Rice bowls and tonkatsu side dish at Menji, a Hanam Misa restaurant

I was looking for a clean, solid Japanese restaurant in Hanam and ended up at Menji Hanam Misa Branch. With ramen, tonkatsu (breaded pork cutlet), and Japanese-style rice bowls all on the menu, it's a good spot for a family meal or for everyone ordering what they individually feel like.

We ordered three things that day: chicken karaage don (fried chicken rice bowl), yakitori don, and tonkatsu as a side. Fried chicken to charcoal-grilled meat over rice — different enough to share and try a bit of everything.

Address 36 Misagangbyeonbuk-ro 30beon-angil, Hanam-si, Gyeonggi-do / Hours daily 11:00–20:30 / Break time 15:00–17:00

The vibe and seating at Menji Hanam Misa Branch

Walking up to this Hanam restaurant, the entrance felt a little unusual at first, but stepping inside brought the feel of a small local eatery in Japan.

It's not a flashy or huge space — more of a cozy, charming spot.

The whole interior is styled to recall a small Japanese eatery, so even before the food arrived it already felt like eating somewhere on a trip.

There are seats good for solo dining as well as tables for groups, so it seemed to work fine for solo meals, family dinners, or dates.

What's on the menu

This Hanam Japanese restaurant centers its menu around handmade ramen and handmade tonkatsu, with plenty of variety.

The ramen lineup includes the rich, smooth tori paitan ramen (chicken broth ramen), a spicy version of the tori paitan, kara tantanmen, a clean soy-based tori shoyu ramen, and a chashu-loaded tori paitan ramen packed with braised pork — plenty of options depending on your mood.

For rice bowls, there's yakitori don with charcoal-grilled meat and chicken karaage don with crispy fried chicken, plus the handmade tonkatsu that can be ordered on its own.

The side menu was quite varied too — mini yakitori don, mini tonkatsu, chicken karaage, charcoal-grilled whole chicken leg yakitori, pepper teba naka (chicken wings), ebi fry (fried shrimp), mini rice, mini cheese rice, mini mentaiko (pollock roe) rice — all good for pairing with a main.

There are also set meals — a signature set with ramen and mini tonkatsu, a set combining tonkatsu with mini ramen, and combos pairing ramen with karaage — so there's plenty of choice if you want to try several things at once.

Crispy tonkatsu

First up, the tonkatsu we ordered as a side. Rice bowl alone felt like it might not be quite enough, so we added this, and the combination turned out better than expected.

The outside was fried nice and crispy, with a thick cut of pork loin inside, so the texture really came through on the first bite.

The breading wasn't too thick either, so it didn't mask the flavor of the meat — I liked that.

A full plate of tonkatsu as a main might be a bit much, but as a side when you want a few crispy bites, it was just right.

Chicken karaage don

The bowl arrived piled high with crispy fried karaage over rice, and it looked properly hearty right away.

The karaage was crispy outside and juicy inside, with good texture, and the salty-slightly-sweet sauce paired really well with the rice.

The karaage is tasty on its own, but eating it together with rice in one big bite was definitely the best way. The sauce soaked slightly into the rice, so it stayed delicious to the last bite.

If you like fried food, this is a safe bet, and it's also a solid pick when you want a filling meal.

It seemed like a good family-dining option too, since it's the kind of dish kids tend to like without much fuss.

Yakitori don with appealing smoky flavor

The yakitori don at this Hanam Japanese restaurant is a Japanese-style rice bowl topped with charcoal-grilled chicken and pork neck.

Since the meat is grilled rather than fried, it has a completely different appeal from the karaage don.

I liked the subtle smoky flavor that came through with each bite, and the sweet-salty sauce worked well with the rice.

The distinct flavor of charcoal-grilled meat especially made the rice go down easily.

In summary

With ramen, tonkatsu, and Japanese-style rice bowls all on the menu, Menji Hanam Misa Branch worked well even for a group visit. If you're looking for Japanese food with a bit of Japan's atmosphere in Hanam Misa, or searching for a Hanam Japanese restaurant, Misa Japanese restaurant, Hanam tonkatsu, or Misa rice bowl restaurant, this one is worth a visit.