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Noren

4.3 (47 reviews)
ModerateJapanese
Closed • Closed

Noren Photos

NOREN ATMOSPHERE

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Good for kids

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Curry udon
Laurence V.

Noren is a cute and cozy little hole-in-the-wall restaurant in the Plateau that is a must for all Japanese food enthusiasts to visit! They have one main dish that changes every week which I think is a very cool and unique concept. In combination to a limited menu, this allows curious customers to enjoy many dishes all during the same culinary experience! I specifically went during the week they had curry udon since it's one of my favourite meals of all time. My boyfriend and I were lucky and were seated right away in the evening. The service was great and the ambiance is modern but still Japanese-like with the bar and its stools along the kitchen. The menu written on an entire wall in chalk is also a nice touch! The food was excellent as well, and I really enjoyed the curry udon (although I must be honest, it wasn't my favourite). I give Noren 4 stars rating due to the fact that it is a bit pricey for what it is, the establishment is so small that standing in line is almost inevitable, and that the service was a bit slow. Even then, I'm definitely coming back!

Takoyaki closeup
Issan Z.

A friend of mine kept talking about this place, so we took a little walk in the Plateau to find Noren. It's a small place, but very well designed and organized. A huge chalk board on the wall (chalk-wall?) listed the two constants of the menu, the takoyaki and okonomiyaki, plus the special and drinks. We ordered everything, namely the takoyaki (classic sauce), the okomiyaki (pork) and the special, which was banbanji (chicken cold udon). There was no place to sit anymore and we had 20 mins to wait, so we went for a short stroll to the park nearby. When we came back, we used the leftover waiting time to play the Nintendo Famicom that was sitting in the corner of the restaurant. I wish all restaurant had consoles. It would make waiting times so much more agreable!! We had the food as take-out, and everything came neatly packaged. The takoyaki was piping hot and absolutly delicious. Some of them didn't seem to have any tako in them, but the katsuobushi, sauce and other condiments were enough to make the soft dough sparkle with flavor. The okomiyaki was another great piece of work. It was full of shredded, still crunchy cabbage, and was much less rich/overwhelming than what you find at, e.g. Imadake. The surface of the pancake was nicely browned and the toppings were as good as ever. The pink, marinated ginger on top gave the dish some bite. The banbanji, in contrast, was a bit less impressive. The flavors were much more simple and subtle, and so it was easily overshadowed by the two previous dishes. Also, I have to say that I cook udon regularly at home, so the experience was a bit less exciting. I hope next time the special will be soba! Strongly recommend the takoyaki and okonomiyaki!!

Takoyaki Classique
Jack M.

Takoyaki was an interesting experience. While there was an elegant seafood and soy flavor profile, the balls were generally dominated by batter. I was not impressed. $8 for what amounted to 6 octopus fritters would be OK if there were more substantial meat. I'll have to come back and grab the okonomiyaki and try that. This particular dish did not impress me.

JiaYin C.

This restaurant is super cozy and can sit up to 15 people! It can get really hot in there since its open kitchen and the AC isn't turned on at maximum power, especially during summer. Nonetheless the food taste amazing. They have various side dishes that remain the same think, and a main dish that they change every week or so. The portions are not that big though. In my opinion they make the best Takoyaki I've tasted so far in Montreal. Cooked on point with a generous portion of octopus inside!

Stanley D.

Overpriced for what it is, unfortunately. I went there for lunchtime during a weekday with a friend. After seeing the multiple good reviews on Yelp, I decided to give this restaurant a try. The decor itself is nice and cute, considering it is small and you can actually see your food being cooked (somehow) if you are sitting at their bar. As for the food, while the taste itself was decent, I found I could've gotten more for my money. I ordered their special of the week, which was a bowl of rice with chicken + egg. I also ordered okonomiyaki and takoyaki to share. The bowl of rice itself was kinda bland in flavor, without not many flavors in my mouth. As for the okonomiyaki and the takoyaki, I previously visited Japan, so my expectations were fairly high. The taste of those dishes was decent, but definitely not as good as I expected. One of the things that attracted me to this place is that I heard they run out quickly, and did not want to miss out on my chance to taste their offerings. I must say while I was not overly disapointed, I was not impressed neither.

Chalkboard menu
D'Arcy L.

