This was the second time we came here, and the first time for dinner. I enjoyed my bowl, my wife wasn't a fan of her vegetarian bowl (too spicy, tofu was missing). The main problem for us is that there really weren't many choices we could select since we don't eat red meat. Pretty much every bowl except two contained pork. The other problem, not unique at Menya Shono, is the exceedingly high salt level of the bowls. Wow. On the plus side, the fried checken that came with my dinner was first rate. And since the sauce/soup was in a second bowl, I had full control over how much sauce I put on my chicken. Same with the noodles and greens that were in my bowl. How about more options that are either vegetarian or have fish or chicken?
Jerry W.
Overview: Homemade ramen shop Meal/Time: Lunch/ 1:36PM Sunday Seated: 1:40PM Ordered: 1:50PM First ordered item arrived: 2:06PM Decor/Atmosphere: ramen with an open kitchen. Beers on tap. Feels like a bar. Service/ Front of the House: we had to wait 4 minutes to be seated. We stood at the entrance way not greeted or acknowledged. Service/Serving Staff: 10 minutes after seating till wait person came to our table for our order. Water was on table within 2 minutes of seating. Wait person did not greet us nor tell us his name. Asked for the check and received that in under 1 minute. Food: Shio deluxe ramen $23. The deluxe is supposed to have "extra" pork belly... but there was only 1 piece, albeit a large piece. There were 2 pieces of duck char sui. The duck char sui was smokey and pretty good. The broth was rich in flavor... pretty good. The ramen noodles had a good chew. Value: just a bit pricey for ramen, but this is Marin County, near downtown San Rafael. Restroom: restrooms are located down a real long winding hallway. I think this might be a shared resource with other establishments. Men's room has 1 stall and urinal and 2 sinks. The sink area is wet. Will I come back?: will need to pass on coming back. The entire process took way too much time...but I did not feel welcomed...especially dropping over $20 for a bowl of ramen. The ramen was good, but you can get the same quality in other places.
Bianca H.
Now, I had to come and try this restaurant since it is similar and owned by Mensho. They have similar entrée dishes on their menu, and feature the same appetizers, and most of the drink options as well. This space is large and perfect for a group of friends to have lunch or dinner on a rainy day, or any occasion that you may be craving ramen! Great for date night and solo meals as well. The ambiance sets a tone that feels like you're in an exclusive restaurant with the traditional shades along the windows and having darker wood and lower lighting causes a mysterious and intimate feeling to the atmosphere. The staff was attentive and always ensuring I had everything I needed. Moving onto the food... It was good! Since it was my first time here, I kept my meal quite basic. I started with the enoki chips and chicken karaage as an appetizer and had the Ginjo Toripaitan Ramen and Blaze Ramen as entrées. I found the enoki chips to be oilier than expected. They were still good - salty and savory... But the oil that was remaining on them was a bit overpowering. The chicken karaage was good! I think it may have lacked on crispiness, but it was still enjoyable. The Ginjo Toripaitan Ramen and the Blaze Ramen Deluxe were okay. I liked how light the entire dishes felt, and the noodles were cooked to perfection. However, I did feel that the creaminess and richness to the broths were missing. I added an egg the toripaitan, but maybe I shouldn't have. Both eggs for the ramens caused disappointment because the eggs looked smoked, but didn't have a smoky taste to it, and it felt that they didn't sit in a marinade long enough. Overall, the restaurant is good. I will go back to try other items on the menu and give an updated review. I think this restaurant is placed in a great location and I appreciate that they are open for lunch time, which makes it more desirable to go throughout the day. Definitely check it out if you're in the area!
Ricky P
Everything was good! Wait was a bit long, but worth it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Juli Lederhaus
We love this restaurant. Food is spot on with what we experienced in Japan.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Devin S.
We didn't actually get to eat here. This review is for our experience before we walked out. This was our first time here. After waiting far too long for the host to notice us and seat us, we then had to wait far too long for our order to be taken. The first thing the waiter said is that they are out of deluxe versions of all of their ramen options. I thought this was really odd, since making them "deluxe" only means including some typical ramen add-ins that one would expect, such as a boiled egg, mushrooms, and garlic oil. Hardly anything requiring special preparations. And this was noon on a Saturday, so it's not like they should be out of these typical ingredients. So our only options were basic ramen, which was noodles in soup with some meat, which cost $19 a bowl! Since I can make instant noodles at home for a fraction of the price with the same ingredients, we had no reason to stay. We opted to leave before ordering. This place left such a bad impression, we won't be back.
