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Loved Ippudo (one wind hall) when I was in Fukuoka, Japan last year. This offshoot Kuro-Obi (black belt) of Ippudo is not even close. We had the TanTan ramen $26.30 w/ toppings (corn $2.20, bamboo $3.50, scallion $2.50 w/cabbage and bean sprouts $3.30) and the Kuro -Obi ramen $16.80. The noodles here are thicker. Bowls are smaller and made of paper. The broth is 1/2 way acceptable for a Japanese chain. The menu is so different than their Japan locations. I absolutely loved their Shiromaru Classic (white circle) and Akamaru Modern (red circle) in Japan. Missing are are deep rich flavors.
Stopped by on Monday, 09/01/25. Located at the food court area at Hillsdale Shopping Center (San Mateo, CA), my mom and I ordered the following: - 1 pork miso ramen noodle = $14.80 - 1 veggie miso pork noodle = $14.80 SUBTOTAL = $29.60 TAX (9.625%) = $2.85 OVERALL TOTAL = $32.45 Food was OKAY - not as authentic as we expected it to me.
Nothing outside of expectations from a ramen shop in a mall food court. My family went on a Saturday afternoon, and there was pleasantly no line so we could take our time with the options. Portion sizes are as expected, and taste was fine (maybe on the saltier end but that might just be a subjective preference). Their namesake Kuro-Obi ramen had more bean sprouts than anything, and the spicy miso ramen was ok. We also got the chicken karaage, which was also served with lemon and mayo to cut the salt. No notes on the ambiance since it's just food court seating. Good for a random craving.
Do NOT come here! I can confidently say this is one of the worst purchases I've had on food in years. My girlfriend and I had high hopes for this place but we got disappointed, severely disappointed. I don't mean this lightly in this is one of the worst ramen I've had. It was the most oily broths I've ever had too , so much so it made my stomach feel upset after I barely finished it. The presentation was a horrible for the price. On the website they showed beautifully nice presentation but in reality it was a To-go box wobbly mess. It felt like we got cheated/scammed off of we should've gotten. Do yourself a favor and do not come here, don't buy from here, don't go near it, avoid this place or and get something else that Hillsdale has to offer.
Place is well kept and clean. Located right inside the mall. I LOVED how the mall has an area where you get to wash your hands before you eat your meal. Things seemed to have came in to-go containers. I guess making it easier for the workers so that they don't have have to do dishes. The broth for the ramen dishes seem to be hearty and flavorful. Small portions though. Service seemed to be eh regular. Didn't have to wait too long. It was my family and I's first time trying out this spot. I'm not from the area, but if I ever come back I'd try them again if I am craving ramen unless there is other options.
The mall and restaurant will need to keep place clean and safe for customers to dine, having a rat (or mouse) running around is not okay
$3 extra to add an egg??? No thanks. The ramen here is lackluster - quality has gone done (soggy vs bouncy noodles) from what I remember, and the portions are small. No wonder this place doesn't have a line anymore; I found more joy from our Panda Express plate, which by the way does still always have a line. Would not recommend.
First time visiting this mall and decided to try Kuro-Obi. To be frank, the ramen here isn't really anything special. It just feels like anything else? It's good but nothing more, it feels like the usual generic stuff. I personally feel the price is too high considering the quality of the food, you could get something better knowing that steep price tag
Ordered tantan ramen. My first time with tofu, second time with chicken, disgusting the chicken still raw and hard! The broth is ok but super salty, not much noodle too much green union and other crunchy veggies i don't know what is it! Tantan normally with ground meat, either beef or pork! This is not worth it
Get ready for small portions at regular prices. This is like a kids' bowl. Salty broth, undercooked noodles, slow service, skimpy toppings. No wonder there's no line. They charge an arm and a leg for chicken karagge, like $13 for a couple pieces!?!? I saw a woman order it and complain about the portion size, so we skipped that. The takoyaki we got for $10 for 8 pieces was no better. Chewy weird tasting balls with like no octopus and, again, undercooked. The Shiro-Obi didn't have the rich broth like advertised and again look at how few noodles are in this bowl. I think vending machines give you bigger portions!
Wanted to like it. Did not. Lady was nice enough to go over the wonderful 3 types of noodles they have, just to say that we're not allowed to change to them. The broth of the tonkotsu was pretty good. However they serve it in some generic cardboard bowls which means it got cold really quickly. The meat was tough sadly. And at this point we both were thinking u know- this is mid, maybe lower mid. However, we then ate a piece of the bamboo shoot (which I assume is pickled based on taste) and got a HUGE shock as it is like this sour citrusy flavor. Bro- that does NOT belong in ramen. That killed it for me. $42 for this is insane. Rather have my money back.
