Apgujeong Tonkatsu Favorite: Sioldon Tenderloin Katsu, Cheese Katsu👍

Today, while wondering what to eat again, I decided to try a new tonkatsu place.

Actually, it was a little far from Iho Plastic Surgery Clinic, so I debated whether to go or not. But since nothing else really came to mind, I went there as a bit of a walking workout.

Honestly, I was surprised that I had even hesitated, because this Apgujeong tonkatsu favorite was so good that it would have been a big mistake not to come.

First of all, Sioldon had a small dining area, just as it looked from the outside. There were two 4-person tables, two 2-person tables, and one bar-style table for two, so if you don’t arrive at the right time, you’ll have to wait.

Luckily, I timed it well and could sit right away.

Looking at the menu, you could tell it was a tonkatsu specialty restaurant. It only had dishes that could be made with tonkatsu.

I wanted tonkatsu, I wanted nabemono, I wanted katsudon, and I wanted katsu sando too.

After thinking it over, since it was my first visit, I decided to start with the basics.

It was a system where you could order and pay at the table.

After placing my order, a refrigerator tucked into a corner of the dining area caught my eye.

At Sioldon, they trim the fresh pork directly in the shop and then age it for three days. For better aging, they don’t use regular salt; instead, they cure it with nuruk salt. Nuruk salt reportedly has much lower salinity than regular salt, but it is a healthy fermented salt with excellent umami.

So that must be why there was a refrigerator on one side of the dining area storing meat that was being aged.

The ordered dishes arrived.

This is the cheese katsu.

Tonkatsu is delicious on its own, but when you add cheese, it becomes even better.

The visual looked like the cheese was alive and moving!!

And the breading was unbelievably thin—it made me wonder if it could really be that thin.

I really loved that. But it wasn’t lacking in crispiness, so I could confidently call it an Apgujeong tonkatsu favorite.

I tried stretching the cheese to see how generously it was piled on and whether they used a rich cheese, and it didn’t break at all.

I think the healing point of Sioldon isn’t just the taste, but also the smile shape made with sauce.

They give you four kinds of sauce, so you can dip according to your preference.

Next is the tenderloin katsu, which I fell in love with after tasting.

Of course, I also fell for the cheese katsu, but I can confidently say the tenderloin was the most tender and crispy tonkatsu I’ve ever had.

It was amazing that you could still feel crispiness even though the breading was so thin. As it turns out, that’s because they coat it with fresh, unfrozen breadcrumbs before frying.

As expected, there’s a reason why this place stands out.

Because the breadcrumb layer is thin, you can feel the texture and juiciness of the meat 그대로.

It was really tender and soft, and so delicious.

Maybe because of the nuruk salt, it had enough umami on its own even without dipping it in any sauce. Of course, it was also delicious when eaten with the sauces provided.

When I received the tenderloin katsu, the reddish color made me wonder if it was undercooked, but apparently it wasn’t.

They say it’s a sign that the meat is fresh and of high quality.

That’s probably why they cut the tonkatsu in half and plate it so the cross-section of the meat is visible.

Apgujeong tonkatsu favorite, Sioldon!!

Now that a place serving such delicious tonkatsu exists, I think I’ll have to visit again next time to try a different menu item.