I was down in the Plateau one evening and felt like scratching off one of my many uptown bookmarks that I don't always get the chance to test out. Entering the restaurant it's a quaint- smallish little place. Communal seating is around the kitchen counter area and there are a couple of other tables and seating. If you are coming as a large group it's not recommended. Perfect place for a 2 person meal. If you are 4+ party you will have a hard time as you will wait for a table. The menu is simple and on the chalkboard on the back right wall. Very nice to see Osaka style Japanese dishes Okonamiyaki and Takoyaki are the main dishes served. The menu had a few other dishes however selection is limited. So I decided to go with both O and T. It's interesting as you sit and watch as they prepare the food in the back corner. Decorations in the restaurant are all Japanese themed. The old TV and video games plus menu are a quirky yet cool touch! The food does take a bit of time to come out as they only had one takoyaki machine. Also a small grill on the back can only prepare one omelette at a time. The wait was a bit long however it was well worth it. Okonomiyaki was delicious. Best one I've sampled outside of Japan. Perfect crunch of the cabbage, creaminess of the mayo and Okonomiyaki sauce and lightly crispy Pork. If I closed my eyes I would think I'm down by the Glico running man neon sign in Dottonbori with Pachinko parlours buzzing in the background. Takoyaki was very good also. Tako pieces were a bit small (usually the case in North America) however it was piping hot, doughy, and needed some time to cool off. It was served with a generous serving of bonito flakes that danced around as I was waiting for it to cool. It was puffy, slightly chewy and creamy yet the takoyaki sauce offered a delicate yet balanced flavour. Overall a very strong 4 stars for Noren. If you enjoy Japanese and want to try something different definitely give it a try.

Kate G.

I've been looking forward to going here since a friend recommended it and I realised it was around the corner from my house! I arrived at about 2pm and queued for quite a while - maybe half an hour? - but because the restaurant is quite small, seating around 10 people, I'm not surprised. The menu is small but decent, with a couple of starter options (takoyaki and okonomiyaki with a couple of variations on flavour available), then a special of the day which today was a spicy tuna, poached egg and rice don bowl. I had the vegetarian cheese takoyaki and the special with a hojicha tea - I was pleased to see hojicha on the menu because it's my favourite tea, but hard to find! I really recommend it - it's a roasted green tea and it's incredible. The takoyaki were fresh and hot (the server warned me to wait a couple of minutes, even - the kitchen is so small that I watched them being cooked) although they arrived after the rice dish, which I wasn't expecting. They were tasty and full of flavour, and the classic sauce on top was tart and perfectly matched to the flavour of the takoyaki batter. The tuna was lovely and tender, though not all that spicy; underneath were some lightly pickled cucumbers which were so good that I might get a side of just cucumbers next time. The rice was plain and unflavoured, which was a little disappointing - maybe more sauce would be welcome - and the egg was served cold. This wasn't a huge deal as it was nicely poached, not all that runny but soft and creamy, kind of like ramen eggs are, but with a much softer white. I really love this place and the servers are sweet, and despite being pretty small it never felt all that cramped. There's even a Famicom in the corner if you're into video games!

Mushroom okonomiyaki
Steven O.

Wow! Easily the best takoyaki and okonomiyaki I've had in Canada. I much prefer Hiroshima style okonomiyaki, but I don't think I've seen that in Canada anyway. Basically it's mostly cabbage with no noodles here. I tried the mushroom, but would have liked to try their pork. The takoyaki came piping hot. It's actually almost impossible to enjoy these beauties without destroying them or burning the roof of your mouth, but the flavour, texture, and balance of gooeyness is perfect. Love and highly recommend this cute little restaurant with friendly service.

Kathy P.

Cozy small japanese restaurant. They don't have much on their menu. Fixed menu with okonomiyaki and takoyaki and will have weekly specials. Not suitable for big groups as the place is very small (max 10-15 spots available). We were 7 people and the staffs were very accommodating with us. Great service! Food is great! Just got back from a Japan trip not long ago. I would say that it managed to satisfy my craving! Their dessert of the week was a wasabi cake, surprisingly very good! Must try, especially if youre missing food from your japan trip!

Kim N.

My boyfriend and I were visiting Montreal and wanted to eat our way through the city. We came during a relatively busy time (festival season) and on really hot day. We waited about 10 minutes or so to get seated. The place is small and super cute (I've seen smaller). We sat at the window where they placed Japanese books/magazines on a variety of things i.e design, food, etc. Food: we ordered the eggplant, king oyster mushrooms, and okonomiyaki (half mushroom half pork). The eggplant was my favorite but we loved and finished everything. The only thing we were bummed about was the soba noodles were out but granted we came here an hour before closing. I saw other customers chowing on udon and it looked really fresh. They also have weekly specials and special pop ups it seems. :) It was the right amount of food for the both of us on a semi empty stomach. If you're really hungry I'd suggest to order one more thing. We were really happy when we left and walked around the neighborhood as it's close to a lot of other shops / parks.

Noren menu
Priscilla L.

