Hongdae katsu restaurant, pepper-dipped cheese katsu: Katsu Monster

I was mulling over lunch options in Hongdae when I suddenly craved tonkatsu, so I headed to Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch! The moment I saw the cheese katsu piled with cheese on the menu, it looked so good I picked it right away as today's lunch >_<

Where is Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch, and what are its hours?

Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch is at 1F 101, 42-6 Donggyo-ro 38-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, a 7-minute walk from Hongik University Station exit 3. Hours are Mon, Tue, Fri, Sat, Sun 09:30-23:00 and Wed, Thu 10:30-21:00, with last order 30 minutes before closing.

Once you head into the alley, the Katsu Monster sign catches your eye right away, so it wasn't hard to find!

Inside Katsu Monster: bar seats made for eating alone

Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch has an overall casual Japanese tonkatsu-restaurant vibe. The interior is smaller than I expected, but the seating is put together thoughtfully.

Along the wall there's a long bar counter that's great for solo diners, and in the middle there are tables good for 2-4 people, so it looks fine for visiting with company too!👍🏻

What comes in the Katsu Monster solo set?

The menu ranged from classic katsu to loin katsu, fillet katsu, premium loin katsu, and cheese katsu, and they also had assorted katsu, mix katsu, and triple katsu for trying several cuts at once! The solo set, good for ordering when you're alone, comes with one katsu and a noodle dish, and you can upgrade the katsu type for an extra charge~!

I upgraded the solo set to cheese katsu and ordered the spicy fish cake udon alongside it. It felt way more generous to get both in one set rather than ordering a plain katsu and a separate udon!

Each table also had a neat row of sauces! There was pepper, salt, shichimi, katsu sauce, salad dressing, and wasabi, so I could mix and match to my taste😗

How was the cheese katsu at Katsu Monster?

And finally, the solo set arrived! With katsu and udon showing up together to feed my starving self, the table got quite full😋

Look at that cheese pouring out!! The mozzarella was packed all the way through, so every bite delivered that rich, savory cheese flavor. The coating was crispy and the meat inside was tender, and with the cheese stretching out on top, the texture was excellent! I'll call this a certified tonkatsu spot in Yeonnam-dong😝🧡

Which sauce is best? Pepper beats the rest

I tried mixing a bunch of the sauces, and personally, dipping it in pepper was the tastiest! Adding a bit of wasabi and katsu sauce on top cut through the greasiness and made it much cleaner to eat👍🏻

They were generous with the salad dressing too, and eating some salad between bites of katsu refreshed my palate, so I kept going back for more katsu.

Spicy fish cake udon and what to finish with

The spicy fish cake udon I ordered alongside had plenty of fish cake in it too. The noodles were springy and chewy, and although the broth was spicy as the name suggests, it was less of a harsh heat and more of a clean, hot-and-refreshing kick.

A tonkatsu spot that even takes care of dessert...

That's my hearty meal at Katsu Monster Yeonnam Main Branch, cheese-loaded katsu plus spicy udon! If you're looking for a good tonkatsu restaurant in Hongdae or Yeonnam-dong, I think it's worth a visit! The atmosphere isn't heavy, so it'd work fine as a date spot too, and it's also a comfortable solo-dining option for a meal on your own🥣