Ramen shop in Noryangjin for a solo dinner: tsukemen beer set at Chome

While hunting for a solo-dining spot in Noryangjin, I found a ramen shop that's solid and great value! Noryangjin really is cheaper, with bigger portions and friendlier service than other areas ✅ I enjoyed the ramen so much that I want to come back: Chome (초메), a Noryangjin ramen favorite ✨

Where is Chome in Noryangjin, and what are its hours?

Chome is at 10 Manyang-ro 14-gil, 1st floor, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, and it's open every day from 11:00 to 21:00. Takeout is available, but there's no parking.

Chome's atmosphere: is it crowded on weekday evenings?

The inside is decorated in a Japanese style, with lots of little touches that make you feel like you're in Japan. The cute decorations catch your eye right away. I came after work on a weekday evening and it was packed,,,, It's known as a Noryangjin ramen favorite, and the way people kept streaming in told me why!! I'd guess Chome is busy at weekday lunch and on weekends too.

How to order at Chome and the price range

You order comfortably on the tablet at your seat. A bowl of ramen usually runs around ₩13,000, but at Chome it averages about ₩10,000… 🧡 The portions are big and it tastes good too, which honestly amazes me. If Chome were near my office, I'd book myself as a regular right now 👍

There's a separate self-bar, so you refill side dishes yourself! They give water by default, and there's green tea too, haha.

Choosing a solo meal: I settled on tsukemen

The moment I saw the menu I started drooling,,, spicy ramen, mala ramen, tsukemen (dipping ramen)… why is there so much I want to eat? If I were Tzuyang (a famous Korean mukbang eater), I'd order everything and try one by one, but I'm a small eater, so I ordered a set menu 😭 Drumroll, the ramen I picked is…! Tsukemen.

How to enjoy Chome's ramen :) I ordered the tsukemen, so I'm going to look at the details and follow along!!!!

Gotta wet the whistle after a day of work~ when you're eating solo and there's draft beer, you can't resist 🍺

Chome's dinner solo beer set: what's in it and the price

At Chome, the dinner solo beer set is a main + side + beer from ₩13,000. A combo that doesn't even go past ₩15,000 is seriously good value, right? I chose tsukemen + salmon futomaki + draft beer.

What does Chome's tsukemen taste like?

Chome's tsukemen comes with 2 kinds of deli chashu (braised pork) + a soft-boiled egg + bok choy, and it's a dipping ramen with a seafood sauce added to pork- and chicken-bone broth for a rich umami taste. I remember loving tsukemen on a trip to Kyoto, Japan, and wanted to try it in Korea too, so this was perfect ✅

The noodles are soft and the portion is pretty generous. I think the noodles and the broth are what matter in tsukemen. Remembering the tsukemen I had in Japan, I had to slurp it properly.

Dipping into the rich ramen sauce gives you a whole different ramen flavor. Why is it so good, I want to eat it again ㅜㅜㅜ It's different from the tsukemen I had in Japan, but Chome's tsukemen in Korea is delicious too! If the broth cools down, you can ask them to reheat it ✅

Adding bonito flake powder to the tsukemen broth

I heard that partway through the meal you can choose bonito flake powder and put it in the broth for extra umami, so I asked for it! It does add more umami. I recommend adding the bonito.

Changing the flavor with minced garlic and kelp vinegar

Yum, the soft-boiled egg too! I also heard that adding some minced garlic and kelp vinegar to the broth gives yet another flavor, so give that unusual way of eating a try!

The set side: aged salmon futomaki, 3 pieces

The set side at Chome was futomaki (thick sushi roll), Chome-style gimbap (seaweed rice roll) with aged salmon, 3 pieces. I'd heard the futomaki is famous and wanted to try it, so a ramen + gimbap set was even better. A whole roll on its own would probably be a lot, but only 3 pieces came out, which was a good amount for one person.

Aged salmon, fried shrimp, cucumber, pickled radish, egg and more… the combination works, it tastes good, and it's even better dipped in the soy-sauce-like sauce that comes with it.

Chome in Noryangjin: how is it for a solo dinner after work?

Ramen with a glass of draft beer 🍺 It was a happy solo dinner after work. Chome, a Noryangjin ramen favorite, offers free refills of fresh noodles and rice, and it's great value price-wise too. A ramen spot I want to go back to; I recommend it for dates, solo meals, lunch and dinner 🧡