All You Can Eat (Almost) Tonkatsu For $5!

#allyoucaneat #seouleats #koreanfoodie

Seoul -- This city is known for its technology and rapid lifestyle. It can also show a romantic side considering the number of dramas shot here. But what if I was to tell you that I found something even more authentic? Like all big cities, Seoulites tend to be running around focusing on themselves, so they may emit a cold demeanor when talked to, by a stranger. If you've ever been to South Korea, you'll know that if you just speak a little bit of Korean and embrace Korean culture, Korean people will greet you with open arms. Read on to see what I mean!

Nestled in the Samjang underground arcade (food court) under the Samjang Plaza Building in the Mapo district of Seoul, my wife and I discovered this gem as a backup since the original restaurant we wanted to go to was closed.

This wonderful place is called Seung Tonkatsu. Tonkatsu is a fried pork cutlet and Seung makes it only one way, Japanese style. In fact, there's only one thing on the menu! My wife called in advance to check if they were open. When we arrived at 1:45 pm, it looked like we just missed the lunch crowd. The place was empty with just a couple of other patrons sitting at another table. My wife just held up two fingers, to indicate two orders and we sat down. Running the restaurant is a cute halmonee 할머니 (grandmother) who went straight to frying up this deliciousness! While we were waiting, I looked around and saw that they had put tonkatsu and coffee on their outer windows! "This place is super Korean!" I told my wife. She laughed. For someone coming from the United States, this is quite an odd combination, but in Korean, you'll see this everywhere. I looked around the interior of the restaurant hoping to find a menu sign and taped on the side of an air conditioning unit, there it was:

Tonkatsu 7,000 won. That is roughly $5.50 USD! I couldn't believe what I was seeing! Most of the tonkatsu restaurants I've been going to lately have been well over 7,000 won, usually around 10,000 won! I was really looking forward to what was next!

The halmonee came out with our monstrous orders five minutes later and my mouth hit the ground. As you can see (from the pictures above) she gave us three different types of katsu: regular, garlic, and cheese. This was unexpected! When I took a bite I couldn't believe how crispy the exterior was. It came straight from the fryer and into my mouth! It wasn't greasy at all, that was the amazing part! The whole pieces of garlic were nudged in between the thinly battered pork and everything was piping hot! I dipped it in some tonkatsu sauce with a little bit of mustard, and I was in heaven!

I was eating deliciously when the halmonee asked me if I wanted more. Of course, I couldn't resist so we ordered half a plate more with one more bowl of rice! In Korea, there's a term called 'service' that most people need to familiarize themselves with. It means the restaurant is willing to give out some free stuff! Of course, I stuffed myself silly again!

This is the great thing about going to family-run restaurants. If you eat their food well in front of them, they'll usually give you seconds, on the house! I came out of there eating almost two adult portions.

Overall, this was an amazing experience and I highly recommend it to everyone reading to check it out! Great service, cheap, and wonderful people, what more can you ask for! Let us know if you've had similar experiences eating in South Korea! Would you try this place out?

Here's where you can find it!

Seung

173, Dohwa-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul

서울특별시 마포구 마포대로 63-8 삼창프라자

Phone: 02-701-0965

How to get there:

By subway - About a five minute walk from Gongdok Station (Seoul Line 5) exit 1

or Mapo Station (Seoul Line 5) exit 2.