There were several red flags but I decided to order because in the past they had pretty decent ramen. I don't know what happened; maybe the owner changed but the recipe changed for sure. First off the menu now just has photos with the name of the dish without any description. I had to ask the cashier which each dish was. It was also very expensive (same pricing as a sit down place) but this is supposed to be mall food. I expected if the price is high it's o-k if the food is at least good. We ordered the Aka and Midori. Both were pretty disgusting. The egg and meat were cold. The soup was very oily. We threw out the food after eating half. Please go back to the old recipes. The noodle quality was better previously too.
4 months ago
We were shopping in the mail and decided to check out the food court. It was meatless Saturday so I was hunting for veggie options when I came across Kuro obi. Half their menu was vegetarian and I was tempted. I asked for a recommendation of their best ramen and I was suggested the veggie version of tan tan men with egg and tofu. We then found a table and opened up Yelp. That's when I saw the poor rating, we were in half mind to cancel the order but stuck to it and decided to try our luck. Our ramen came out in a few mins in a cardboard bowl. First of all the tofu was not this fresh out of the box. It was toasted and sliced thin similar to meat. The egg had a beautiful jammy center. The soup on the other hand didn't have much depth to speak of but was extremely flavorful and rich. I highly doubt it's traditional but I thoroughly enjoyed the flavor. There was some kind of pungent kick which I attributed to the raw onions it was topped off with but at the end I realized it was subtle flavor from Sichuan peppercorns. I definitely tasted them even though this was supposed to be Japanese ramen. Overall I loved my bowl. I might even go as far as saying this was the best veggie ramen I had in recent memory. read more
I read the yelp reviews (not such great reviews) but sometimes u just have to try it out for yourself. First of all, they need to provide a visible menu - their menu is posted at the cashiers window on 8x10 sheets of paper, or u can scan a barcode and order yourself. For 1st timers, the menu can be complicated & a bit hard to understand. It's easy to just walk away, as i saw a few ppl do. Servers seem a bit stand-offish but I think it's because English is their second language & they might not b comfortable communicating. The food - my Yuzu Shoyu ($13.80) was pretty flavorless, but yet pretty oily; could not detect any ginger and the tofu is a weird thin sliver - much prefer the cubed. Work on customer service and perfecting the broth and this place will have potential. read more
5 days ago
Stay clear of this place. Rip off!! Very small portions. When your order comes out it's like receiving a kid's menu size bowl of ramen!! I suspected it was going to be a small portion so I ordered a Tonkotsu and a Miso ramen. When they came out it was sooooo small!! The soup in the Tonkotsu was bland. Not flavorful at all. The soup in the Miso was really good. Very flavorful but WTF??? There is a layer oil floating in your bowl of soup. As for the Charshu? Definitely they need to make real Chinese Chashu! Not impressed! They have 3 large TV screens mounted up where the menu should be. But the TVs don't display the menu. It displays advertisement I believe. The menu is print on three 8.5x5 sheets of paper next to the register. How are customers supposed to see that huh? You hold up the line if you're undecided. Will NOT be coming back........ read more
Loved Ippudo (one wind hall) when I was in Fukuoka, Japan last year. This offshoot Kuro-Obi (black belt) of Ippudo is not even close. We had the TanTan ramen $26.30 w/ toppings (corn $2.20, bamboo $3.50, scallion $2.50 w/cabbage and bean sprouts $3.30) and the Kuro -Obi ramen $16.80. The noodles here are thicker. Bowls are smaller and made of paper. The broth is 1/2 way acceptable for a Japanese chain. The menu is so different than their Japan locations. I absolutely loved their Shiromaru Classic (white circle) and Akamaru Modern (red circle) in Japan. Missing are are deep rich flavors. read more
1 year ago
Stopped by on Monday, 09/01/25. Located at the food court area at Hillsdale Shopping Center (San Mateo, CA), my mom and I ordered the following: - 1 pork miso ramen noodle = $14.80 - 1 veggie miso pork noodle = $14.80 SUBTOTAL = $29.60 TAX (9.625%) = $2.85 OVERALL TOTAL = $32.45 Food was OKAY - not as authentic as we expected it to me. read more
Nothing outside of expectations from a ramen shop in a mall food court. My family went on a Saturday afternoon, and there was pleasantly no line so we could take our time with the options. Portion sizes are as expected, and taste was fine (maybe on the saltier end but that might just be a subjective preference). Their namesake Kuro-Obi ramen had more bean sprouts than anything, and the spicy miso ramen was ok. We also got the chicken karaage, which was also served with lemon and mayo to cut the salt. No notes on the ambiance since it's just food court seating. Good for a random craving. read more