I came here with my sister on a Friday night and it was packed. The place is very small, minimalist decor - which I loved. There are only 10 places so we had to wait a little bit before a place to sit opened up. When a place did open it, it was at the counter, which was really great. We had the pleasure of watching the owners cooking and plating all the food. We had takoyaki (6 pieces) for 7$, an okonomiyaki (which is a fried omelette with pork, cabbage and shiitake mushrooms) for 9$ and a week plate which was somèn noodles (cold dish) for 9$. We also tried their homemade yuzu soda 3,5$. I'm not a big fan of octopus and never had good takoyaki but the ones here are really amazing. Easily the best I've had. All the food, honestly, is delicious. Not only was the food very good, it was tasty, not pricey and the service was very good. I can't wait to go back to have some more takoyaki. Also we had a little bit of trouble to find the place since the address wasn't very clear. St-Laurent street separates Rachel West from Rachel East so make sure to go left on Rachel Street from St-Laurent. The restaurant is next to Le P'tit Atelier bakery.

Tammy M.

What a very sweet surprise on a chilly wet dreary eve! I recalled passing this place a number of times during summer, always missing its open hours. I'd hoped they might serve ramen, so on my way down the Plateau to the Belgo this eve I stopped in for a comfort bowl of the soup. No ramen, but a lovely couple (the proprietors), and their equally lovely sister were happily cooking up some fabulous aromas, and feel-great vibes. The tiny space is beautifully designed. Really love the black back wall and super clean, shiny, minimal, functional details. The small vintage? TV set and stereo, a great aside. This is crowded Japan design at its zen best. The menu is really minimal as well. I didn't have a lot of spare time, but feeling peckish tried the Takoyaki. Wow, I'd never had anything like this dumpling before. Apparently, in the style of dumpling from a prefecture just west of Tokyo. Had Yuzo Tea along with. What a complete tongue bud tissue riot! BOOM another happy place in Montreal. KUDOS Noren!!! I look forward to my next meal in your very special labour of love. PS drinking licence coming soon | equals later closing hours.

Oki omit ski, Shogayaki, matcha soda, and yuzu soda
Lily L.

This is my favourite japanese restaurant in Montreal. The food and service here is always top notch. I love that the menu changes every single week but their staples, okonomiyaki and takoyaki, is the best in town. Will never stop recommending this spot

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8 years ago

Best Japanese restaurant in town! If you don't believe me, great! A better chance for me to get a seat!

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7 years ago

I know it's a siganture, but skip the poutine. Come here instead. Simply put, this is a relaxed delicious meal. Get the okonomiyaki.

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Kazu - Chicken Skewers.

Kazu

4.3(755 reviews)
2.7 km•Ville-Marie
•$$

My dad and I have eaten at this restaurant maybe 3 times now. It's a must for us anytime we're in…read moretown. This little spot opens around 5 and I recommend coming early, or expect a wait. You can also order to go here I believe. They really operate efficiently, expect fast service! Tables are tightly situated and there's a cozy bar situation where I sat this time, able to watch the chefs cook right in front of me. The daily specials are posted on their Instagram page, as well as written on pieces of paper around the restaurant. My server quickly helped me to water and a glass of sake. I placed a to go order for one of the daily specials, the grilled sea bass with sushi rice and salad, with some kimchi. I also ordered the BBQ chicken with tortilla and salad, as well as vegetable gyoza. Everything was incredible. Truly. The gyoza came topped with green onions and was SO crispy and hot and was perfect with their soy sauce. I thought sea bass was wonderful with a unique almost smoky flavor that melted in my mouth paired with the slightly sweet sticky rice. The barbecue chicken was great as well and better the next day. One thing I don't really understand is why they served plain flour tortillas cut into quarters with their food. We didn't utilize this, nor the white butter/mayo sauce that came alongside it. I hope to eat here often, for years to come and am so happy to see this iconic Japanese restaurant still thriving years later.

This was a highly recommended place so we weren't surprised to find a line up when we arrived. We…read moreweren't sure if it would be worth the wait but the family in front of us raved about it so we decided to stay. No regrets! We were a party of 3 and waited about half an hour to be seated. There is not a ton of seating in the restaurant. It is small and the tables are quite close together. We were a little disappointed that they ran out of salmon so we couldn't order any salmon sashimi dishes. We got skewers which were absolutely delicious! We also ordered takoyaki and okonomiyaki but there was nothing special about those. Wouldn't really recommend the okonomiyaki either. Would definitely recommend trying the Shrimp Burger and the Salmon Calcium (salmon pate).

Photos
Kazu - We made it!!! The wait is not long!

We made it!!! The wait is not long!

