Yangju Okjeong dinner with kids: perilla oil gat-soba, Choi Dining

ⓒ written and photographed by Dong Bro

We were out with the kids and decided to grab dinner before heading home, and that's how we found Choi Dining! I was worried there wouldn't be much for the kids to eat, but there turned out to be way more than expected. The clean atmosphere also made it an easy pick for a family meal out!

Choi Dining Yangju Okjeong: address, hours and how to find it

What the Choi Dining dining room in Okjeong looks like

Since Choi Dining's signature dish is salmon futomaki (thick seaweed rice roll), and my kids haven't tried raw salmon yet, I first thought there'd be nothing for them — but there turned out to be plenty!

They have a baby chair and kids' tableware ready, and the tables are spaced wide and clean, so it seemed like a great spot to bring kids and the whole family.

Which Choi Dining dishes work best for kids?

Since we came with the kids that day, I picked menu items they'd eat well: salmon futomaki, perilla oil gat-soba, and katsu sando! The futomaki is the popular item, so I ordered it mostly thinking I'd eat it myself haha.

The futomaki was rolled thick and packed generously with ingredients — hard to fit in one bite, but if you open wide and go for it, you get a mix of textures and flavors all at once, and it was really delicious!

The salmon's mild flavor blended well with the various fillings, so there was no fishy heaviness — just tasty all the way through.

Perilla oil gat-soba: the dish noodle-loving kids finished

My kids love noodles, so I ordered the perilla oil gat-soba (buckwheat noodles with perilla oil and mustard greens). I was worried they wouldn't eat much since they'd had bread before coming, but they seemed to enjoy it and ate well. The nutty aroma of perilla oil made it light and not too intense — great for eating plain. If your kids like noodles, this one's a recommend. I tried a bite since they seemed to enjoy it so much, and it wasn't greasy at all — clean and nutty, so I got why they liked it.

Why order the katsu sando instead of tonkatsu at Choi Dining

The last thing we ordered was the katsu sando (pork cutlet sandwich). I debated between tonkatsu and katsu sando, but figured the kids would eat a sandwich with cutlet between the bread more easily, and the portion felt manageable enough that they wouldn't leave any behind, so I went with that.

A thick cutlet was tucked between the bread, so it looked quite hearty, and the crispy-outside, moist-inside katsu paired well with the soft bread.

If your kids love tonkatsu, ordering katsu sando instead as a change of pace could be a great pick. When eating out with kids, it matters a lot whether there's something they can actually eat — and it was nice being able to split dishes according to everyone's taste like we did that day.

Who should eat at Choi Dining Yangju Okjeong

• Anyone looking for a place to eat out with kids — the soba and katsu dishes are easy for kids to eat, making this a solid choice for family dining
• Anyone searching for Okjeong tonkatsu — if you like crispy katsu, the katsu sando is worth trying too, offering a different feel from regular tonkatsu
• Anyone who wants variety rather than a single dish — with futomaki, soba, and katsu all on the menu, it's great for a group to visit and share
• Anyone craving a clean Japanese menu — if you prefer light, non-greasy dishes over heavy, spicy ones, this place is worth a visit
• Anyone looking for a family dining spot in Yangju Okjeong — easy to pick dishes both kids and adults can enjoy together, making it a good choice for family visits