3 months ago
Do NOT come here! I can confidently say this is one of the worst purchases I've had on food in years. My girlfriend and I had high hopes for this place but we got disappointed, severely disappointed. I don't mean this lightly in this is one of the worst ramen I've had. It was the most oily broths I've ever had too , so much so it made my stomach feel upset after I barely finished it. The presentation was a horrible for the price. On the website they showed beautifully nice presentation but in reality it was a To-go box wobbly mess. It felt like we got cheated/scammed off of we should've gotten. Do yourself a favor and do not come here, don't buy from here, don't go near it, avoid this place or and get something else that Hillsdale has to offer. read more
Place is well kept and clean. Located right inside the mall. I LOVED how the mall has an area where you get to wash your hands before you eat your meal. Things seemed to have came in to-go containers. I guess making it easier for the workers so that they don't have have to do dishes. The broth for the ramen dishes seem to be hearty and flavorful. Small portions though. Service seemed to be eh regular. Didn't have to wait too long. It was my family and I's first time trying out this spot. I'm not from the area, but if I ever come back I'd try them again if I am craving ramen unless there is other options. read more
9 months ago
The mall and restaurant will need to keep place clean and safe for customers to dine, having a rat (or mouse) running around is not okay read more
2 years ago
$3 extra to add an egg??? No thanks. The ramen here is lackluster - quality has gone done (soggy vs bouncy noodles) from what I remember, and the portions are small. No wonder this place doesn't have a line anymore; I found more joy from our Panda Express plate, which by the way does still always have a line. Would not recommend. read more
First time visiting this mall and decided to try Kuro-Obi. To be frank, the ramen here isn't really anything special. It just feels like anything else? It's good but nothing more, it feels like the usual generic stuff. I personally feel the price is too high considering the quality of the food, you could get something better knowing that steep price tag read more
1 year ago
Ordered tantan ramen. My first time with tofu, second time with chicken, disgusting the chicken still raw and hard! The broth is ok but super salty, not much noodle too much green union and other crunchy veggies i don't know what is it! Tantan normally with ground meat, either beef or pork! This is not worth it read more
Get ready for small portions at regular prices. This is like a kids' bowl. Salty broth, undercooked noodles, slow service, skimpy toppings. No wonder there's no line. They charge an arm and a leg for chicken karagge, like $13 for a couple pieces!?!? I saw a woman order it and complain about the portion size, so we skipped that. The takoyaki we got for $10 for 8 pieces was no better. Chewy weird tasting balls with like no octopus and, again, undercooked. The Shiro-Obi didn't have the rich broth like advertised and again look at how few noodles are in this bowl. I think vending machines give you bigger portions! read more
7 months ago
Ordered two of the Kuro-obi to go and all they gave me was noodles and bean sprouts. I should have checked before I left but why would they just package bean sprouts and noodle. read more
3 months ago
8 months ago
Wanted to like it. Did not. Lady was nice enough to go over the wonderful 3 types of noodles they have, just to say that we're not allowed to change to them. The broth of the tonkotsu was pretty good. However they serve it in some generic cardboard bowls which means it got cold really quickly. The meat was tough sadly. And at this point we both were thinking u know- this is mid, maybe lower mid. However, we then ate a piece of the bamboo shoot (which I assume is pickled based on taste) and got a HUGE shock as it is like this sour citrusy flavor. Bro- that does NOT belong in ramen. That killed it for me. $42 for this is insane. Rather have my money back. read more
2 years ago
There were several red flags but I decided to order because in the past they had pretty decent ramen. I don't know what happened; maybe the owner changed but the recipe changed for sure. First off the menu now just has photos with the name of the dish without any description. I had to ask the cashier which each dish was. It was also very expensive (same pricing as a sit down place) but this is supposed to be mall food. I expected if the price is high it's o-k if the food is at least good. We ordered the Aka and Midori. Both were pretty disgusting. The egg and meat were cold. The soup was very oily. We threw out the food after eating half. Please go back to the old recipes. The noodle quality was better previously too. read more
