Yomenya Goemon, famous in Japan for its unusual concept of pasta you eat with chopsticks, has a branch at Gangnam Station. I had known that for a while, and this time I finally paid a visit. Gangnam Station is not what it used to be for me, but I still end up going there now and then, especially to buy books or catch a movie.

Goemon is a hugely popular place in Japan too. It has a lot of branches, and every one of them is packed, so back when I lived in Japan I rarely had a reason to go. Standing in line at a chain restaurant is just too much hassle. But now that I am in Korea, there are not many places at this level. I may just not know the area well enough, but was there anywhere around Gangnam Station serving pasta at this level?

The front

It is located close to Gangnam Station. There is a Mos Burger nearby, so it is not hard to find. The interior is a bit shabbier than I expected, and I thought they could go a little more upscale.

The menu is fairly varied, and the Half & Half, which lets you pick two kinds of pasta, looked like good value, so I ordered that.

Margherita

It is a half portion, but there was a fair amount of it. The taste was exactly the taste of Japan too. The noodles felt cooked a bit past al dente, and since they season it with Japanese ingredients like soy sauce, the style is completely different from Italian pasta, but it is a flavor that is very familiar to East Asian palates.

Mushroom crab shrimp

This one was also typical Japanese-style pasta. I would have liked it a little less cooked, but if it were not cooked this much it would be hard to eat with chopsticks.

Mango pudding

The pudding that comes with the set is also exactly like a Japanese dessert. Eating Japanese-style food for the first time in a while made me miss Japan.

On my second visit I went for a single-dish set instead of the Half & Half.

It comes with a salad, a clear soup and a drink.

Karaage pasta

The spaghetti noodles were good, but the well-seasoned karaage was really delicious. It tastes different from Korean fried chicken.

If you want to find out what Japanese-style pasta, which is nothing like Italian pasta, is all about, or if you just need a decent place for pasta right by Gangnam Station, Goemon should be a good option. As for me, I will probably drop by whenever I get a craving for Japanese food.

Panini at Take Urban

It was too much bother to post this separately, so I am adding it here. Not that greasy, a pretty ordinary style, but if you need a light meal at the Sinnonhyeon intersection, Take Urban would be a good choice too.

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