Geomdan tonkatsu restaurant with cheese cutlet and kids’ seats: HOKATSU

Our eldest, a total pork-cutlet fanatic, said he wanted tonkatsu for the first time in ages, so we went to HOKATSU, a great spot in Geomdan! They say men never get tired of eating pork cutlets and spicy pork every day for a week—has our 32-month-old already joined that club? Hahaha. But this tonkatsu place!!! Even I thought it was unbelievably tender and delicious.

Parking and location at HOKATSU in Geomdan

I was worried there might not be a space since the parking garage is only one basement level, but it was so spacious! There also do not seem to be loads of businesses in the building, so I do not think it would often fill up.

HOKATSU is on the first floor! Exit through the entrance on the left after getting off the elevator, and there is a long row of shops. Walk along and you will spot HOKATSU on the left~~!

The softest tonkatsu in the world! No artificial coloring! 100% natural cheese!! The cheese cutlet blends mozzarella and cheddar, and it was seriously heavenly!!!!

There is a tablet for joining the waitlist and a menu at the entrance. This popular Geomdan tonkatsu spot has a wait during lunch and dinner peak times!!!

Family-friendly seating and ordering

There are seven tables set for four. High chairs are available too, so visiting with babies was no trouble at all~! You can also charge your phone yourself, haha.

Ordering and payment are done through the kiosk attached to each table.

What comes in the Signature Set for Two A

I ordered the Signature Set for Two A! It includes three popular cutlets—two tenderloin cutlets, two gooey cheese cutlets, and two premium loin cutlets—plus 130 g of beef gyukatsu (breaded beef cutlet) and tonkotsu ramen. It lets you try all the popular dishes at once, and it is ₩1,900 cheaper than ordering them individually, so the set felt like much better value!

Each table has pork-cutlet sauce, sesame oil, black-sesame salad dressing, and salt. There is a self-service bar for extra side dishes, as well as aprons! Children’s tableware, scissors, and tongs were also at the self-service bar, which was handy.

Meat being aged!!! Maybe because they use aged meat, but the tenderness was on another level!

They say the pork cutlets are dry-aged with house-made yogurt, resulting in super-tender cutlets with no unpleasant meat smell!

House-made yogurt appetizer

The yogurt is not only used to age the meat—they also bring this aged yogurt as an appetizer before the tonkatsu arrives, one for each person! There is honey at the bottom, so stir it well before eating. It tasted exactly like house-made yogurt, a little tangy and perfect for waking up the appetite.

Tonkotsu ramen, beef gyukatsu, and three kinds of tonkatsu

The full set of tonkotsu ramen, beef gyukatsu, and three kinds of tonkatsu has arrived!

A small bowl packed with tonkotsu ramen noodles

For such a small bowl, the tonkotsu ramen had an enormous amount of noodles hiding inside! It came with noodles, bean sprouts, two pieces of pork, one egg, and garlic and scallion toppings. The broth was rich and savory: a straightforward but delicious bowl of tonkotsu ramen!

The egg was slightly soft-boiled and braised in sauce, so it had that sweet-and-salty flavor.

Beef gyukatsu grilled over a tabletop brazier

The 130 g beef gyukatsu came as 13 pieces, which was more than I expected. Melt butter on the grill,

then place the meat on it~_~ Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle.

You can cook the meat to your liking. I first tried it lightly cooked, then cooked it well-done the second time. It was tender even well-done, and I actually liked it better that way! I officially agree: this beef gyukatsu is insanely good!! 👍👍

The popular loin, tenderloin, and cheese-cutlet trio

The three popular pork cutlets were honestly the ultimate combination. Loin, tenderloin, and cheese cutlet—the Avengers of the tonkatsu world...🌌 I really hope everyone tries these...!!!!! Look at all that cheese spilling out of the cheese cutlet!!!! The pork was thin, and it was packed full of 100% house-made cheese!!! Our eldest little guy even said the cheese was delicious and rolled up and ate just the cheese, haha.

Dip the cheese cutlet generously in sauce and take a huge bite~~~~~

Here is the cross-section of the tenderloin cutlet! It cut easily even when bitten, but I used scissors because I wanted to photograph the inside. The center of the tenderloin cutlet was slightly reddish, but they say this is a myoglobin effect and does not mean it is undercooked!

The loin cutlet had a lovely thick cross-section too. Loin can sometimes be a little dry, but HOKATSU’s was genuinely tender!! Whenever it started to feel rich, I picked up a jalapeño, and I could just keep eating, haha. The soup served alongside went so well with the cutlets too. Once we had finished grilling, the gyukatsu brazier switched itself off(?) 🔥

My overall take on HOKATSU

• A great restaurant to visit with children, thanks to children’s tableware, high chairs, and kid-friendly dishes!
• The aged meat gave the cutlets such a wonderfully tender texture.
• It was my first time receiving house-made yogurt as a pork-cutlet appetizer, so that was unique.
• I want to return to find out how the other dishes taste!

HOKATSU was named a 2026 Blue Ribbon Survey recommended restaurant!