Gwangjin ramen open till 11pm: extra-noodle spicy shoyu at Mentsuru

I went to Mentsuru, a great spot for solo dining after work. Mentsuru is a famous ramen restaurant near Children's Grand Park, and it turned out to be a genuinely authentic Japanese ramen place. My husband and I went there for dinner after work, and there were quite a few people eating alone. They even have a table specifically set up for solo diners! The location is right next to Children's Grand Park Station too, so it's perfect for grabbing dinner before hopping on public transport.

Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch: hours, location and subway exit

Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch is open daily from 11:00 to 23:00, with last order at 22:30. And get this — you can actually eat ramen there late at night! Mentsuru stays open into the late evening, from 9pm to 11pm, with last order at 10:30.

• Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch
• 394 Gwangnaru-ro, 1F, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Open daily 11:00–23:00
• Last order 22:30
• Children's Grand Park Station Exit 4

Come out of Exit 4 of Children's Grand Park Station, make a U-turn, and keep walking — you'll see a KFC. Mentsuru is right next to it. It's extremely close to the station.

Full at dinnertime, but Mentsuru's bar seats make solo dining easy

This is the inside of Mentsuru, a well-known ramen restaurant near Children's Grand Park — since it was dinnertime, the place was completely full. If we'd arrived just a bit later, we might have had to wait,,, but since the menu is ramen, table turnover tends to be fast. Even if you wait, seats open up quickly, so no worries! Looking at the tables, there's a bar table facing the kitchen, and another bar table on the side, so solo dining feels totally fine (there are also tables for groups).

There's a kiosk near the entrance too, but since there are kiosks at the tables as well, ordering is very convenient.

What's on Mentsuru's ramen menu, and which add-ons to pick

This is the menu board you can see at a glance — also located near the entrance! There was quite a variety of ramen: shio ramen, shoyu ramen, motsu ramen, tori paitan, tsukemen, and abura soba. There were menus we didn't try this time that I'd like to come back for. We ordered gyudon (beef rice bowl), spicy shoyu ramen, and homemade chicken karaage as a side.

Once you tap the meal menu, you can choose options this way. I added extra noodles to my ramen. You can also add chashu (braised pork belly), egg, and more. Since it's spicy shoyu ramen, you can even add cheongyang chili.

Aprons are self-serve~

All three dishes came out like this! Adding extra noodles to the ramen was a good call. The broth was so good I just kept eating.

Is Mentsuru's spicy shoyu ramen with extra noodles really spicy?

This is Mentsuru's spicy shoyu ramen. It didn't look spicy at all from the outside, right? But it's way spicier than you'd expect! Pretty fiery, so it's a great choice when you're craving something spicy.

I thought, 'It's Japanese ramen, how spicy could it really be?' ,,,,, it was more than I expected....

The chashu comes in big, generous chunks too. Such a great pairing with the broth! If you go to Mentsuru, the rice bowls are great too, but you have to try the ramen. The ramen broth genuinely feels like something you'd eat in Japan. Ridiculously addictive. Once you start, you can't put your chopsticks down...

You can help yourself to as much pepper or pickled radish as you like, to taste. The pickled radish was nice and tangy, which paired even better with the food.

Gyudon at Mentsuru: the foolproof order

The gyudon had plenty of meat piled on top, plus scallions, cheongyang chili, and pickled radish, so all the flavors blended really well.

Break the yolk and mix it into the rice, and the richness doubles. Eating it with the yolk really does taste different from eating it plain.

The gyudon tasted exactly like what I had in Japan. This is a menu item that never disappoints.

Homemade chicken karaage: crispy outside, juicy inside

The chicken karaage was properly crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. It's boneless, so it's easy to just pop pieces in one after another.

The pieces are big too, which I really liked!!

There are two sauces, so dip according to your taste! I thought it was delicious even plain.

If you join their Naver review event, you can also get a free drink or fried gyoza! If you're interested, give it a try~ Mentsuru, the ramen restaurant near Children's Grand Park, was a great, simple place for a meal. Recommended for anyone looking for a good solo-dining spot near Sejong University or Children's Grand Park Station!