The best soba in LA, hands down. Getting directly to the point, we tried the Scallop Shiso Maze Soba and the Kamo Negi Soba. They were completely different but equally superbly delicious. The latter was a very classical soba with rich duck broth done just right vs the former was a brilliant innovation - a refreshing pesto-like broth infused with shiso together with scallops and mushrooms full of umami. The appetizers - Dashi Simmered Pumpkin and Chicken Kaarage - were excellent as well. Plus very friendly and polite staff. Will come back!
Chris Daskalos
Walking into Sobar you’ll be greeted by friendly staff who are more than happy to share their favorite menu items and sake pairings - just ask. The food is phenomenal - it’s easy to see why they earned a place on the Los Angeles 101 best restaurants. If you visited already and didn’t try the appetizer sampler book your next reservation for tomorrow and correct the error. Will be adding this place to our favorite places to bring friends.
maoli yamaguchi
Had a great time here last night. Highlights were the sake flight, zarusoba w/shiso sauce, appetizer plate - basically everything we tried. Joseph was on point w/his Japanese and English fluency too. Highly recommend.
Jintae Kim
Rare restaurant where you can eat the true “ju-wari” soba. And it’s even gluten free!
Roxanne Mansfield
Unfortunately for us this was an extremely subpar experience. I love soba noodles, the chewy yet grainy/nutty flavor is so nourishing. I’m not convinced these were actual soba noodles. The broth was heavy like ramen, but extremely bland. It tasted like cheap cooking oils. The chicken karage was pumped with too much sodium (for our taste). Tasted very MSG-y, so if that’s your thing you might like it! In terms of the vibes, the lights were extremely bright and LED blue tone. Not a vibe for a nice dinner.
Marcus Fan
Terrible, terrible soba. The texture, the sauce. Not enjoyable.
Michael Kakehashi
Server was overwhelmed and service was terrible because of that. The Soba was mid, the apps were good
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 1
Mengqi Wu
Unfortunately my experience was a bit underwhelming. The interior was clean and modern but the food was quite overpriced ($28 for 3 pieces of duck meat with a relative small portion of noodles at the time of our visit). The taste was good but nothing to write home about. The Serves were quite busy and was not able to attend to us very well unfortunately.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
Anna Wang
Super overpriced .. everything is in a petite size. I ordered the picked vegetables $6 for literally one bite of vegetables. Spent $100 for 2 and ended up being still hungry..
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: TG-Chicken Karaage
yousef
A sleek, modern space with a rectangular bar at its center, a focal point where all the action unfolds. It is where all patrons gather around. While the portions may lean towards the petite side, the flavors are on point.
I kicked things off with the albacore crudo style sashimi. The tender tuna, bathed in tangy blood orange vinaigrette and topped with crunchy chili garlic, was a fresh, flavorful start. The spicy yaki edamame—a semi-unique twist on the classic—was pan-fried and tossed in a citrus pepper paste and soy sauce. It turned a simple side into something I couldn’t stop popping.
The shrimp & vegetable tempura was crispy and satisfying—tempura done right. Light, crispy, and perfectly paired with a dipping sauce that hit all the right notes. It’s exactly what you want when you think of tempura, with shrimp that snaps and veggies that add a pleasant variety. Then there’s the mongo ika tempura, where tender squid gets the tempura treatment. If you’ve never had squid tempura like me, this is your chance to be pleasantly surprised. The spiced salt and a squeeze of lemon added a bright, balanced finish to every bite.
The gindara saikyo yaki was one of the highlights. The black cod, marinated in saikyo miso, was so tender, the flavor so deep, leaving you only with the wish that it came in a larger portion. The ao-nori bagged potato might just be the most playful dish on the menu. Served in a bag like an elevated snack from your childhood, but better. The novelty of the bag only adds to the experience.
Finally, the ribeye ku maze soba—this is the dish you come here for. Cold soba noodles in a savory broth, topped with slices of ribeye and a poached egg, it’s hearty and satisfying. The noodles were cooked just right, and the broth tied everything together. To wash it all down, the lemonade soda and a yuzu soda were refreshingly crisp palate cleansers between bites. They’re like a cool breeze on a warm day—just what you need to round out the meal.
SOBAR is a great spot for a casual and delicious meal. The dishes may be on the smaller side, but the flavors are anything but. The service is solid and efficient, ensuring that your dining experience is as seamless as the restaurant’s modern design. If you’re feeling hungry, order a little extra—your appetite will thank you "soba" much!
Good: Really nice ambiance for a date/etc. the staff was attentive and knowledgeable about their stuff. I probably had the best lemon sour ever (compared to 150+ lemon sour I've had in Japan before).
Room for improvement: my friends and I waited for almost 30 minutes for our soba (zaru and ribeye soba) to come after the appetizers. The texture of my ribeye soba is great, but the beef itself doesn't go well with the soba. I'd be slightly hesitant to pay $28 for this dish.
Disclaimer: I lived in Tokyo for 2+ years
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
Miyamoto Haru
This is my second visit. This restaurant specializes in soba, and while the soba is delicious, the tempura dishes are also superb! The variety of alcohol is plentiful as well. If you want to experience authentic Japanese cuisine, you must visit this restaurant. You can trust me, as I am Japanese.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Brooke H
It was DELICIOUS!! The soba is just like what I have in Japan. Perfect especially for Summer. The squid tempura was one of my favorite it was cooked at a perfect temperature leaving the squid with this consistency of fish almost. Everything I had was top notch including their water from Mt.Fuji. Will be going back frequently. Oh and don’t forget to order the matcha tiramisu!!
