Nikkei Ramen-ya 565…read moreEngland Ave Courtenay, BC V9N 2N2 (250) 897-4700 Open 7 days a week from 11.30am - 8pm except for Friday & Saturday (closes at 9pm) Street parking available around the restaurant It began on a sunny October day in 2016. Inspired by the shops of Vancouver, LA, and Tokyo, and driven by their love of noodles, Greg and Erin Masuda served the first bowl of authentic, scratch-made ramen that Vancouver Island had ever seen. Six years and 40 flavours later, Nikkei Ramen-ya still bustles; if you can't make it to our shop in Downtown Courtenay, you can now find our ramen at your local Vancouver Island grocer. From silky Tonkotsu to vegan-friendly options and crisp karaage chicken, we've got something for every craving. Gluten-free options are available Our review- We met a friend for dinner, we went early at about 4.30pm, it wasn't crowded yet. Ordered our ramen on an electronic kiosk menu board... By the electronic menu board, there are table # stand. Chose a number & put the number that you chose onto your order as identification. Then place the number stand on your table. The noodles were very good, nice soup broth... we enjoyed the noodles very much, we also added a side dish of green beans, dressing on the beans was like the Japanese spinach (Gomae). Beans was crunchy & with that dressing, it was yummy. Overall a very good experience, do check it out if you are in downtown Courtney. You will not be disappointed ! Place was clean with decent seats Come after lunch or before dinner, the place was crowded during dinner time.

We came here for the reviews but we are pretty disappointed. Ramen was cold and the pork tasted…read morespoiled. The tea that was almost $8 tasted worst than free tea (that we usually get when we go for Ramen). The only good thing was the Karagee but 4 pieces for $12 ??? Place was clean but service non existence, didn't even offer water. We are from Vancouver and we go for Ramen at least every other week so we know that is not authentic Ramen.

Wow, the first authentic asian place I encountered in my one week trip from nanaimo to port alberni…read moreto tofino. Run by Japanese people and you can feel the vibe through decorations and manners. After having some fake ramens, we especially enjoyed this place which is almost on par with Vancouver ramen shops. Black garlic oil is delicious as always and the spicy one is not spicy at all. The regular chashu is very tough sadly, but the pork belly one was very tender. I gave this place 5 stars despite the tough chashu since this is the best that you can get in the Nanaimo area. We also had the fried oysters which were yummy but quite expensive.

Very ,very disappointed, waited an hour, tasteless broth, one tiny blob of pork that was mostly…read morefat, we were excited to try but we won't recommend or go back. Total waste of money

This restaurant serves mostly Japanese cuisine (although not authentic) as well as Pho at the same…read moretime. Owned by a nice korean family. The ramen were frozen ramen packets you can buy at the grocery stores and the soup was definitely not pork bone soup simmered for hours. They did try to make some fusion taste and it was ok but because of the lack of work needed to make this, it should not be priced similar to real ramen. Also comes with a button mushroom disguised as a shitake mushroom. The udon soup was on par with other japanese restaurants since the dashi stock is fairly easy to make. The portion is very huge and the taste is not bad. The tempura was fried nicely. This one is priced fairly. Since Port Alberni lacks authentic Japanese cuisines, this is all they have. Taste-wise is ok for a fusion palate.

What a great little spot. They have pho and ramen everything was good. Our family enjoyed it.read more

Ohyama Ramen was a beautiful accident. Apparently it's a fairly frequent occurrence that people…read morestumble into here when looking for the sister store, Harajuku. Honestly, I'm so happy we ate here instead! Immediately, our party was transported into a cozy setting. The decor was fabulous! We had a nice little booth off to the side and our server was prompt and knowledgable with the menu. I had one of the chicken bowls and it warmed my soul and soothed my hanger (hungry-anger). My friends had ramen and the potstickers and everyone loved everything. Ohyama also has a few combo deals that are pretty elite. 10/10.

My friend and I was recommended to this restaurant when we were in town. So we decided to give it a…read moretry. The restaurant was fairly empty on a Saturday late afternoon. We quickly sat down and placed our order. Both my friend and I ordered the Bog Mountain ramen. It was well worth the price because it has most of the add ons. My friend ordered the miso broth and I got the shoyou broth. Both broth was a bit bland, but understandable because there are additional add ons that could potentially enhance the flavor. Overall, we thought it was decent. The interior decors felt appropriate for the space. There was booth seating that showcase Japanese murals. It looked really cool.

This is my second time coming through Squamish in the past 3 years and I remember seeing this place…read moreas we were passing by. Finally stopped in the area for lunch this year and we all agreed to try this restaurant. Oh my god, although we were skeptical, they did not disappoint! The moment we walked in, we knew it was going to be authentic because the staff were Japanese. My partner ordered the Paitan Shio Ramen which was delicious, flavourful and a very generous portion size. The soup base was on point and not too salty. I ordered the Tuna Avocado Roll and Negitoro Cone, and both were very fresh and delightful to eat. Loved the environment in this place even though it's small. Loved the wood vibes and the washroom sign! Would highly recommend trying this place if you're headed to or driving through Squamish!

Standard fare and prompt service! Always a solid choice. I…read moreliked being in the heated patio while it was cold out.

