Gangnam ramen restaurant with chicken meatball skewers: Oreno Ramen

When you are looking for somewhere to eat alone near Gangnam Station, the menu matters, but I also find myself quietly checking whether it will be comfortable to sit by myself once I walk in. Oreno Ramen Gangnam was quite comfortable on that front. There is a long counter facing the kitchen, followed by a spacious dining room with regular tables farther inside, so it did not feel intimidating to walk in alone for a bowl of ramen. That day, I chose the Kara Paitan for ₩13,000, plus the newly released assorted tsukune for ₩5,000.

The counter seating that caught my eye first

As you enter, a long counter runs along the open kitchen. Having a spot like this makes quite a difference when you come alone. You can naturally face one direction without needing someone across from you, and there are several seats in a row, making it a very practical setup when you are looking for a place to eat near Gangnam Station.

This was not a tiny ramen shop with counter seats only, either. There were several regular tables farther inside, and the aisles were relatively wide, so the restaurant itself did not feel cramped. It can be a little tiring when you arrive alone and immediately have to start the game of figuring out where to sit, but here that game was very short.

Kara Paitan, ₩13,000: rich and nutty with a spicy kick

I ordered the Kara Paitan, ₩13,000. It is a rich, nutty chicken paitan ramen with added heat; when it arrived, red oil spread across the broth, with wood ear mushrooms, scallions, egg, and chicken on top, so the bowl’s composition was very clear.

The broth was just as rich and nutty as I had hoped from a paitan, and the spice kept it from feeling like the same flavor all the way through. The best way to put it is that it gets the basics of ramen right. Rather than going wildly in an overly unusual direction, it steadily delivers the things I wanted from a bowl of ramen.

A well-rounded bowl, from noodles to chicken

It was also fun to try the toppings one by one.

When I cut the egg in half, the yolk in the middle was a deep orange, and there were plenty of wood ear mushrooms in the broth, too.

The noodles were on the thin side, making them easy to pick up with the rich broth, and adding wood ear mushrooms gives another layer of texture.

The chicken in the Kara Paitan stood out quite a bit as well. Rather than feeling like a bowl where I ate only broth and noodles, it included meat to enjoy too, making it filling enough for a meal.

I ordered the new assorted tsukune, ₩5,000, too

I also ordered the newly released assorted tsukune (chicken meatball skewers), ₩5,000. It came with rounded, formed meat on skewers, topped with sauce, scallions, and other toppings. It looked generously packed with meat, which I liked because it offered a different way to enjoy meat alongside the ramen.

Especially when I picked up a skewer, I got the toppings along with it, and that combination was quite delicious. There is chicken in the Kara Paitan too, but

if you want an additional meat dish on the side, adding the assorted tsukune seemed like a good option.

When I cut into it, it was tightly filled with minced meat, so it was not a side that was all about appearances.

There was also Sapporo beer on the table that day, and with a bowl of ramen plus tsukune, the meal became quite abundant. Noodles (a half or full portion), broth, a bowl of rice, and kimchi can all be refilled for free. There was already so much from the start that I could not manage another refill, but it sounds nice to refill according to your appetite!

A place where it is easy to focus on your meal

From what I knew, Oreno Ramen is also a ramen restaurant that has appeared in the Michelin Guide for six consecutive years. That history was one reason I felt confident choosing it, but after visiting, what stayed with me even more this time was how easy it was to use near Gangnam Station. With separate counter seating and a relatively spacious restaurant, getting settled was comfortable, and the Kara Paitan was a solid bowl with rich, nutty broth and a spicy kick.

If you want a little more, you can add assorted tsukune and enjoy meat separately, too. So if you want to comfortably have a bowl of ramen near Gangnam Station, or would like a more substantial meal by adding a side, this is a place worth putting on your list.