9 months ago
10 months ago
Cold flavorless piece of pork, noodles are hard, worst ramen I had in my entire life. I would rather be hungry than eat this. read more
1 year ago
Location is Hillsdale Shopping Center.Inside of food coart,and Lively atmosphere. I orderd tantan.It's so good taste.Service is normal. read more
It was my first time eating ramen. I was a little scared to try something new. I was shocked when I had the first taste of the broth. It was so amazing, the taste was so good! The make the food super fast and it's a cute spot. Overall I will return. I asked the guy who helped me what he recommended and he recommended the best one for sure! The service is great. Thank you read more
8 months ago
Had the chance to try this place for a quick dinner before an escape room. Lots of choices in the Hillsdale mall like this Japanese food venue. Service was quick since there wasn't a line. After I ordered, a few people were interested in ordering. Nice set up that seems authentic and classy with the wooden furnishing counter. I ordered their chicken kara-age with rice. A medium portion of chicken about 4-5 medium sized pieces upon 2.5-3 scoops of rice with some salad. Great touch of a lemon wedge to add that zest and sour flavor. Once I shook up the bowl, I was ready to dig in. The chicken was crispy with juicy meat drenched in their house katsu sauce which added an umami flavor. The salad and rice were alright. I was happy with my order though because I didn't feel bloated after finishing the entire thing. Good dish and would try other dishes from here. read more
2 years ago
4 years ago
Food (5/5 stars): Bay Area stop #2: Best food court meal I've ever had. I highly recommend their Black Belt ramen! Experience (5/5 stars): * Price: pretty reasonable * Wait Time: there was quite a wait because we had a big party * Service: good and friendly * Parking: there's a parking lot * Ambiance: it's in the Hillsdale food court, which is nicer than you're average one read more
1 year ago
3 years ago
Stopped by here after going to the escape room close by. The guy at the counter was very friendly. I ended up getting two ippudo buns...one chicken and one veggie. We got the mayo based sauces on the side since I was sharing when someone who doesn't like mayo . The wait wasn't too bad, and I thought it was pretty tasty, but definitely needed the sauce. I do wish it was more grilled like the menu pic but oh well. I also wish I realized that it's 3 for $13. I will definitely come back and try more things. read more
1 year ago
Would not recommend this place to anyone, the food is bad and overpriced and it used to be so much better and cheaper a few years ago. I spent $22 on a low-quality ramen bowl with cheap ingredients. If you're looking for a ramen place that's actually good, I'd recommend Ramen Parlor or Santa Ramen which are both in San Mateo and very high quality (and cheaper). read more
3.5 stars. Found myself hungry at the mall yesterday and decided to give Kuro-Obi a shot. On a Saturday, late afternoon, there was no line, so I was able to walk right up and place my order. Went with the Kuro-Obi (black belt) ramen: tori paitan (chicken broth) with fragrant garlic oil, umami miso paste, scallions, shredded cabbage, kikurage mushrooms, and chashu ($11.50). Had I noticed that you can add a bakudan ("spicy bomb to add a kick to your ramen") for $2 more, I would've. I also got an order of the chicken buns: pieces of karaage tossed in their "special BBQ sauce" with a drizzle of Japanese mayo, wrapped in soft buns (2 for $8.50). Since there was only one order ahead of mine, the food came within minutes. The ramen was a smaller bowl than at most ramen places, but it was still a satisfying meal in itself. The broth was really delicious and had great flavor, and the noodles were cooked perfectly, al dente with just the right amount of chew. The chashu was tasty, but the pieces are small and thin and there were only two in the bowl. That felt a bit stingy. I know the bowl is only $11.50, but at least one more piece of chashu would've sufficed given their overall size and cut. The chicken buns were good. I thought the BBQ sauce had a bit too much sweetness, but the pieces of karaage were super hot and cooked fresh and not on the small side like the chashu. The buns were soft but still had that perfect chew and denseness to hold up to the chicken. My biggest compliant is the nickel-and-diming on all the add-ons. Egg, corn, nori, bamboo shoots, and the "spicy bomb" are an extra $2 each, or you can do the combo add-on of chashu, an egg, and nori for $5. If you just want two extra pieces of chashu, it's $3. With the exception of extra meat, these add-ons aren't usually add-ons but are included in a typical bowl of ramen. Adding, say, an egg, nori, and bamboo shoots brings your reasonably-priced $11.50 bowl of ramen up to $17.50 -- on par with the average price of a bowl of ramen around the Bay Area, but smaller in size and without the experience of a sit-down, full-service restaurant. Overall, I liked Kuro-Obi. I thought the broth was really, really nice and the noodles were very delicious and well cooked. The guy behind the counter was also super nice and friendly. But the bowl being on the smaller side and the cost of the add-ons impacted my overall rating. I'd say give them a shot -- the novelty of being the only Kuro-Obi on the west coast and outside of New York City is kind of cool -- and see what you think. I'd try them again and especially so I can make the ramen spicy, but the cost would prevent me from eating here regularly even if I lived much closer. read more