For all of you that craves ramen around Victoria, Ramen Arashi has an outstanding black Arashi…read moreTan-Tan ramen( black Sesame Tan Tan Noodles). To review it in detail, Noodles- firm not soggy. Broth: amazing broth ( soup has a little bit of everything: the aroma of sesame, the sneaky little peanut taste lingering( not overpowering taste that will make you crave for it to the end of your bowl, an amazing Tonkotsu broth base that is very clean and fulfilling), little bit of chili oil which makes it completely excellent taste. Chashu (pork belly roll): very aromatic and yummy. Menma ( Bamboo shoot) : a little crunch and soft, good texture for the Ramen. Good taste too! Staff also very friendly and care! Keep your excellent ramen!

We were sat immediately when we had come in but I think it's a busy place because when we left,…read morethere was a small queue outside. Apparently, Ramen Arashi is part of a Canadian chain that originated in Banff. It's a clean restaurant and the service was good. The bathroom is very clean and nice. I got the miso ramen and it was yummy but about what you would expect from a ramen place. It's served with a dollop of butter on top which melts nicely into the broth.

Stopped by Maruhachi on a Saturday lunchtime after our long commute from Seattle. this restaurant…read moreis tucked in a corner not too far from the main Robson street. Paid parking was not too hard to find on the Main Street but during busy dining hours it might be difficult. We got seated right away at the bar since there were no tables open and the service was quick. Traditional Japanese style ambiance and even the bathroom had rounded Japanese bowl sink. As someone who doesn't have chicken broth (paitan style) ramen, I was really looking forward to the original ramen I ordered but I was a bit disappointed in the flavor profile of the dish. The ramen had both chasu and seaweed paired with thin round noodles. The broth was creamy and had a hint of chicken flavor but even adding several rounds of their soy sauce/salt seasoning they have on the side to adjust your broth to your liking-- I found that the richness of the soup was not what I had expected from the reviews that I read prior to coming here. Overall, a bit disappointed in the flavoring of the broth but maybe we came on an off day. I would be willing to give it a shot again in the future if I had ramen cravings and given that it was very affordable ($11-15 per bowl with tip), but I would probably opt to try another place first.

Review #3 for 2026 I…read morereally wanted to like this place. I watched many videos and read reviews before coming here, but it just did not hit the spot. After a cold day of exploring Stanley Park, we felt that ramen would really hit the spot, so we went here not wanting to deal with a wait at Danbo with a hungry and tired toddler. There was NO wait when we arrived here and we were seated immediately... which for a place that was really hyped up, should had made us think twice. There was only 1 other party at the restaurant. Now, the workers were super nice and the food came out quickly and we did eat everything because we were starving. We all ordered the cha-shu tamago ramen, 2 of us got spicy and 2 of us non-spicy. It came with extra chashu and the soft boiled egg for about $20 Canadian. The bowl was a good size and there was a promo for free extra noodles while we were there. Everyone except me in our group took advantage of it because I was too full from my bowl. Now, the broth here is different from other places because it is chicken based and not pork based. Everything I had seen about this place promised the broth is every bit just as good as the pork bone broth... however, the broth we received looked flavorful, but was bland. It was completely bland. There was no richness to it, not even a hint. I don't know, coming from southern California, the flavor just was not there period. We did all eat our food because we were starving, but it for sure did not hit the spot at all. Maybe we got an off day? Otherwise our broth had literally zero flavor to it. We all wished we had tried the other ramen place instead right after trying our ramen. Would I come back? I will have to say definitely no. We do not live in Vancouver and I do not want to waste any meals on a place that did not taste good the first time we went.

Cutest lil vibey spot tucked away in town accepts walk in's for lunch, and reservations for dinner…read more Good vegetarian and meaty options from ramen, to noodles, to rice entrees, and beyond!!! Good Non-Alcoholic options. We had truly lovely service too. Made us feel welcome even with coffees and bike helmets in hand. Seating is indoor/outdoor with varying degrees of coverage (umbrellas to inside with windows), outside seating has heaters so quality we actually had to ask them to turn them off on a semi chilly day. Hugeeee yums all around! Would recommend :)

We wanted to sit outside since we came with our dog. But no outdoor sitting due to understaffing:(…read more So we just ordered some to go ( we really wanted to try the ramen, but they do not do ramen to go). The karaage chicken was crispy even when it's cold! The quality of the meat for the burger is great! The udon stir fry is also tasty!

The tonkatsu ramen here was really good. My favorite part is that they allow you to add beef…read moreinstead of chicken or pork. I've never seen that before at any ramen place, but I've always wished I could add it since pork and chicken seems so limited. The broth is very flavorful, especially if you get the spice added which is an absolute must. We came here because we stayed in Creekside to go skiing. So if you stay in the area I highly recommend walking over here!

Came here after a long day of skiing in Whistler…read more This place is busy so be prepared to wait or get take out! We managed to get a table after 30 mins. I got the ramen but I thought it was okay. The broth wasn't rich and a bit too salty. The tofu was over salted as well. Their fried chicken is quite good and I'd recommend trying! Place isn't super but the staff are all super welcoming!