Sam Shoulders
I order the ramen and asked for Togarashi and the waitperson said he didn't know what it was, sigh. At $20 a bowl know the spices. Don't bother they with this place not worth it.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
FLICKFIVE
So good!!! You should give this place a try if you like ramen. It is sos sos good!!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Albert Flynn D.
I am adding to my previous review from my old phone. They now have wait staff, but I'm wondering if I miss the old way of just ordering on your phone. They only have one person and she seems to be pretty overwhelmed much of the time. Having said that, the food is hands-down, the best bowl of Ramen I've had in Northern California--Consistently great.
Tiffany G.
Best ramen in marin! Made with love and amazing ingredients. So grateful to have this place on 4th street!
Best Ramen ever! I love this place and my husband has been asking for it every chance he gets. He loves the GKO which is a smokey pork Ramen. I like the Chashu Pork over rice. This is the best Ramen place in the North Bay.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
C O.
This place is just not good. We have been twice, once at the opening and once last week. Service is horrible and the ramen is just as bad. Save your money and drive to the city for a better overall experience.
Adam Sownie
Amazing ramen shop in San Rafael. The broth is thicker than you would normally expect, more rich, more like tsukemen. Very quick service and very filling.Wheelchair accessibility: Wheelchair accessible
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Carli M.
Delicious ramen, good service! I got the Shoyu DX, partner got the Blaze DX. Both were delicious. Definitely will be returning :)
Michelle G.
I found my new all-time favorite ramen shop! I had the vegan tantanmen; added cabbage and crispy burdock root. Ugh, it was SO satisfying and comforting. The broth is creamy and savory, the nuts add a nice texture, and the noodles so slurpy. I only wish it wasn't so expensive but no matter, I will be back! Service was quick and friendly and the ambiance was chill--I was there on a Tuesday evening, not very busy, just a few tables taken.
This was the second time we came here, and the first time for dinner. I enjoyed my bowl, my wife wasn't a fan of her vegetarian bowl (too spicy, tofu was missing). The main problem for us is that there really weren't many choices we could select since we don't eat red meat. Pretty much every bowl except two contained pork. The other problem, not unique at Menya Shono, is the exceedingly high salt level of the bowls. Wow. On the plus side, the fried checken that came with my dinner was first rate. And since the sauce/soup was in a second bowl, I had full control over how much sauce I put on my chicken. Same with the noodles and greens that were in my bowl. How about more options that are either vegetarian or have fish or chicken?
Overview: Homemade ramen shop Meal/Time: Lunch/ 1:36PM Sunday Seated: 1:40PM Ordered: 1:50PM First ordered item arrived: 2:06PM Decor/Atmosphere: ramen with an open kitchen. Beers on tap. Feels like a bar. Service/ Front of the House: we had to wait 4 minutes to be seated. We stood at the entrance way not greeted or acknowledged. Service/Serving Staff: 10 minutes after seating till wait person came to our table for our order. Water was on table within 2 minutes of seating. Wait person did not greet us nor tell us his name. Asked for the check and received that in under 1 minute. Food: Shio deluxe ramen $23. The deluxe is supposed to have "extra" pork belly... but there was only 1 piece, albeit a large piece. There were 2 pieces of duck char sui. The duck char sui was smokey and pretty good. The broth was rich in flavor... pretty good. The ramen noodles had a good chew. Value: just a bit pricey for ramen, but this is Marin County, near downtown San Rafael. Restroom: restrooms are located down a real long winding hallway. I think this might be a shared resource with other establishments. Men's room has 1 stall and urinal and 2 sinks. The sink area is wet. Will I come back?: will need to pass on coming back. The entire process took way too much time...but I did not feel welcomed...especially dropping over $20 for a bowl of ramen. The ramen was good, but you can get the same quality in other places.