Business owner information
Panda
Hi Angela,…
5 years ago
Plenty of other options for food at Hillsdale. I ordered the red belt ramen. The order took at least 20-30 minutes on a Saturday. There were only 2 people working, so they were definitely short staffed and it showed. They had to manage everything from cooking to cleaning to taking orders. I think a lot of people also placed orders online, which made it seem like no one was waiting for food at first. By the time I got mine, there was a big crowd of people waiting. When it comes to ramen, I look for the noodle and the soup. I will say that the soup here was pretty good, but it in no way made up for the noodles. They were super overcooked to the point that they were mushy. For the price/portion size/quality, I am definitely not returning because there are so many good ramen places around San Mateo. read more
Business owner information
Panda
Hi Jessica,…
I was shopping with mi madre one Monday at Hillsdale, the bane of my middle and high school experience. I remember when this was THE place to be. Years later (a lady never reveals her age!), and Hillsdale has gone upscale. The new food court is much larger, airier, brighter, and has better food (albeit pricier food.) I'd been to Uncle Tetsu's a few years ago when it was new and the bee's knees, but hadn't eaten a meal in that new food court before. My mom and I perused the offerings, and landed on Kuro-Obi. We love ramen and were fascinated by the TV showing a cool video of how their noodles were made. Such authenticity! My mom ordered the eponymous Kuro-Obi ramen ("black belt") with extra pork belly, and I tried the Aka-Obi ramen ("red belt") with extra pork belly. The red belt was spicier than the Kuro-Obi--we both agreed our broths were good, but the noodles were meh--they didn't stand out. Prices are cheaper than most ramen places in my good ol' hometown of San Mateo, which has in recent years emerged as something of a ramen haven or enclave; that being said, though portions are smaller, it is sort-of nice to not take leftover ramen home. Service was good and friendly and helpful--very busy at lunchtime. Will be back when I'm back at Hillsdale. read more
2 years ago
Was very excited to see Ippudo endorsed ramen place in the Peninsula and was so eager to try out. Visited this place during lunch today with my friend. Was disappointed with the portion sizes to be honest. Super small bowls and so pricy? And no where close to Ippudo noodles. I had the spicy ramen and it was ok. The small bowls made it so difficult to mix the noodles around. We ordered the combo buns coz they were the best parts of Ippudo. And they were alright too. Bit sweet. The buns are really soft just like I remember. Am not sure if I'd visit this again. It's located in the Hillsdale mall food court so it's either a hit or miss to find a spot. read more
3 years ago
2 years ago
This is a pretty solid spot for food court ramen! I was impressed by the broth flavor -- it had a nice robust chicken flavor. The texture of the noodles were also springy and not soggy at all. Since this looks like an off shoot of Ippudo, the quality of noodles definitely makes sense now. The pork pieces were very tender. I only wish they gave a little bit more meat and noodles but it hit the spot. My bowl was ready pretty quickly. I also wanted a bun but they told me that would take ~20 minutes so I decided not to get it this time (I wasn't clear if that was standard or maybe it was just due to the weekend crowds). I will come back to grab a bite from here if I'm at the mall since there aren't other ramen places in this food court. read more
I came here and got the vegetarian ramen because I was wanting a hot dish! The dish was prepared pretty quickly and when I finally got into the meal. The ramen lacked flavor. It honestly didn't have much of a taste so that was disappointing. The staff seemed pretty nice. I did have the veggie bun which I thought was the better dish between the two. It kind of seemed artificial but still tasted fine overall. It may have been an off day so I'm willing to give it one more fo. read more
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60 E 31st Ave
San Mateo, CA 94403
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(650) 571-1009
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http://kuroobi.nyc
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