Lunch date ramen near Saejeol Station, Seoul: Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong

Because my partner Ak-i works in Eunpyeong-gu, it feels like I've been to every corner of Eunpyeong-gu at this point, haha. Today, among all the Eunpyeong-gu spots — huh? Eunpyeong-gu restaurant, ramen restaurant, so to sum up? — let's talk about Oreno Ramen, a ramen restaurant in Eunpyeong-gu.

These are ducks... Bulgwangcheon ducks. Why do the ducks at Bulgwangcheon stream walk so close by? Honestly, they're cute. Where could these two sisters be headed... Off I go, eagerly, to Oreno Ramen, an Eunpyeong-gu restaurant.

I've arrived at Oreno Ramen, a ramen restaurant in Eunpyeong-gu. Translated literally, the name means 'my ramen.'

Let's not translate it literally though.

Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong's menu: only two bowls of ramen

The ramen menu at Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong is just two items: tori paitan and kara paitan. They split into mild / spicy, and you can add tsukune, chashu, or a soft-boiled egg as options.

• [Menu] Tori paitan / Kara paitan
• [Options] Tsukune, chashu, soft-boiled egg
• [Drinks] Cola, bottled beer, highball
• [Side dishes] Extra cilantro, spicy kimchi

A pretty cool menu, honestly. Ramen options? Just two. Mild / spicy. It seemed pretty confident about it. Well... confidence is everything, isn't it.

Is there a wait at lunchtime at Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong?

Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong was quite crowded at lunch, and there was a wait. I got lucky and found a seat right away, so I could eat immediately.

Haha, I rushed over during lunch and was lucky enough to find a seat and eat right away. Must be a local favorite — there were quite a lot of people and even a wait. If I hadn't been lucky? I might have had to wait too.

The little touches that make Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong stand out

Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong has hair ties for anyone with long hair, water that anyone can drink right away, and free refills of noodles, rice, and kimchi. The staff were genuinely kind too.

Honestly, I really dislike that some languages have gendered nouns... Setting aside why that should even exist, it ends up carrying a whole layer of gender discrimination. Spanish is really fun, but so strange. Who decides why a peach is masculine and a watermelon is feminine?

Anyway, 'oreno' means 'my,' but it's a word mostly used by men, and apparently you're supposed to picture a rather tough guy saying it. But what I wanted to say was: true to a man's 'my ramen,' the thoughtfulness here is careful and meticulous ^^

• Hair ties for anyone with long hair!
• Water anyone can drink right away!
• Free refills of noodles/rice/kimchi.

Ah, amazing. Personally, I've had a lot of unpleasant experiences with staff at Japanese restaurants, but the staff at Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong were genuinely kind!

Tori paitan vs kara paitan: what's the difference?

Tori means chicken, paitan means white broth, and kara means spicy. Both the tori paitan and kara paitan at Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong come topped with a foam that looks like whipped latte foam.

Both the tori paitan and kara paitan broths were, like, whipped like a latte?! That was the standout feature. Honestly, I thought it looked so cool. Kind of like bubble ramen. At first glance, actually, I couldn't quite tell the difference between the two. But once you dip a spoon in, there's a color difference.

There's a wide-open view behind me, so my view is great too.

The tori paitan broth and its wood ear mushrooms

For the regular ramen, under the pale bubbly foam is a pale broth (super rich). The rich broth was apparently excellent... and especially, those wood ear mushroom strips were the standout. Since the noodles are quite thin, you have to bite into the broth-soaked noodles together with the crunch of the wood ear mushroom.

The pale broth of the tori paitan is apparently made by simmering chicken stock until it's rich — since it's chicken-based, it's not as greasy as a typical pork broth, so you can eat it clean and light!

How spicy is the kara paitan?

The kara paitan wasn't as spicy as I expected. Kind of like the 'mild spicy' version of Jin Ramyeon. Since it's an open kitchen, you can watch the owners garnish the ramen right in front of you, which is fun to watch.

A whole soft-boiled egg, not half

This is the most essential thing about Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong. They don't just give you half an egg. You get a whole one. That gives off a rather impressive feeling. You can see the soft-boiled yolk consistency, right? I don't think I need to say more.

Ramen usually comes with chashu, but since this Eunpyeong-gu restaurant's ramen is chicken-broth-based (tori), it seems to come with chicken instead. It's not dry at all. It's tender.

Is Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong enough for a big appetite?

At Oreno Ramen Eunpyeong, you can get refills if the broth or noodles run low (rice too). So if you're a big eater, adding a refill should leave you full.

Ate up deliciously at this ramen restaurant. Honestly, I wanted to eat a bit more but held back. For office workers nearby who feel like binge-eating and stress-eating out of frustration, this place would be a good spot to visit.

Because the noodles are thin, soaking them fully in the broth is amazing . . I even dared to think this might be a top-of-my-life ramen.

That's all from Saejeol Station, from a restaurant in Eunpyeong-gu, from the ramen restaurant Oreno Ramen.