Ramen date with window seats near Deoksugung, Seoul: Mentsuru

Mentsuru City Hall Branch

• Right by City Hall Station in Jung-gu, Seoul
• A favorite lunch spot for office workers near City Hall
• Also popular for solo dining
• Not to mention it's great for a date
• Add a walk along Deoksugung's stone wall path afterward
• Friendly staff service on top of it all!

Where is Mentsuru City Hall Branch, and what are the hours?

Mentsuru City Hall Branch is near Exit 10 of City Hall Station on Line 2, open daily from 11:00 to 21:30. You can spot <Mentsuru City Hall Branch> from a distance — it has real presence. It had been so long since I'd had ramen that I walked in with my heart fluttering!

Why the kiosk menu differs by floor at Mentsuru City Hall Branch

Once inside, I noticed that ordering certain menu items required using a different floor's kiosk, so we ended up eating on a different floor!

Since the dishes we wanted were only available from the 1st floor kiosk, we ended up eating on the 1st floor! We visited at an awkward time — too late for lunch, too early for dinner — but there were still a lot of customers!

What the window seats and table setting are like at Mentsuru

There were window seats, so the atmosphere was bright and we could eat in a really relaxed way!

Napkins, cups, and chopsticks provided at every table

Motsu ramen or tori paitan: which to order at Mentsuru

You wouldn't believe how many reviews my husband and I read on the way there. Since it had been so long since we'd had ramen, there were just too many kinds we wanted to try! There was even a rice bowl option, so we thought about sharing, but we each wanted different ramen, so we settled it with ramen for both!!!!!! My husband ordered motsu ramen, and I ordered tori paitan :)

Ta-da! Our dishes arrived 💗

The broth looked so rich that I couldn't wait to dig in ∙ ∙ ∙ Let me show you each dish!

Motsu ramen: a spicy bowl loaded with beef intestine

<Motsu ramen> — beef offal ramen simmered in a spicy seasoned broth loaded with savory, fatty beef offal

I quickly stole a bite too, and it was easy to see why it's so popular. Even the condition of the offal was excellent! It's just ramen ingredients, but you could tell each one was carefully handled :) Oh, and a tip — motsu ramen doesn't come with egg by default, so you have to check the box separately if you want one added! (A tip born from my husband's disappointment!)

And then the one I ordered—

Tori paitan: the pick if you like a white chicken broth

<Tori paitan> — a chicken white broth ramen with deep flavor from chicken and vegetables boiled hard over high heat

I prefer white broth to red broth, so the paitan immediately caught my eye!

The noodles were exactly my style too — add an egg on top and it's pure happiness ∙ ∙ ∙

Handmade gara-age as a side at Mentsuru City Hall Branch

And the <handmade gara-age> we ordered as an extra — fried chicken made from trimmed domestic fresh chicken thigh, crispy outside and juicy inside

Ramen plus gara-age — we really went the full course. Dip it in the lemon sauce too, and it cuts the richness while adding a refreshing tang!

I'm suddenly craving it again just thinking about it. It was delicious ^^;

Mentsuru City Hall tips: free rice and the review event

And here's a helpful tip about <Mentsuru>!

<Mentsuru> provides free rice! If you feel like you're missing something, just ask and they'll bring it right over! The rice that soothed my disappointment over not ordering a rice bowl.. (Next time I'm definitely trying the hormone-and-rice bowl, determined!)

And here's the review event <Mentsuru> is running! You get a free drink or fried gyoza, so enjoy it too!

A ramen date course: Mentsuru plus the Deoksugung stone wall path

It's a hot summer, but eating ramen in a cool restaurant felt so good. If it weren't for our schedule afterward, I would have wanted a draft beer right then, but I held back! Next time I'll enjoy it with something cold to drink haha.

For office workers or solo diners too — a simple beer with ramen? Doesn't that sound perfect? Thanks to Deoksugung's night opening hours, it's also a great date course, so make sure to visit! Highly recommend 💗 <Mentsuru City Hall Branch>