Incheon Nonhyeon Japanese restaurant with lucky box draw: Hongdae

A Namdong, Incheon restaurant near Nonhyeon Station serving sushi and tonkatsu, with a Japan-like vibe that makes it a nice Incheon date spot — Hongdae Gureume Incheon Nonhyeon Branch.

Today I'm recording my visit to Hongdae Gureume near Nonhyeon Station in Incheon :) Run by a head chef trained at a prestigious cooking school in Tokyo, this Japanese restaurant does everything from spoon-eaten sushi to crispy tonkatsu, and honestly everything was great value and genuinely delicious haha

Hongdae Gureume Incheon Nonhyeon Branch: location, hours and parking

• Location: 17 Nongogae-ro 123beon-gil, Namdong-gu, Incheon, I-Flex Building 2F, Unit 202
• Hours: Daily 11:30–21:30, last order 21:00, no break time
• Parking: Building underground lot, 2 hours free with store validation
• Ordered: Spoon-eaten salmon sushi 12,900 won / Mixed katsu B set 17,900 won
• Lucky draw event for orders over 30,000 won

How to get there from Incheon Nonhyeon Station Exit 3

Hongdae Gureume Incheon Nonhyeon Branch sits on the 2nd floor of the I-Flex Building, right in front of Exit 3 of Incheon Nonhyeon Station on the Suin-Bundang Line.

It's an easy walk from the subway station, and if you're driving, you can use the building's underground parking lot and get 2 hours free from the store — just make sure to check with them first haha.

Inside Hongdae Gureume: a Japan-style room with bar seats for solo diners

Unlike the outside of the building, once you step inside Hongdae Gureume Incheon Nonhyeon Branch, the Japanese signage, props, and warm lighting all come together to feel just like a restaurant in Japan.

Besides regular tables, there are bar-table seats on one side too, and quite a few people were dining solo there.

Ordering could be done right at the table via kiosk.

Hair ties and aprons were provided at the table, and every staff member who helped us was really kind and thoughtful! :)

What's on the menu at Hongdae Gureume: ramen, sushi, tonkatsu and rice bowls

The menu covers ramen, regular sushi, spoon-eaten sushi, tonkatsu, rice bowls, and more Japanese dishes. Ramen comes in Fukuoka-style, Kumamoto-style, and Korean-style, and sushi and katsu can be ordered à la carte or as full sets.

The head chef majored in traditional Japanese cuisine at Hattori Nutrition College in Japan and has 25 years of experience total, including 5 years working at restaurants in Japan itself. Maybe that's why everything felt so expertly made and tasty haha. Hongdae Gureume is also known for a 10-year run in Hongdae, Seoul, followed by 10 years here in Nonhyeon-dong, Incheon.

Spoon-eaten salmon sushi, 12,900 won: how does it differ from sake-don?

Spoon-eaten salmon sushi 12,900 / Mixed katsu B set 17,900

The spoon-eaten sushi is served with sushi-seasoned rice topped with wasabi and soy sauce, then piled with salmon and various vegetables, meant to be eaten with a spoon.

I ordered the salmon version — the rice was seasoned just right, and there was plenty of both salmon and vegetables, making for a well-balanced dish overall.

This was my first time trying spoon-eaten sushi, and compared to the more familiar sake-don (salmon rice bowl), the rice was more tangy and the vegetables more varied, giving it a distinct flavor of its own.

You can adjust the soy sauce and wasabi to your taste and scoop up small spoonfuls, making it easy to get rice, salmon, and vegetables all in one bite.

Mixed katsu B set, 17,900 won: 350-hour aged tonkatsu and double snow-cheese katsu

The mixed katsu B set comes with 350-hour aged tonkatsu, double snow cheese katsu, and king shrimp katsu all at once.

You get to try several kinds of katsu together, and it comes with rice, broth soup, and salad on the side.

The katsu were super crispy on the outside and delicious overall. In particular, when I lifted the cheese katsu, the cheese stretched sooo long, haha. The longer I pulled, the more it stretched — really soft and tasty.

The lucky box draw for bills over 30,000 won

Hongdae Gureume Incheon Nonhyeon Branch runs a lucky box draw event for orders over 30,000 won — the people ahead of us drew 1st and 2nd place haha. It was surprising how many people seemed to win!

There's also a prepaid point charge benefit, so it seems like there are quite a lot of regulars.

Is Hongdae Gureume worth it near Incheon Nonhyeon Station?

Hongdae Gureume Incheon Nonhyeon Branch, a nice Incheon date restaurant, offered a wide variety of Japanese dishes in a space that really felt like a real restaurant in Japan. The spoon-eaten sushi had a great balance of seasoning, salmon, and vegetables, and the crispy mixed katsu with its endlessly stretching cheese, along with the friendly staff and the lucky draw event, made for a memorable meal. If you're looking for a restaurant near Incheon Nonhyeon Station, I recommend Hongdae Gureume!!👍