Kazu - 48 hours pork bowl

48 hours pork bowl

Kazu - Sake

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Sake

Biirū - corn croquettes

Biirū

4.1(209 reviews)
1.7 km•Centre-Ville, Ville-Marie
•$$

Came here for a reservation with a big group of 17 for a friend's Bach dinner during our trip to…read moreMontreal after doing research and I'm happy to report that it did not disappoint. I wanted to share my experience because their online and in person menu is quite ambiguous and doesn't do justice in explaining their tasting menus. What I really like about this restaurant is that unlike many, they don't make everyone order the same thing. It just requires a minimum of 2 people for the tasting menu and everyone else can order what they please otherwise. The $55 tasting menu is pretty worth it imo. The fact that a drink alone is about $17 as is makes it worth, because it comes with multiple tapas and a drink of choice. The server tried his best to explain everything to us beforehand, but we couldn't help but start to worry during the meal when a few plates came out and we hadn't seen anything for a while. Basically, there are 3 courses, and each course contains multiple items which come out pretty quickly all at once. We started off with lighter apps like edamame, karaage, gyoza, and Japanese pasta. There will be a waiting period before the next course comes out (but don't panic like we did, it doesn't end here). The second course contained tuna poke, a vegetable dish, beef tataki, and takoyaki. There is another waiting period before the third (and heaviest) course comes out. We received pork ribs (a crowd favourite), salmon, and a watermelon salad to end. There were definitely more dishes that I'm forgetting but by the end of it we were all stuffed and pleasantly surprised with the variety we received and unanimously thought it was pretty worth. The restaurant environment is also such a vibe... just a great social setting overall. We had some people in our group that opted out of the tasting menu and decided to share à la carte style, and they also enjoyed their meal and thought it was worth it too. I'd highly recommend this spot as it was a highlight during our trip.

Nice ambiance bar and sitdown. Was seated after confirmation of reservation. Staff was very nice…read moreespecially the recommended that sit at the bar since that seems to be where everything is happening. The only issue is that the bar seat area was pretty tight against the seated tables around so whenever someone passes by I usually get my back brushed or sometimes pushed so be aware. The lighting is somewhat dim to keep that sort of cozy vibe. Bartender was friendly and patient with my drink order, which ended up just being a beer. 4/5 SAUMON BONBONS: Salmon well fried but dtill moist. The sweet sauce mixed well and definitely goes well with beer. 3.5/5 Bacon mochi good and super chewy but def will fill u up quick. Coleslaw nice offset and tangy. I liked the first couple chews but then started getting really filled so was experiencing the too much eats before being able try anything else. Overall great place to go with date or group. Its a bit noisy so plan accordingly.

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Biirū
Biirū - Takoyaki

Takoyaki

Biirū - Food: Korn Korokke and Kaisen don Drink: Totoro

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Food: Korn Korokke and Kaisen don Drink: Totoro

KINTON RAMEN UNION - Spicy garlic pork ramen

KINTON RAMEN UNION

4.0(45 reviews)
2.0 km•Quartier International de Montréal, Centre-Ville, Ville-Marie
•$$

Cute well lit ramen spot in downtown MTL good for family and friends. The service was nice and our…read morefood came out in decent timing. We got the repas pour quatre set with végé gyoza et edamame. I got the Jalapeño épicé au poulet with an œuf assaisonné & a coke. I would've gotten the limonade however only boissons gazeuses are included, so be aware of that. The ramen itself was good, the chicken however was a bit dry and that's where they lost half a star. The other half was when I found out gratuity was already included after tipping. I only found this out because I happened to see the restaurant check (the one they give you has that price on there, but it doesn't say tip). Well played. The food was good enough to return for, but not the games.

While I was in Montreal, I had to check out the FAMOUS Kinton Ramen (yes, I know about this spot…read morefrom their graphic t shirt collaboration with Uniqlo LOL). I stopped by around 8:45 PM, 15 minutes before they closed, but the staff were so kind and lovely, let me dine in, gave me a free drink on the house, and even told me to take my time and not worry about closing. I ordered the spicy garlic pork ramen with thick noodles, and I was blown away with how flavorful the broth and QQ (chewy) the noodles were. I didn't like the pork that much and found it a bit tough and gamey, but they do have two other types of meat (chicken, beef) as well as a vegetarian option available, as well as seasonal menu specials. If I was at McGill, I'd probably visit this spot a bit too often LOL, and I highly recommend checking them out for their comforting ramen bowls and incredibly kind service!

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KINTON RAMEN UNION - Inside

Inside

KINTON RAMEN UNION - Spicy garlic pork ramen

Spicy garlic pork ramen

KINTON RAMEN UNION - Spicy garlic pork ramen

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Spicy garlic pork ramen

Noren - japanese - Updated October 2026

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