Songdo teppanyaki spot: staff-cooked cod roe cheese monjayaki, Jojo

A Japanese restaurant tastier than in Japan itself, a hit spot from Culinary Class Wars 2

Why I walked into Jojo at Songdo Triple Street

Jojo Triple Street Branch is a teppanyaki (iron griddle) Japanese restaurant that I followed my nose into while wandering Triple Street on a weekend lunch. I'd been agonizing over what to eat, and then a savory smell drifted from somewhere and I just couldn't walk past it?!

Following the smell, I found Jojo. I was hungry and it was busy, so I thought this is the one and went straight in. Yes, the very restaurant that was on Culinary Class Wars 2!!

Atmosphere and seating at Jojo Triple Street Branch

It was way more crowded than I expected, almost full!! Later I found out it's run by a chef who appeared on Netflix's Culinary Class Wars 2. No wonder it's so popular, haha.

On one side there are counter seats where you can see the griddle, which looked fun for watching the cooking. I sat at a table with my companion, and the mood was more relaxed than I expected, which I liked.

What's in Jojo's monjayaki signature set?

Jojo's monjayaki signature set comes with monjayaki (a runny, griddle-scraped Japanese pan dish), karai yakisoba (spicy fried noodles) and waterfall potato. It looked good for tasting a bit of everything, so I picked it while I was torn over the menu!!

Waterfall potato and a monjayaki with your nickname flag

The first thing out of the set was the waterfall potato, and it turned out to be a sneaky favorite. Soft potato topped with a soft-boiled egg, and my chopsticks kept going back. It tasted even better because I was hungry.

The fun part: when you order monjayaki at Jojo, they have you write a nickname. A little later the monjayaki arrived with my nickname on a flag stuck in it, and it just put me in a good mood. I like these small touches, so I laughed, haha.

Do you have to cook Jojo's monjayaki yourself?

No, the staff made the whole monjayaki on the griddle for us. This kind of griddle dish is easy to ruin if you mess with it wrong, so having it all done for me was really convenient.

They mix cabbage, cod roe and cheese on the griddle, and the smell was seriously something else. My nose was flaring..

After waiting a bit, I gently scraped it with the small spatula (hera) and wow, it was much tastier than I expected. Salty cod roe plus the richness of cheese, and I kept scraping away. The bits lightly stuck and crisped on the griddle were a real treat!! It looks like a generous, tasty portion overall, right?

How was Jojo's karai yakisoba (spicy stir-fried noodles)?

Jojo's karai yakisoba was a red fried noodle dish in a spicy-sweet sauce, loaded with meat, shrimp and squid. It arrived while I was busy eating the monjayaki, and the red look alone made my mouth water. The noodles were springy too.

One bite and the spicy-sweet sauce was exactly my taste. If the monjayaki is the savory one, the yakisoba is a little more punchy, so eating them together balanced nicely. No time to get tired of it.. haha

A combo that never gets tiresome, plus a mayonnaise tip

Honestly, when I had okonomiyaki (savory griddle pancake) elsewhere before, the sauce tasted the same throughout and I got sick of it fast. But Jojo's monjayaki and karai yakisoba combo was fine. One bite of monjayaki, one bite of yakisoba, repeat, and it was gone in no time.

Each table has sauce and mayonnaise so you can add to taste, and I found it even better with a little extra mayonnaise. It's the kind of flavor where your chopsticks just keep going.

Service and final verdict on Jojo Triple Street Branch

Best of all, the staff looked after us from start to finish. Thanks to that, I didn't have to scramble over the grilling and could eat comfortably while chatting!!

If you're after something different at Songdo Triple Street, Jojo is a pretty good choice!! Next time I want to come back for okonomiyaki and other griddle combos. If you're shopping and start craving good teppanyaki, why not stop by Jojo?! If you come to Triple Street, I totally recommend it here!