Mother-daughter lunch, mild motsu ramen at Mentsuru, Gwangjin

Had a mother-daughter lunch date after a while haha, ta-da hahaha

My mom and I had some business over in the Konkuk area, and since the weather was nice we wandered out toward Children's Grand Park. We got hungry and ramen sounded perfect.

It's right near Konkuk University, so it's perfect for a Konkuk-area date lunch too, and totally comfortable for going with just my mom!

Mentsuru Children's Grand Park Branch: location and parking

• (Location) 1F, 394 Gwangnaru-ro, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• (Hours) Daily 11:00–23:00, last order 22:30
• *Peak hours 13:00–14:00 / 18:00–20:00 — there may be a 5–10 minute wait when full
• (Parking) Use the Gwangjin Plaza public parking lot across the street (₩250 per 5 minutes)

It's a one-minute walk from Exit 4 of Children's Grand Park Station hahaha, really easy to find, right? If you're coming by bicycle or motorcycle, they ask that you park without blocking the walkway.

Mentsuru isn't just a ramen restaurant haha — they also serve sake, highballs, beer and other drinks with Japanese flair, so it's also a great spot for drinks with friends!

What's the atmosphere like inside?

This is the view right as you walk in the entrance. There are quite a lot of tables, but the space is spacious enough that it doesn't feel cramped!

You can see the inside in more detail in the video~~

I saw people eating alone, couples on dates, and families with babies — seeing such a wide range of customers all in one space, that's proof it's a spot loved by everyone, right? haha

On one side there's an open kitchen with bar-style seating in front. Since it's an open kitchen you can watch the whole cooking process, which felt trustworthy, and solo diners seemed to eat comfortably there too!

Mentsuru's menu

*If you write a photo review, you can get a free drink or fried gyoza — keep that in mind haha. Each table has a tablet, but there's also a kiosk to the left as soon as you walk in!

• Shoyu ramen (soy sauce): chicken broth ramen seasoned with soy sauce
• Shio ramen (salt): chicken broth ramen seasoned with salt
• Tori paitan (rich broth): a thick ramen where you can taste the deep flavor of the rich broth
• Motsu ramen (beef offal ramen): offal ramen simmered in a spicy-seasoned broth loaded with savory, tender beef tripe
• Tsukemen (dipping ramen): chewy chilled noodles dipped into a hot tsuyu (sauce)
• Abura soba (mixed noodles): a hearty mixed noodle dish, only available at Mentsuru, flavored with 5 kinds of oil
• Hormone-don (beef intestine rice bowl): a Mentsuru special bowl combining beef intestine and beef brisket
• Gyudon: a beef rice bowl topped with beef braised in a secret sauce
• Chicken karaage: crispy-outside, juicy-inside fried chicken made from trimmed chicken thigh
• Chicken skin gyoza: fried dumplings of minced chicken wrapped in crispy chicken skin

**All menu items can have saltiness and spiciness adjusted**

They also have aprons if you need one haha. And there are baby chairs too, just so you know!

The table already had utensils, tissues, pepper, pickled radish, paper cups and more set out, and I finished ordering on the tablet!

Our order list

• Shio ramen (salt) ₩11,000
• Motsu ramen (beef offal ramen) ₩15,000
• Fried gyoza (6pc) ₩5,000
• Cola ₩2,000

This is what we ordered!

Fried gyoza, 6 pieces

Topped with pickled ginger, scallion and chili powder, with soy sauce drizzled underneath the dumplings haha. Totally crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside — fried gyoza perfection haha. There's pickled radish on the table, try it alongside — it's not just regular pickled radish but yuzu pickled radish, and the yuzu made it so refreshing haha.

Motsu ramen (beef offal ramen), spice level 1

A hangover-cure ramen simmered spicy with beef tripe and beef brisket in a rich chicken broth simmered for 12 hours! A perfect harmony of deep umami and spicy flavor.

Spiciness can be adjusted up to 3 levels! Level 1: Shin Ramyun spicy / Level 2: fiery / Level 3: seriously spicy.

I had level 1, topped with cheongyang chili, and it had not only beef tripe and beef brisket but bean sprouts too haha. The broth was tangy and spicy, the noodles springy~~ Having beef tripe and beef brisket together gives it a different charm from the basic ramen, and it's fun picking through the toppings haha. Perfect for my taste since I love spicy food! Really the ultimate hangover-cure ramen haha.

Shio ramen (salt), the basic flavor

A clear, clean chicken broth ramen seasoned with salt! You can taste a light, clean flavor that lets the ingredients' natural taste shine through.

Shio ramen can also have its spiciness adjusted (regular/spicy). We ordered the regular version, and the broth was savory-salty, clean and light! Loaded with meat, and topped with menma (fermented bamboo shoots) and ajitama (soft-boiled egg) too.

A trip course for Children's Grand Park and Konkuk

The ramen portions were more generous than expected, and it was nice being able to add whatever toppings I wanted! Children's Grand Park is nearby too, so on a nice day you could take a walk there, and since the Konkuk shopping district is close, it'd also be great to end the day with a date or a café tour hahahaha. Next time I want to visit as a date and try other menu items haha.

If you're looking for a good ramen spot around Children's Grand Park or Konkuk, I highly recommend Mentsuru, the Children's Grand Park ramen restaurant, hahaha.