Posts Tagged ‘ramen’

18 Nov
2008

Maru Ichi Restaurant Review, Mountain View

Posted by admin, November 18th, 2008

Maru Ichi Mountain View 5

Maruichi is a Japanese Noodle restaurant on Castro street in Mountain View. With so many restaurants nearby, this place stands out.

Maru Ichi Mountain View Ramen Maker

The noodles are home made by the worker in the front corner. They specialize in Kuro (Black) Ramen. They just have deep fried chicken for those not looking for noodles.

Maru Ichi Mountain View 3

Decor, Vibe - Minimal Japanese restaurant decor with counter seating in the middle, booths on the sides. People of all ages including locals, shoppers were eating lunch when we were there.

Menu Pictures

Maru Ichi Mountain View Menu 3

Window Sign

Maru Ichi Mountain View Menu

Maru Ichi Mountain View Menu 2

Picks:

Maru Ichi Mountain View Kuro Ramen Combo

Combo B - Kuro (Black Ramen) Lunch ($9.65) included average California rolls (3), and crunchy deep fried gyoza (3). Good broth, lots of pork, a delicious egg. Solid noodle dish, great value.

Maru Ichi Mountain View Shoyu Ramen

Shoyu Ramen ($7.45) had very good broth with crunchy noodles. Lots of yummy pork, Egg, Sea weed.

Maru Ichi Mountain View Tempura Soba

Tempura Soba ($7.45) had good noodles, a little bit of chicken, and a seaweed tasting broth. 2 pieces of Shrimp Tempura and Fish cake was nice. All in all a very good hot soba noodle dish.

OK:
None

Pans:
None

Maru Ichi delivers very good Japanese food and has reasonable pricing to give it excellent value. Their service needs work as we never got refills, nor did we get something we ordered. Servers barely came by.
Compared to legendary Santa Ramen in San Mateo, this place has more variety and is definitely in the same class quality wise. It all falls down to personal preference on which is superior.
Kids meal is available. Cash only.

Also at:
530 Barber Lane
Milpitas, CA 95035

Restaurant.com $25 Dining Certificate for $10
Entertainment Book 2 for 1 restaurant, food coupons, and much more

Overall Rating:

Food Rating:
Service Rating:
Atmosphere Rating:
Value Rating:

Guide: 0 = poor, 1 = Fair/Average, 2 = Good, 2.5 = Very Good, 3 = Excellent , 4 = Extraordinary

Alcohol:Beer, Wine
Attire:Casual
Hours:Mon-Fri 1130am-230pm, 5-10pm. Sat 1130am-10pm, Sun 1130am-9pm.
Parking:Street
Reservations:No
Prices:$7.45 - $9.90

Maru Ichi

368 Castro St (Between Dana and California)

Mountain View, CA 94041

650-564-9931

Filed under: $, 2 stars, California, Cost, Cuisine, Japanese, Location, Peninsula, Rating, Restaurant, United States | Tags: , , |

5 Oct
2008

Ramen HALU Review, San Jose

Posted by admin, October 5th, 2008

Ramen Halu Front

Ramen HALU is a popular Japanese noodle house in a strip mall off 280 in San Jose.  There is wait here most times, but not as crazy as well known Santa Ramen in San Mateo.   The main draw is the tasty ramen noodles in four different styles but just one broth.  This is in contrast to Santa Ramen that has one type of noodle, and 3 types of broth.  There is a limited selection of salads and appetizers. If you are not into noodles, avoid this place.

Ramen Halu 3

Decor, Vibe - A slight step up from generic Japanese restaurant decor. 90% of the people in this restaurant are of asian descent.

Menu Pictures

Ramen Halu Menu 1

Ramen Halu Menu 4

Ramen Halu Menu 2

Ramen Halu Menu 5

Ramen Halu Menu 3

Ramen Halu Menu 6

Ramen Halu 12

Picks:

Ramen Halu Halu Ramen

Halu Ramen ($7.50) with Cha-shu Sliced Pork, green onions, bamboo shoots ($1), Seaweed ($1), and Kikurage (Ear Mushroom) ($1) . The noodles are soft and chewy, and hot out of the kitchen. The broth is heavy on the pork flavor side.

Ramen Halu Lobster Ramen

Lobster Ramen ($15) had lobster blended in the broth and some lobster meat on top. Also fried leek, shallot, Chun sa chan, and Ao Nori are also added. A top flight limited edition noodle dish.

