Small ramen shop, good service, and good value for kids eat free Tues and Wednesdays. It was…read morepretty busy as customers kept queuing up. Minimalist in design but what you'd expect from a ramen shoppe. Do yourself a favor and get on Yelp waitlist. I liked the food. The fried chicken app had good texture, a bit dry but good taste. A piece of the chicken also comes with the kids meal. I had the curry katsu, which was a really good portion. I split it with my family. We thought the curry was tasty and hit the spot. I used their hot chili oil on everything, a good hint of sesame flavor in it. Wasn't too spicy. Char Siu has a good fat to meat ratio, well flavored throughout. Good pieces for the kids meal. The noodles are unique - wider, curly and flat. I wasn't too much a fan, but it's worth trying.

First time here and it definitely delivered! We happened to visit on a Tuesday evening and lucked…read moreinto their "one free kids' meal per adult entree" promo. The dining room is fairly compact, with standard tables and counter seating. It's served by a single waiter, so expect a bit of a wait--we waited about 30 minutes at 6:00 PM on a Tuesday. The food was worth every minute, though. I ordered the Tsukemen (Dipping Ramen with Dashi Shoyu), and the noodle texture was incredible--perfectly chewy and soft. The kids' meal is a generous spread that includes a bowl of ramen (your choice of Pork, Shoyu, or Miso broth) with two pieces of Toro Chashu, corn, and green onions, plus sides of juicy fried chicken, edamame, and french fries. Highly recommended!

We recently stopped in to Nomu on our first night of a family vacation, and had a lovely supper!…read more The restaurant was conveniently located in Glenview, and had plenty of parking outside, even though we were there during primetime on a Saturday night! The dining room is really pretty, and well-appointed! We were seated right away by friendly staff. Looking around, this appeared to be a very family-friendly establishment, as that was, by far, the most prominent type of connoisseur in the house on this evening! Our waitress was wonderful, and helped us with some recommendations upon us letting her know it was our first visit! She checked in with us frequently, and made sure drinks were always refilled promptly! We had a bunch of different items, and all were very good! We tried sushi rolls, beef noodles, and ramen. I'd have to say that the beef noodles probably were the best item for me! Prices were just about as you'd expect: not too high, but not super cheap either...but wholly justified by the great food and lovely service and experience! Food = 4/5 Facility = 4/5 Service = 4/5 Ambiance = 4/5 Value = 3/5

Absolutely loved the food that we ordered! At first I wasn't sure what I'd be walking into but we…read morewere very satisfied and happy with the quality. The garlic ramen was flavorful with rich pork broth, the chashu was perfect balanced with fat and meat portion. The katsu was my favorite with their special sauce. The service was fast, friendly, loved the atmosphere of the restaurant. Highly recommended!

Love their veggie ramen bowl. Just tried out there Park Ridge location and their very good. Not too…read morehappy about them going to a smaller bowl because $16 is high enough already for just soup but they're flavorful and fresh. Wish these restaurants would stop scaling down portions when the prices are high enough as it is.

I eat Ramen soup 1-2x per week. First time at Chicago Ramen today. It's been on my radar for a…read morewhile. Ordered the lunch special. Red Ramen with the Chicken Karaage appetizer. Chicken was extremely tasteless. And the ramen soup was unlike any other ramen I've ever had. I know it's supposed to be "unique" here; adding an American-style to the dish. That's what the menu cover says. But I'll stick with traditional ramen soup, thank you.

When looking for a quick dinner option we came across Ramen Time on Yelp and decided to give it a…read moretry. Ramen Time isn't a restaurant you would see from the street. It is sharing space with Jimmy Thai and the signage outside is for Jimmy Thai. When we arrived we were quickly seated and given two menus. One for Jimmy Thai and one for Ramen Time. We were also given one plastic bottle of water per a person. The ramen menu allows you to choose a broth, protein and add-ons. The bowl comes with a molten egg and vegetables that usually come with ramen. I got the skinny option which was half the portion of noodles and additional vegetables in addition to a protein and molten egg. The ramen was good. The egg was a bit overcooked and one of the vegetables was thick chunks of green pepper which was good but different. The price was reasonable. If you are in the area and enjoy ramen give it a try.

Spicy chicken ramen was delicious and so was the basil beef! Would come here again. Although they…read morewere busy we got seated right away. Decent service for how busy they were.

