Yangju Japanese restaurant for bone-in tonkatsu: Choi Dining

This is a place in Okjeong, Yangju that does tonkatsu (Japanese breaded pork cutlet) really well—and you can have Japanese futomaki (thick sushi rolls), too. I had visited before and couldn’t forget it, then found out there was one in Yangju as well, so I quickly went with a friend. We also took the opportunity to have a walking date at the nearby lake park. ✨

Location and parking at Choi Dining Yangju Okjeong

Choi Dining Yangju Okjeong (초이다이닝 양주옥정점) is on the second floor of Bujaro Tower. Park in the underground lot, then let the restaurant staff know when you leave and they’ll give you plenty of parking time. There are also weekday lunch-only deals for even better value. That makes it a nice Okjeong lunch spot for nearby office workers, too.

A neat atmosphere on a weekday evening

The atmosphere is neat and lovely! I visited on a weekday evening, and thankfully it wasn’t crowded then. Just note that they close at 9 p.m., so don’t go too late. Last orders are at 8:30 p.m. 😊

From futomaki and tonkatsu to soba

Salmon, aged-kimchi beef tartare, tempura, soba, and beef tartare futomaki are ₩13,900, while aged-kimchi tuna maki is ₩9,900. Sake-don and Choi Bone-in Tonkatsu are ₩16,500 each, and unagi katsu-don is ₩17,500. There are also pork jowl rice bowls and spicy curry pork jowl rice bowls at ₩13,000 each, spicy yakisoba at ₩14,000, mazesoba at ₩13,000, mackerel yakisoba at ₩15,000, whole-bacon cream pasta at ₩15,000, and pork jowl myeongi oil pasta at ₩14,000.

If you join the receipt review event, you can get a plate of juicy hamburger steak on the house. I spotted it too late and missed out, but if you visit, join in and claim it! 🍃🍃🍃

There were two of us, and we were super hungry, so we ordered three dishes. Hehe. We had lemonade and Coke Zero to drink, and the lemonade was so delicious. Highly, highly recommended!

Three dishes: salmon futomaki, bone-in tonkatsu, and oil pasta

We ordered three different dishes: salmon futomaki for ₩13,900, bone-in tonkatsu for ₩16,500, and pork jowl myeongi oil pasta for ₩14,000. The portions are generous. So for two women, two dishes would probably be enough! ✨ The food came out at a good pace, which was nice because we were hungry but didn’t have to wait too long.

What does Choi Bone-in Tonkatsu taste like?

Choi Bone-in Tonkatsu is Choi Dining’s signature dish. 💗 It is made by aging bone-in pork loin and finishing it with house-made sauce!

It was so fascinating to see the bone still attached. They provide scissors and tongs, so you can cut it into easy-to-eat pieces. Apparently, there’s also fun in picking up the bone and gnawing on it at the end! ✨ If I’d gone with a really close friend, I might have done exactly that... hehe.

When I tried it, the outside was truly crunchy while the inside was wonderfully tender. 💗 The house-made sauce was bright, tangy, and sweet. Even with sauce poured over it, the fried coating still had such a great texture. It wasn’t rich or greasy at all, so it went down easily even without cabbage salad! I guess the aged loin is why the meat could be this tender. ✨ And the portion is generous, too.

Oversized futomaki and myeongi sauce pasta

And the other dishes I had been looking forward to 😋 Futomaki is also a popular item here. I loved that you can choose five or 10 pieces. If you just want a simple side alongside another meal, five pieces are perfect! Still, even five pieces are quite substantial, because each one is huge. I cut mine with scissors! My friend ate hers in one bite, and honestly, one bite is probably the better way to enjoy all the flavors. But it was delicious cut up, too! 😊 The textures and flavors of each ingredient were charming. They all have such different textures, yet they work beautifully together and the ingredients are a great match.

The pork jowl myeongi oil pasta comes with a separate serving of their house-made myeongi (wild garlic leaf) sauce. Spoon it over the pasta and eat it together—it’s so good. ✨ The pork jowl alongside it was wonderfully tender and nutty, a real treat. The noodles were cooked just right and stayed deliciously springy until the last bite. And there is a lot of it! I loved the generous portion.

We ordered such a good variety and enjoyed it all, right? 😊

A generous Japanese-style meal in Okjeong

The food tasted fresh, so once again, I had a delicious meal. The prices are kind, while the food quality is impressive! It is Japanese food, but it also feels like it has a little Western-style dining mixed in. I especially liked that the breading was not too heavy. The flavor stayed non-greasy even as I kept picking at it, and the tender pork loin texture was so, so good. If you are looking for a good Okjeong spot for a solo meal or for the whole family to enjoy together, this is somewhere I’d like to recommend.