Ramen shop near Saejeol Station for a weekday bike stop: Oreno Ramen

Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong is a ramen restaurant in Eunpyeong-gu with a clean chicken-broth soup that's really something.

Hot ramen is exactly what you crave when the wind gets this chilly! I went to the flagship branch with my husband back when we were dating and fell for that clean broth, so when I heard a branch opened in Eunpyeong-gu, I had to check out Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong 🍜

Location and parking at Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong near Saejeol Station

Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong sits right in front of Bulgwangcheon Stream and it's only about a 3-minute walk from Saejeol Station, so access is great! I'd been out riding my bike that day so I arrived on foot, but since the stream runs right along the front of the shop, there were a couple of roadside parking spots available too.

Tori paitan or karai paitan — which to choose?

It's a prepaid system, so you can order right after you walk in. Staff will help if you ask, so there's no pressure choosing, and the ramen comes in two options: the regular tori paitan and the spicy version, karai paitan.

Personally the broth is on the clean side, so for a first visit I'd recommend the regular over the karai! When I visited there was no chashu add-on option, which was a bit of a letdown. But I didn't know there was a free cilantro add-on, so cilantro lovers, definitely add it!

The dining room: mostly counter seating

The dining room at Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong was clean, and although most seats are counter-style, there were also about 3–4 tables for four, so it seemed like plenty of nearby office workers and families were dropping by too. It's already famous as a chicken-broth ramen restaurant, so people nearby don't have to trek all the way to Insadong or Hapjeong — they can just visit this Eunpyeong-gu ramen restaurant instead! 👍

You can grab an apron yourself from a self-serve stack, and since I visited on a relatively quiet weekday afternoon, the staff even kindly asked if they should bring me one. I said I was fine and just ate as is — which, of course, ended in a splatter incident haha...

Free refills of noodles, rice, and kimchi

One reason my big-eater husband loves Oreno Ramen is that noodles, rice, and kimchi are all free to refill..! A single noodle refill comes out almost like a fresh new bowl, so the portion isn't small — if you want to eat more, definitely order the half portion first!

How does the tori paitan broth and toppings taste?

The broth is soooo rich. It's chicken-broth based, but clean, savory, and creamy at the same time, so even without the spicy version it feels great for a hangover, kind of..? The wood ear mushroom topping has a especially crunchy texture and tastes great. The sous-vide chicken breast topping alongside it just melts in your mouth!

The assorted tsukune is too much for one person

I got greedy and ordered the assorted tsukune (grilled chicken meatball skewers). Rather than a distinctive flavor, it's just... creamy? A bit rich to eat plain, so I felt like you really need a cola or beer alongside it!

The tsukune actually seemed like it'd go well with beer, so eating it alone with ramen was a bit too much 😂 If two or more people come together, it seems like a good tasting dish to order and share.

Compared to the flagship branch

The soft-boiled egg was really moist too, and every topping was on point — the flavor was identical to the flagship branch, so I was satisfied! The noodle texture was perfectly tender too. The kimchi is plain, just like at the flagship branch 😂 Still, big props for it being domestically made...

The flagship branch is famous enough to have earned multiple Michelin mentions, so there's always a long line there, but since you can enjoy the exact same taste at Oreno Ramen near Saejeol Station, I really want to recommend this to anyone looking for a ramen restaurant in Eunpyeong-gu! You can go for a walk along Bulgwangcheon Stream after eating, and there are plenty of nice-vibe cafés nearby too, so instead of the crowded Yeonhui-dong these days, a lot of people come on dates to the Jeungsan or Saejeol area — worth stopping by. (During cherry blossom season there's even a festival, so it's extra great then.)