land right at lunchtime, so I had to eat alone! While looking for a good spot nearby for solo dining, I came across Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch. I didn't want to just get by with a lazy meal even if I was eating alone, so I looked for somewhere good for solo dining that still felt like a proper, hearty meal — and that's how I landed here!

I still have a strong memory of how good motsunabe was when I ate it on a trip to Japan, so I was curious about Mentsuru's similarly named motsu ramen too haha

Where is Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch, and is there parking?

Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch is a 1-2 minute walk from Exit 4 of Children's Grand Park Station. It's at 394 Gwangnaru-ro, 1st floor, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, South Korea.

If you come out of Exit 4 and turn toward the back, you'll see Sejong University across the street.

Turn left at the corner and go a little further and you'll find the restaurant on the first floor!

There's no dedicated parking lot for the restaurant, so if you're driving, you'll need to use a nearby public parking lot.

Bar seats and tablet ordering at Mentsuru: easy for solo diners

Inside Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch, alongside tables where several people can sit together, there were plenty of bar-table style seats that were great for eating alone.

When I visited, there were many people eating solo as well as many eating with friends, so it seemed like a comfortable place whether you're dining alone or with company.

Every table had a tablet installed for ordering, so you could order right from your seat, and there was also a kiosk right as you walk in, so you could order there too!

Oh, and there are aprons next to the kiosk, so keep that in mind so food doesn't splash on your clothes haha

Overall it was a clean space with a real Japanese-restaurant feel.

Mentsuru menu: ramen options and rice dishes

There was a wide variety of ramen and rice dishes too. Depending on the broth, the ramen options were shoyu ramen, spicy shoyu ramen, shio ramen, and tori paitan, plus abura soba (mixed noodles with no broth) and motsu ramen with beef tripe and beef short rib slices. For rice, there was hormone-don (beef intestine rice bowl) and gyudon (beef rice bowl) for those who wanted rice instead! And there were sides good for adding on, like house-made karaage, takoyaki, and fried gyoza. I ordered the motsu ramen and fried gyoza.

Motsu ramen is a spicy ramen with beef tripe in it, and it was the dish I was most curious about, so I ordered it. You could choose your spice level and add toppings. I went with spice level 1 and didn't add any extra toppings!

While thinking about what to have as a side, I figured I hadn't tried fried gyoza before either, so I ordered it to have alongside the ramen.

How did the level-1 motsu ramen and fried gyoza taste?

Mentsuru's motsu ramen had beef tripe in it, and it was clean-tasting rather than heavy. I'd worried because tripe can sometimes feel heavy, but there was none of that, so I enjoyed it even more!

The spicy broth and the tripe went really well together, and I got to enjoy a new kind of flavor. It had a different charm from the motsunabe I had in Japan.

And even without adding extra toppings, the amount of meat and tripe felt just right to me, and with the noodles it really felt like a generous portion!

The fried gyoza felt like deep-fried dumplings, and the accompanying sauce was tangy so it didn't feel greasy and I didn't get tired of it. It was perfect to eat alongside the spicy ramen too hahaha

Mentsuru opening hours and last order

Business hours: Daily 11:00–23:00 (last order 22:30)

Verdict: is Mentsuru worth a solo ramen lunch in Gwangjin?

Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch is close to Children's Grand Park, Sejong University, and Konkuk University, and the menu and space suit all kinds of people, making it good for people visiting Children's Grand Park, for Sejong or Konkuk University students eating solo for lunch, for students having lunch and dinner or drinks with friends, and for those looking for a lunch date spot near Konkuk University.

The food was great too — the motsu ramen had both good flavor and texture, which made me think it really is a good ramen spot near Children's Grand Park, and the fried gyoza I ordered as a side was delicious too haha. Next time I'll have to come back and try the other ramen and rice dishes!