Tonkatsu near Suyu Station: head-on jumbo shrimp katsu, Katsu Shokudou

What kind of tonkatsu restaurant is Katsu Shokudou Suyu?

Katsu Shokudou (카츠쇼쿠도우) is a pork cutlet restaurant on the first floor of Episode 838 Suyu, near Suyu Station. It serves Japanese-style tonkatsu, not Korean-style gyeongyangsik donkatsu. The menu has loin katsu, hire (tenderloin) katsu, Japanese curry, soba, udon and kimchi nabe, and the jumbo shrimp fry was so huge that it felt like the signature dish of the place.

The first floor of Episode 838 Suyu is an open space with several restaurants. Katsu Shokudou is marked as no. 14 and sits deep at the back.

Is Katsu Shokudou good for a solo lunch near Suyu Station?

Katsu Shokudou Suyu has bar seats and two-person tables, so it is a good place to eat alone near Suyu Station.

I went after 1 p.m., once the lunch rush was over, and the lunch crowd had cleared out, so the restaurant felt relaxed. With a bar counter and two-person tables, it is perfectly set up for eating solo near Suyu Station.

The restaurant has a notice explaining its tonkatsu, highlighting Korean domestic pork (handon) and yuzu aging. There was also a picture of the new jumbo shrimp cheese katsu.

Katsu Shokudou Suyu menu and prices

A la carte katsu at Katsu Shokudou starts at ₩12,000 for loin katsu, and the sets start at ₩16,000 for the loin katsu set. Sets come with udon or soba instead of soup.

• Loin katsu ₩12,000
• Hire katsu ₩13,000
• Mixed katsu ₩16,000
• Jumbo shrimp cheese katsu ₩15,000
• Loin katsu set ₩16,000
• Hire katsu set ₩17,000
• Mixed katsu set ₩20,000
• Katsudon (katsu rice bowl) ₩13,000
• Ebi katsudon (shrimp katsu rice bowl) ₩12,000
• Katsu curry ₩16,000
• Kake udon ₩9,000
• Curry udon ₩10,000
• Cold soba / cold udon ₩10,000

The new items are the kimchi katsu nabe set (₩18,000), kimchi katsu nabe (₩15,000) and kimchi udon set (₩17,000).

What comes in the mixed katsu set?

This day I ordered the mixed katsu set. It stars loin katsu (pork loin cutlet) and a jumbo shrimp, with rice and a mini soba or mini udon, and the jumbo shrimp fry is the most memorable part.

Katsu Shokudou has a free refill policy for rice, salad and curry!! On the table there are Himalayan pink salt and shichimi (Japanese chili spice blend).

I added a Japanese curry as a side to the mixed katsu set. The set itself is one piece of loin katsu, one jumbo shrimp katsu, rice, a mini cold soba (or udon), yuzu wasabi, tonkatsu sauce, pickled radish and jalapeños.

The giant fried shrimp was overwhelming. This is the jumbo shrimp katsu.

The Japanese curry I added as a side was very thick.

The steamed rice that comes with the tonkatsu set.

Instead of miso soup, the sets at Katsu Shokudou come with noodles, and you can choose between soba and udon.

Pickled jalapeños and pickled radish. The jalapeño pickle goes so well with deep-fried tonkatsu.

Tonkatsu sauce and shrimp katsu sauce come separately.

How big is the head-on jumbo shrimp katsu?

The jumbo shrimp katsu at Katsu Shokudou was enormous, just one shrimp. A single shrimp katsu looked bigger than the loin cutlet.

"Jumbo shrimp" is exactly the right phrase for this giant fried shrimp.

It came with a salad of very finely shredded cabbage and dressing.

The cabbage was shredded so thin that I wondered if they have some special slicer. The thin, fine cabbage was incredibly soft, and I liked the dressing, which was fresh and not too sweet.

Loin katsu on the bottom, jumbo shrimp katsu on top.

A huge shrimp! Coated in coarse breadcrumbs and fried, the jumbo shrimp could be eaten all the way through, head and all.

The flesh inside was firm and packed full.

How to enjoy the loin katsu

I alternated the loin katsu among three things: wasabi made with yuzu, Himalayan pink salt and tonkatsu sauce. The end of the loin katsu uses loin with the fat still attached (mibak).

The first piece of loin katsu went into the Himalayan pink salt, and the next with yuzu wasabi.

Then I dipped it in the tonkatsu sauce too.

The rice was sticky and soft.

The Japanese curry goes well with the rice, and it was really thick.

For thick Japanese tonkatsu, wasabi is still the best match. And to finish off the fried katsu, a refreshing, cool cold soba~

Katsu Shokudou Suyu hours and location

Katsu Shokudou Suyu is open Monday to Sunday, 11:10–21:00, with no break time, 7 days a week. It is a 2-minute walk from Suyu Station Exit 5 (under construction), on the first floor of Episode 838 Suyu.