Now, I had to come and try this restaurant since it is similar and owned by Mensho. They have similar entrée dishes on their menu, and feature the same appetizers, and most of the drink options as well. This space is large and perfect for a group of friends to have lunch or dinner on a rainy day, or any occasion that you may be craving ramen! Great for date night and solo meals as well. The ambiance sets a tone that feels like you're in an exclusive restaurant with the traditional shades along the windows and having darker wood and lower lighting causes a mysterious and intimate feeling to the atmosphere. The staff was attentive and always ensuring I had everything I needed. Moving onto the food... It was good! Since it was my first time here, I kept my meal quite basic. I started with the enoki chips and chicken karaage as an appetizer and had the Ginjo Toripaitan Ramen and Blaze Ramen as entrées. I found the enoki chips to be oilier than expected. They were still good - salty and savory... But the oil that was remaining on them was a bit overpowering. The chicken karaage was good! I think it may have lacked on crispiness, but it was still enjoyable. The Ginjo Toripaitan Ramen and the Blaze Ramen Deluxe were okay. I liked how light the entire dishes felt, and the noodles were cooked to perfection. However, I did feel that the creaminess and richness to the broths were missing. I added an egg the toripaitan, but maybe I shouldn't have. Both eggs for the ramens caused disappointment because the eggs looked smoked, but didn't have a smoky taste to it, and it felt that they didn't sit in a marinade long enough. Overall, the restaurant is good. I will go back to try other items on the menu and give an updated review. I think this restaurant is placed in a great location and I appreciate that they are open for lunch time, which makes it more desirable to go throughout the day. Definitely check it out if you're in the area!
Everything was good! Wait was a bit long, but worth it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
We love this restaurant. Food is spot on with what we experienced in Japan.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
We didn't actually get to eat here. This review is for our experience before we walked out. This was our first time here. After waiting far too long for the host to notice us and seat us, we then had to wait far too long for our order to be taken. The first thing the waiter said is that they are out of deluxe versions of all of their ramen options. I thought this was really odd, since making them "deluxe" only means including some typical ramen add-ins that one would expect, such as a boiled egg, mushrooms, and garlic oil. Hardly anything requiring special preparations. And this was noon on a Saturday, so it's not like they should be out of these typical ingredients. So our only options were basic ramen, which was noodles in soup with some meat, which cost $19 a bowl! Since I can make instant noodles at home for a fraction of the price with the same ingredients, we had no reason to stay. We opted to leave before ordering. This place left such a bad impression, we won't be back.
I order the ramen and asked for Togarashi and the waitperson said he didn't know what it was, sigh. At $20 a bowl know the spices. Don't bother they with this place not worth it.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
So good!!! You should give this place a try if you like ramen. It is sos sos good!!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I am adding to my previous review from my old phone. They now have wait staff, but I'm wondering if I miss the old way of just ordering on your phone. They only have one person and she seems to be pretty overwhelmed much of the time. Having said that, the food is hands-down, the best bowl of Ramen I've had in Northern California--Consistently great.
Best ramen in marin! Made with love and amazing ingredients. So grateful to have this place on 4th street!
Restaurantji Recommends
Best Ramen ever! I love this place and my husband has been asking for it every chance he gets. He loves the GKO which is a smokey pork Ramen. I like the Chashu Pork over rice. This is the best Ramen place in the North Bay.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place is just not good. We have been twice, once at the opening and once last week. Service is horrible and the ramen is just as bad. Save your money and drive to the city for a better overall experience.
Amazing ramen shop in San Rafael. The broth is thicker than you would normally expect, more rich, more like tsukemen. Very quick service and very filling.Wheelchair accessibility: Wheelchair accessible
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Delicious ramen, good service! I got the Shoyu DX, partner got the Blaze DX. Both were delicious. Definitely will be returning :)
I found my new all-time favorite ramen shop! I had the vegan tantanmen; added cabbage and crispy burdock root. Ugh, it was SO satisfying and comforting. The broth is creamy and savory, the nuts add a nice texture, and the noodles so slurpy. I only wish it wasn't so expensive but no matter, I will be back! Service was quick and friendly and the ambiance was chill--I was there on a Tuesday evening, not very busy, just a few tables taken.