Post-run solo ramen in Gwangjin: extra-chashu spicy shoyu at Mentsuru

A ramen restaurant good for solo dining near Children's Grand Park: Mentsuru

This is Mentsuru, a spot near Children's Grand Park. It's centered on Japanese-style ramen, but it's also a good place to pair with highballs, beer, and other drinks.

I got the spicy shoyu ramen, one of their signature menu items, plus fried gyoza through a review event. Of course I also had a cold glass of Asahi draft beer alongside it.

Since it's near Children's Grand Park and runs with no break time, open every day of the year, it was great to be able to visit without worrying about timing.

The seating for solo diners was especially well set up, so for someone like me who eats alone a lot, it felt like a lifesaver. After eating, I could really tell that a place specializing in just ramen as a single menu item is different.

If you're out near Children's Grand Park and craving good ramen, this place is worth a visit.

Why a cut-short 21km long run ended at Mentsuru in Gwangjin

I visited Mentsuru, a ramen restaurant near Children's Grand Park.

Today was long run day.

My goal was 21km, but I gave up around 14km. I slowed my pace and ran out the remaining distance. Failing itself wasn't disappointing, but the feeling of getting used to failure left me a bit uneasy for no clear reason.

After finishing my run, I came to Mentsuru. The weather seemed to have warmed up a bit, but it was muggy.

The ice-cold water was great. This lemon-pickled danmuji (pickled radish) was also refreshing and delicious. It pairs well with a cold beer too.

Mentsuru's spicy shoyu ramen with extra noodles and pork belly chashu

At Mentsuru I ordered the spicy shoyu ramen, and added chashu and extra noodles on top. It comes with pork neck chashu as standard, and I added pork belly chashu to that.

On a day like today when I sweated a lot, you really need some salty broth.

Wrapping it up with the noodles like this works really well. This is tamago, right? The soft-boiled egg that goes on top of ramen.

I tend to save the delicious stuff for later, so I set it aside. But because of the residual heat, by the time I got to it, it had turned into a fully cooked egg.

I'd recommend just eating it right away. Even with the extra noodles, it still felt a bit lacking.

Free rice and the receipt-review fried gyoza at Mentsuru

At Mentsuru, if you ask, they'll bring you rice for free. (Seems like even two bowls is possible.)

I mixed it into the leftover broth and cleaned it all up. I could definitely feel that tomorrow morning would be a concern. Still, I definitely got my fill of carbs and sodium. This is the fried gyoza I ordered as a side — 6 pieces in total.

You can get this for free if you take part in the receipt review event.

It was perfect as a side dish with my remaining beer. Freshly fried gyoza is definitely delicious.

Anyway, I ate well again today. Hope you all eat well too and have a happy day.

Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch: hours, location and solo seating

• Location: 394 Gunja-ro, 1F, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul
• Transit: About 57m from Exit 4, Children's Grand Park Station
• Hours: Daily 11:00–23:00
• Last order: 22:30
• Menu: Japanese-style ramen, highballs, beer, and more
• Rice service: Free rice available on request
• Review event: Free fried gyoza with a receipt review
• Seating: Well set up for solo dining
• Drinks: Beer, highballs, and more available alongside ramen
• Recommended for: Solo dining, meals with friends, or a light drink out
• Break time: None
• Closed: Open every day of the year