JINYA Ramen Bar - Vancouver Downtown

We only stop in a quick bite, so
Everyone got a little something for the starter menu. The bun boa was delicious with very tender and flavorful chasu. The north of the tuna and salmon taco were savory and tasty. I ordered the JINYA Tonkotsu Black, and it was fantastic. The broth was deep and creamy with just the right amount of garlic to give it that extra punch. The pork chashu was tender and flavorful, and the seasoned egg was perfectly cooked with a soft, jammy yolk. The black garlic oil added a nice smokiness that made the whole bowl even more addictive. I also liked that the noodles had a nice bite to them—chewy, but not too soft. Would totally recommend

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Salmon Poke Tacos, Bowl of Ramen

I was guided from the entrance and sat at the bar counter, and they explained everything to me well. It's a Korean izakaya style where they greet customers loudly, but I'm actually a bit nervous, so I took off my star rating.

The food is just a Japanese ramen restaurant, so it seems similar to other places, but the lively vibe and friendliness make me prefer this place over other places.
When I was finishing my meal, they asked if I wanted extra soup or noodles, so I thought, "Oh, refills?!?" with the mindset of a Korean restaurant, but I was wrong. They charge $3 for extra soup, so be careful.

Oh, from 3:00 to 5:00, they have happy hour, so beers and highballs are $5-6, and side dishes are discounted, so please take note.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Plus side- the food was good, served hot.

On the service side- I think the mains came out too soon after our appy, and overall I felt a bit rushed. They reiterated the 90 minute limit a few times and we left with 20 minutes to spare. There wasn't a line up and while reasonably busy there were empty tables.

The plastic umbrella bags are incredibly wasteful. I get not wanting water on the floor, but then have an umbrella stand!

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 5

Service: 3

Very nice service in a decently attractive space. The food, however, was not that exciting. I had the Jinya chicken noodle and my Korean friend had the creamy vegetarian noodle. My entree was bland, even with the sauces on the table, and I would give it a 5/10. My friend said her meal would be a 6.5/10.
I would not return as I am sure there are better choices in the area.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 5

Vegetarian options: They have several options

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 4

My fav 🤍 soooo good. Their take out packing could use some consistency, like I’ve had two of the same things, very different quantity and packaging lol. It’s still my fav comfort food 💯

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: Fresh Garlic, Jinya Chicken Ramen

Best prepared ramen I ever had but it is not one of my favourite foods so it was ok

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: Jinya Tonkotsu Black

Unbelievably salty. I don't know how other people are able to stomach their broth. Good service and ambience through and through.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

No reservations, but still got a 1hr sitting. Plenty of time to eat. Food came shortly after ordering. Dark romantic lighting, but the music and yelling of greetings got loud and annoying.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Ramen Is, Soup

No longer great food (in fact my chicken ramen was bland and boring), but still a nice bar with fun atmosphere and pretty friendly service. The exception is the incompetent hostess at the front door, unnecessarily complicating what should be a simple step.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 4

This used to be my favorite ramen spot, but unfortunately, my last visit was disappointing. The chicken ramen I ordered had a completely bland broth, lacking any depth of flavor. I tried my partner's pork and garlic ramen, and while the garlic added some taste, it was the only redeeming factor for both dishes. It’s such a shame because this place used to be incredible. I really hope they can work on improving the flavors and get back to the quality they were known for.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

It was too crowded, especially in winter, with thick clothing and luggage crammed together. No one offered to check coats or luggage. Despite having plenty of empty space in the venue, guests were squeezed together, and the gaps between tables were too narrow to pass through. The experience was extremely disappointing.

Love the bowl ahahah😍😍

I think the restaurant is fine for what it is (cool, trendy place); it just wasn't my cup of tea.

I ordered the Jinya Tonkatsu Original 2010 ramen with an extra order of chashu pork. According to my server, the current Tonkatsu Black ramen is spicy compared to the Original 2010 ramen and I wanted the "original" experience. The ramen bowl itself came with two pieces of chashu pork, and the extra order of chashu pork included two pieces on a separate plate for a total of four pieces of chashu pork. The photo shows all four pieces of chashu pork in the bowl. The ramen noodles were thick and did an excellent job picking up the flavour of the broth. The broth was not salty but a touch too fatty for me.

When I eat at a ramen restaurant, I typically order extra sides because my experience is that there usually isn't enough food in the base price and I found my experience at Jinya to be no different. Next time I would order two extra sides or an extra side plus appetizer (not to share). <- I am a middle aged man who eats normally.

I found the restaurant too noisy to have a conversation with my lunch party. In keeping with its cool, trendy, dark theme, the restaurant has a lot of hard surfaces which bounces both the background vocal chatter and the music playing from the speakers. During my meal, the restaurant was full for lunch, and I had to speak louder to be heard. Frankly the interior came across to me as its own echo chamber where everyone needs to speak louder to be heard, which in turn contributes to an even louder background vocal chatter, which in turns causes one to speak even louder to be heard <- a bad catch-22 scenario.

We also sat at the bar top table, and I noticed hooks underneath the table at every seat for women's purses and umbrellas, so kudos for the restaurant for consideration.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 4

Staff was very welcoming, food was amazing but our server Yuta was very unprofessional
We ordered 3 Ramens, Gyozas and some drinks
Forgot to order our Gyozas and was not even apologetic
Even after finishing our Ramen we didn’t get the gyozas and had to cancel
Again I understand that you can forget the order but atleast acknowledge that

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 1