The best soba in LA, hands down. Getting directly to the point, we tried the Scallop Shiso Maze Soba and the Kamo Negi Soba. They were completely different but equally superbly delicious. The latter was a very classical soba with rich duck broth done just right vs the former was a brilliant innovation - a refreshing pesto-like broth infused with shiso together with scallops and mushrooms full of umami.
The appetizers - Dashi Simmered Pumpkin and Chicken Kaarage - were excellent as well. Plus very friendly and polite staff. Will come back!
Walking into Sobar you’ll be greeted by friendly staff who are more than happy to share their favorite menu items and sake pairings - just ask. The food is phenomenal - it’s easy to see why they earned a place on the Los Angeles 101 best restaurants. If you visited already and didn’t try the appetizer sampler book your next reservation for tomorrow and correct the error. Will be adding this place to our favorite places to bring friends.
Had a great time here last night. Highlights were the sake flight, zarusoba w/shiso sauce, appetizer plate - basically everything we tried. Joseph was on point w/his Japanese and English fluency too. Highly recommend.
Rare restaurant where you can eat the true “ju-wari” soba. And it’s even gluten free!
Unfortunately for us this was an extremely subpar experience. I love soba noodles, the chewy yet grainy/nutty flavor is so nourishing. I’m not convinced these were actual soba noodles. The broth was heavy like ramen, but extremely bland. It tasted like cheap cooking oils. The chicken karage was pumped with too much sodium (for our taste). Tasted very MSG-y, so if that’s your thing you might like it! In terms of the vibes, the lights were extremely bright and LED blue tone. Not a vibe for a nice dinner.
Terrible, terrible soba. The texture, the sauce. Not enjoyable.
Server was overwhelmed and service was terrible because of that. The Soba was mid, the apps were good
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 1
Unfortunately my experience was a bit underwhelming. The interior was clean and modern but the food was quite overpriced ($28 for 3 pieces of duck meat with a relative small portion of noodles at the time of our visit). The taste was good but nothing to write home about. The Serves were quite busy and was not able to attend to us very well unfortunately.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
Super overpriced .. everything is in a petite size. I ordered the picked vegetables $6 for literally one bite of vegetables. Spent $100 for 2 and ended up being still hungry..
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: TG-Chicken Karaage
A sleek, modern space with a rectangular bar at its center, a focal point where all the action unfolds. It is where all patrons gather around. While the portions may lean towards the petite side, the flavors are on point.
I kicked things off with the albacore crudo style sashimi. The tender tuna, bathed in tangy blood orange vinaigrette and topped with crunchy chili garlic, was a fresh, flavorful start. The spicy yaki edamame—a semi-unique twist on the classic—was pan-fried and tossed in a citrus pepper paste and soy sauce. It turned a simple side into something I couldn’t stop popping.
The shrimp & vegetable tempura was crispy and satisfying—tempura done right. Light, crispy, and perfectly paired with a dipping sauce that hit all the right notes. It’s exactly what you want when you think of tempura, with shrimp that snaps and veggies that add a pleasant variety. Then there’s the mongo ika tempura, where tender squid gets the tempura treatment. If you’ve never had squid tempura like me, this is your chance to be pleasantly surprised. The spiced salt and a squeeze of lemon added a bright, balanced finish to every bite.
The gindara saikyo yaki was one of the highlights. The black cod, marinated in saikyo miso, was so tender, the flavor so deep, leaving you only with the wish that it came in a larger portion. The ao-nori bagged potato might just be the most playful dish on the menu. Served in a bag like an elevated snack from your childhood, but better. The novelty of the bag only adds to the experience.
Finally, the ribeye ku maze soba—this is the dish you come here for. Cold soba noodles in a savory broth, topped with slices of ribeye and a poached egg, it’s hearty and satisfying. The noodles were cooked just right, and the broth tied everything together. To wash it all down, the lemonade soda and a yuzu soda were refreshingly crisp palate cleansers between bites. They’re like a cool breeze on a warm day—just what you need to round out the meal.
SOBAR is a great spot for a casual and delicious meal. The dishes may be on the smaller side, but the flavors are anything but. The service is solid and efficient, ensuring that your dining experience is as seamless as the restaurant’s modern design. If you’re feeling hungry, order a little extra—your appetite will thank you "soba" much!
Restaurantji Recommends
Amazing appetizers and the soba noodles are insane. The menu is creative and fresh but not gimmicky.
We got the fried edamame, bagged potatoes and the ribeye niku soba. Great, great meal!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: TG-Ribeye Niku Soba, TG-Spicy Yaki Edamame
Amazing food, will be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Good: Really nice ambiance for a date/etc. the staff was attentive and knowledgeable about their stuff. I probably had the best lemon sour ever (compared to 150+ lemon sour I've had in Japan before).
Room for improvement: my friends and I waited for almost 30 minutes for our soba (zaru and ribeye soba) to come after the appetizers. The texture of my ribeye soba is great, but the beef itself doesn't go well with the soba. I'd be slightly hesitant to pay $28 for this dish.
Disclaimer: I lived in Tokyo for 2+ years
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 2
This is my second visit. This restaurant specializes in soba, and while the soba is delicious, the tempura dishes are also superb! The variety of alcohol is plentiful as well. If you want to experience authentic Japanese cuisine, you must visit this restaurant. You can trust me, as I am Japanese.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
It was DELICIOUS!! The soba is just like what I have in Japan. Perfect especially for Summer. The squid tempura was one of my favorite it was cooked at a perfect temperature leaving the squid with this consistency of fish almost. Everything I had was top notch including their water from Mt.Fuji. Will be going back frequently. Oh and don’t forget to order the matcha tiramisu!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: TG-Chicken Karaage, Assorted Appetizers
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