This review is for my first visit to the Wheeling Chicago Ramen location. I have been to their Des…read morePlaines location once. My family and I had been wanting to go to this location for a while and a recent weeknight presented a perfect opportunity to check out this establishment. Located in a small plaza in front of the Westin hotel, this Chicago Ramen is a nice little spot for grabbing a delicious bowl (or two) of ramen. Upon our arrival, we were seated promptly. Our friendly server provided the menus and shortly after was ready to take our order; however, we were not ready yet and took a bit longer to order. The menu was a condensed version of what I have seen at the Des Plaines location. There were six Ramen options, a handful of appetizers, extra toppings options, and beverage options. Also, there was a Ramen special menu and a Kids menu. A few minutes later, we placed our order of 1) Edamame, 1) Karage, 2) Shrimp Wonton Ramen, and 1) White Miso Ramen. The apps of Edamame and Karage came out soon and the ramen bowls followed shortly. The Karage were freshly cooked. The Karage were chunky, meaty and plump chicken nuggets. The meat was juicy and tender, and they were lightly battered. The flavor was decent and the texture was okay. I felt that a bit more frying would have helped it taste better. My Shrimp Wonton Ramen was the start dish for me. It was everything I wanted as far as the flavor of the broth and the texture of the noodles, shrimp, and wonton were concerned. The broth was hot and fresh. It had a nice savory flavor and I added some of the table side condiments for extra umami and spicy taste. The noodles were of the right texture where they had body and good slurp-a-bility factor without being soggy and sloppy. The White Miso Ramen was a nice creamy and rich broth that came loaded w/ cuts of pork that were tender. It was also delicious. I enjoyed my bowl of ramen a lot and managed to finish it instead of having leftovers. It hit the spot perfectly. We had a good experience and would go back. If you haven't been to this spot, then definitely check them out.

This Chicago Ramen is a small restaurant, so far, we have not dined in, we would rather eat in the…read morecomfort of our own home. However, it has been our go-to place for ramen takeout for some time now, this review is focused on their takeout ramen. After about two years' time, we have narrowed our preferences to the Red Miso Ramen with Egg and the White Miso Ramen with Egg. Both ramen comes with a big piece of Cha-Shu (pork), bamboo shoot, and green onion. The Cha-Shu is very tender and flavorful, and the egg cooked just right. The ramen noodles are bouncy with the right texture. When it comes to broth, the White Miso Ramen is definitely a winner over the Red Miso. I found the broth of the Red Miso a little too thick and there is a taste that makes it less pleasant than the other. There is ground pork in the broth of the White Miso, which adds flavor and complexity to the texture. Portions used to be very big, and I used to have leftovers. However, recently portions have shrunk and I could finish the entire bowl of White Miso Ramen with Egg in one meal with no problems. It would not be enough to feed someone with a bigger appetite than me. They had made a couple of mistakes in our takeout orders a year ago. Since then, they have been accurate with the orders and timing has also improved. I am pleased to have Chicago Ramen in our neighbor town, and a bowl of tasty ramen is so close by. I just saw that they have added Shrimp Wonton Ramen (and two other items) to their menu recently. Next time I might give that a try.

I recently found Blowfish on Yelp and had a chance to visit with my husband on a Saturday.  It has…read morealready grown from a hidden gem into a popular spot.  We made a 7:00 pm reservation and arrived on time.  The friendly hostess let us pick a table of our preference.  We settled into a spacious booth by a large window overlooking the front patio. Within minutes, the restaurant was completely packed, both indoors and outdoors.  There were guests waiting to be seated throughout the evening. If you visit on a busy night like this one, be prepared to allow longer time for the food to come to the table. I could see that some of the dishes were ready on the kitchen counter waiting to be delivered to the tables, but they seemed to be a bit short-handed, especially for the tables in the patio. Our server took our order at 7:10 pm, and it took 24 minutes for our food to come out at 7:36 pm. It was fine as we were not in a hurry. The décor of Blowfish is modern and comfortable.  Our server, Bu, was friendly, cheerful, efficient, and professional.  Both my husband and I ordered a Hot Green Tea ($2 x 2).  I ordered a Sakura Roll ($17), with crab mix, jalapeño, avocado, seared white tuna, white truffle oil, wasabi mayo, sweet soy sauce, and scallions.  It was beautifully presented and packed with flavors.  There were 9 pieces and I shared 1 with my husband who also liked it.  I ate some of the pieces whole and dissembled some of them, each of the ingredients was fresh and tasty, together they created complex flavors that didn't need any other sauces or wasabi.  It's a great choice that I'd happily order it again. My husband had a Black Garlic Tonkotsu Ramen ($18), with silky tonkotsu broth, pork chashu, kikurage, nitamago, scallions, corn, spinach, roasted seaweed, sesame, and black garlic oil.  The bowl of ramen looked attractive.  I asked him how it tasted; he said that it was one of the best bowls of ramen he's ever had!  Wow! That's high praise coming from him, I don't think I've ever heard him saying that before!  He said that there's a nice kick even though it was not noted on the menu.  I am intrigued and will definitely try it in our future visits. He also ordered 2 pieces of sashimi -- Hamachi/yellowtail ($8).  There seemed to be a misunderstanding, and two orders of sashimi were entered instead of one.  Since the sashimi portions were fairly small, he didn't bring it up to the server, he just happily ate them and paid the bill for 2 orders ($8 x 2).  The sashimi was fresh. We also ordered a Dragon Roll ($16) to go, that had shrimp tempura, BBQ eel, avocado, and cucumber.  It was also very good. Overall, we were delighted to discover Blowfish. Between the welcoming service, fresh, flavorful food, and comfortable atmosphere, it was an excellent dining experience. We'll definitely be back.