OK:
NONE

Pans:

Ramen Halu Cha Shu Pork

Cha-shu Sliced Pork ($6) - Cold and lots of fat on this meat. We liked Santa Ramen’s pork better.

It is more a matter of personal preference if you prefer this to Santa Ramen. Frankly geographic proximity would probably dictate which you went to. The draw is the ramen. The service is average.  It takes about 15 minutes to get your ramen, once you order. Ramen HALU is not a place where you linger. Most people are out in 30-45 minutes.

Restaurant.com $25 Dining Certificate for $10
Entertainment Book 2 for 1 restaurant, food coupons, and much more

Overall Rating:

Come Back?

Filed under: $, 2 stars, California, Cost, Cuisine, Dine Again?, Japanese, Location, Maybe Again, Rating, Restaurant, South Bay | Tags: , , |

18 Sep
2008

Santa Ramen Restaurant Review, San Mateo

Posted by admin, September 18th, 2008

Santa Ramen San Mateo 2

Santa Ramen is a very popular Japanese noodle house in San Mateo. It has a legendary cult following.

Santa Ramen San Mateo 1

There is almost always a line even before the place opens.  You should arrive about 15 minutes before it opens to ensure you get a seat, otherwise come late and be prepared to wait.  The main draw is the tasty ramen noodles in various broths. If you are not into noodles, avoid this place.

Menu pics

Santa Ramen San Mateo Menu 4

Santa Ramen San Mateo Menu 2

Santa Ramen San Mateo Menu 3

Santa Ramen San Mateo Menu 5

Desserts

Picks:

Santa Ramen San Mateo 3

Santa Ramen San Mateo 17

Santa Ramen San Mateo Noodles

Soy Sauce Ramen ($7.95) with roasted pork, green onions, bamboo shoots, roasted seaweed. Broth has a heavy soy sauce flavor. This is not instant ramen for sure. Decent quantities but many with larger appetites, order it as we do with extra noodles ($1.25) and extra pork ($1.50) or order an appetizer with it.

Santa Ramen San Mateo Stewed Pork

Add 2 pieces of the legendary Stewed Pork ($4.50).  It is a fatty pork that has been slowly stewed a long time. It is more of an acquired taste. The noodles are fresh and hot out of the kitchen. The broth is probably one of the better ones around, with the noodles being ok. Noodles are on the al dente side. The roasted pork reminds us of old Swanson’s pork TV dinners. Comfort food for some.

Santa Ramen San Mateo 4

Santa Ramen San Mateo 7

Pork Flavored Ramen ($7.95) with roasted pork, green onions, kikurage mushrooms. Add some Corn ($1) to round it out. Another fairly low cost meal. I prefer pork flavored broth to the other ones, but this is a matter of taste.

OK:

None

Pans:

Santa Ramen San Mateo Grilled Squid

Grilled Whole Squid ($7.50) is simple and tasty.  Sometimes it is grilled too long and takes like charcoal.

Santa Ramen San Mateo 13

Grilled Chicken wings ($4.75) are just too charcoal grilled flavored to be good. Also there isn’t much meat. Grilled corn is the same.

The draw is the ramen. It is unusual that this home made ramen does not contain eggs. The service is ok. It takes about 30 minutes to get your ramen, once you order. Santa Ramen is not a place where you linger.  Be warned that they start running out of broths around 830pm, so do not come too late. Most people are out in 45 minutes, as the people in line ‘pressure’ you to leave. 90% of the people in this restaurant are of Asian descent.

An other arguably better option is Ramen Halu in San Jose. eat.tanspace.com has a ranking of San Francisco Bay Area Ramen places, ranking Halu #1, Santa Ramen #6.

Restaurant.com $25 Dining Certificate for $10
Entertainment Book 2 for 1 restaurant, food coupons, and much more

Overall Rating:

Come Back?

Food Rating:
Service Rating:
Atmosphere Rating:
Value Rating:

Guide: 0 = poor, 1 = Fair/Average, 2 = Good, 2.5 = Very Good, 3 = Excellent , 4 = Extraordinary

Alcohol:Beer, Wine, Sake
Attire:Casual
Hours:M,W-Sun 1130am-2pm. M,W-Sun 530-9:30pm.
Parking:Lot
Reservations:No
Prices:$7.95

Santa Ramen

1944 S El Camino Real

San Mateo, CA 94403

(650) 344-5918

Filed under: $, 2 stars, California, Cost, Cuisine, Dine Again?, Go Again, Japanese, Location, Peninsula, Rating, Restaurant, United States | Tags: , , , , , |