Our first time here. We chose to come because of the mostly positive reviews, and I would agree…read morewith much of what I've read. Quick to be seated, clean environment, friendly staff. The wait staff gave us time to just browse the menu without coming to us too quickly which really appreciated. We ordered the following: 1. Miso soup (I gave 4.5 stars) I really enjoyed it for the flavor. 2. Cucumber salad (4 stars) they give a large portion, marinated and thinly sliced cucumber with a sesame sprinkle on top. My partner said it would be a 5 if it was marinated for less time because it seemed a little floppy. Either too thinly sliced or marinated too long. He was looking for a crunch. 3. Tuna lobster sushi roll. (4 stars) I didn't expect it to be ground tuna on top, I was envisioning just a mix of lobster and tuna, this was pretty ground and then spicy as well. It was still good, I didn't expect the spice I guess because it was in the mayo? The wait staff explained it. I do think the menu should reflect spicy dishes with some sort of symbol to help. Fresh ingredients though. I'll definitely finish this. 4. Sunrise salmon poke bowl. (4 stars) my partner wanted to rate this 4.5 but a pretty significant fish bone went into his mouth and poked him. Otherwise, flavor was good, fresh fish, he loves the colors and said it's "beautiful." 5. Gyoza. (3 stars) This was kind of soggy or mid. The outside was flavorful, the beef inside was bland. Thanks for having us!

Came here with a friend when I discovered a legit Ramen place in the the plaza near my parent's…read morehouse. )Growing up, I'm pretty sure this used to be the Score I worked at.) The interior is simple but clean. I like that play Japanese music in the background. The menu is a little bit broader than a typical Ramen place. I think this is probably necessary in the suburbs where people may know less about Ramen and want a more diverse Japanese food experience. We ordered takoyaki and tonkotsu shoyu ramen since I read that this is Hokkaido Ramen place (they are know for creamy tonkotsu broth). Both were good. The takoyaki were decently sized. The Ramen was a tiny bit salty and the noodles were less al dente than I like, but overall very satisfying. Chashu was excellent flavors and cut thicker than typical. No egg in this by default but a lot of bean sprouts. Service was excellent. Riko was the perfect amount of attentive. We were there for a Thursday lunch so I was surprised so a few people were there, but I guess we missed the lunchtime rush, and it was the day before a holiday. I was told that a lot of their clientele are in Japanese and Korean expats working nearby so they are probably on vacation too. I hope the restaurant does well. There is a lot of Japanese competition, including right next-door, but this is the highest rated of all of them!

After hearing lots of positive feedback from friends who went to Sanjo, my wife and I made it a…read morepoint to make a trip out to try out the place. I love my ramen but have been hard pressed to find a true go-to place in the nearby suburbs. The first thing that stuck my eye on the menu was that they had Hokkaido ramen! Having just been to Hokkaido last summer, we knew we had to order it. While it's hard to compare it to the real deal in Japan, it was a very solid bowl of ramen and was truly reminiscent of the region's ramen scene. We also ordered their spicy tonkatsu ramen, a side of tempura, and a matcha latte. The tempura was solid and had the light airiness you'd expect. The spicy ramen was delicious and had the legit springy ramen noodles. The matcha latte tasted of real matcha and was perfectly sweetened! It was overall a great experience and we will definitely be back!

The baos are legit! In order of favorites:…read more - beef yakinuki so tender and such great flavor - pork chasu kimchi - the kimchi so good paired to the fatty pork - karaage bao - good but not as strong as other two The salmon onigiri wasn't great so took off a star. Would come back for that beef alone

Randomly stopped by here on a weekday early evening, late lunchtime frame. It is in a strip mall…read morearea with other stores and has lots of shared parking. Disclaimer I forgot to take a picture of what I ordered, which was the chicken teriyaki bento box I forgot because I was so hungry and everything was so freshly cooked and hot that I just dived right in. That bento box had edamame a spring roll gyoza and the rice covered in furikake plus the chicken teriyaki and seaweed salad and more. I also ordered the lychee jasmine tea, which was cold and absolutely delicious and it was not a cup of diabetes, thank goodness We also ordered a Tonkatsu bowl, which was very generous, freshly cooked and super tasty. Both orders came with a miso soup, which was also piping hot and tasty. The set up is definitely a little bit more fast food because you can order to counter and then get your food on a tray and sit down or you can order it from a kiosk as well. They also do takeout orders. The best part about this place besides the food and the ambience are just so cute and modern and clean is the staff and the manager. People really do make the difference and people really do enhance an experience and an overall lasting and first impression. I would absolutely come back here. It is super conveniently located. Great pricing with very generous portions. The owners are Japanese and everything here is super authentic.