Santouka Ramen
| Address: | 3760 S Centinela Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90066, USA |
| Phone: | +1 310-391-1101 |
| Site: | santouka.co.jp |
| Rating: | 4.5 |
| Working: | 11AM–8:30PM 11AM–8:30PM 11AM–8:30PM 11AM–8:30PM 11AM–8:30PM 11AM–8:30PM 11AM–8:30PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 13
JO
Johnny Wang
Same as the Santouka up in the Bay Area, even similarly located inside a Mitsuwa too! My review for this location more or less mirrors the Bay Area one, so Ill keep it short and sweet: as the last of four consecutive ramen meals, Santouka was my least favorite. I ordered their spicy miso chashu, and found the same problem as I did with the toroniku up north: their ramen is way too salty for my tastes, and thats even without drinking the broth. Their noodles are also different from their straighter cousins at Yamada and Shinsengumi, being more of the wavy variety you find in packaged ramen, and having a much eggier taste to them, for better or worse, depending on your preferences. While this may be convenient for some, especially because theres other good food in the food court, as a ramen aficionado, youre better off elsewhere. ***Accessibility Info*** Venue - Since this is inside a decently sized food court, the majority of seating is accessible, save for some high tops. The bigger problem youll have is actually finding a free seat, but thats a different matter entirely. Bathroom - Accessible!
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STEVEN VONG
The best ramen in Los Angeles! Though a little more expensive than Daikokuya, Santoukas noodles are much more savory, with the location making accessibility to the heavenly noodles even more convenient. Santouka is located in Mitsuwa marketplace which has a lot of parking, and the wait wasnt very long, for me its been less than 15 minutes even during lunchtime. Though the location is convenient, Santouka really stands out because of its ramen. I get the special pork set miso ramen, which is a little pricey but is definitely worth what you pay. The broth is salty and delicious, the noodles are flavorful, and the pork is perfect, creating the ultimate combination of comfort food. Its the perfect food for when you are sick, the soup felt like it was magically healing my throat when I had a cough. Its location is also nice because you can look around at the Japanese stores after having the best ramen ever. A must have if youre in West LA or just craving good ramen!
JA
Jake
Although I would say this place is slightly over-hyped after getting good rep from public press, it has died down a lot since then. And dont get me wrong, I back this as one of the best ramen in West LA, but know what youre ordering. This is also one of the fattier/heavier bowls of ramen youll find, so make sure thats your cup of tea. If you frequent Sawtelle, I would say in terms of heaviness of the broth, this is somewhere between the cleaner taste of Daikokuya/Shinsengumi and all-out heavy-weight champion Tsujita. I havent been to Tatsu in a long while, but I believe it is also heavier than their broth.
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Paul Lee
Good ol Santouka. Its always there, and doesnt have lines snaking around the neighborhood with a wait time of over 2 hours. I like that they have ramen and rice bowl combos, and theyre spicy miso version is probably my favorite of all the popular ramen joints. Their noodles are always cooked perfectly chewy and the pork is buttery and tender. The only downside is that they must have quite a bit of sodium or msg in their ramen broth b/c Im always super thirsty after a hot bowl of ramen. Remember its cash only so dont get stuck in front of the cashier unprepared and out of luck.
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Annie Lin
I like how laidback supermarket food court restaurants are. Santouka is almost always a long wait since its so popular.. and most of the tables in the food court are taken over by Santouka customers, but all good! The shoyu ramen is my favorite and hits the spot just right on a cloudy, rainy day like Halloween (whaaat? the one day it rains in LA....) The price is decent and the bowl deceivingly small, fills you up to the rim. Its also convenient cz its located right next to Mitsuwa so you can go shopping for some dessert mochi after :)
JR
JR Curley
A great selection of different ramen choices here - take your time before ordering and check out the wall showcasing all they have to offer. Im a fan of the salty ramen and flavoured egg. The lines here can get pretty long, so be prepared to wait for the good stuff! This is a global chain, so if you cant check out this location, there is another in LA (or many across the world!). If youre looking for a good bowl of hot, tasty ramen, you cant go wrong with Santouka. Pro tip - this is cash only, so be prepared!
WI
Wil Lei
Part of the food court at a Japanese market, it makes a statement for how wonderful does not need a valet, a host, or a hard to get reservation. Great variety in filling and savory ramen made with fresh ingredients and no frills. Choose from various sides of egg or extra pork, your soup, and your protein, then settle for the worthy wait until your number is called. Once you have your prize, enjoy it comfortably in the food court. Youll be tempted by every one elses dishes as well.
LE
Leon Delcambre
Ordered the Santouka Ramen (non-spicy) for $10.95. I would say the prices are on the more expensive side for Ramen , but my meal here was very enjoyable! The broth was not too strong and oily, and the chicken was good and soft. As a former vegetarian, I also appreciated that they have a non-meat broth option, which my friend ended up ordering and really liked. The waitress also gave us a salad for our table to share. I would definitely consider coming here again!
LA
Lance Eberhard
My friend brought me here on a Saturday at noon, and it was only a 15 minute wait for 2 people which was surprising. I ordered their famous char siu measurement, and I thought it was just okay. The broth to me was way too heavy, oily, and thick. So if you like that kind of broth I would say it would probably be good for you. They give you a lot of noodles so I was able to make another meal out of it. Overall just not my type of measurement.
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Andy Cheng
This is a popular ramen place in West Los Angeles but Im afraid I cant recommend it. Its located inside the market food court and it only accepts cash. Its not easy to find a seating during lunch or dinner hours and definitely not great for a group. The biggest issue I have with this place is that their soup is full of MSG. I get very thirsty after every meal there. I thought it was too salty, so I asked for low salt, but that didnt help.
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jessica chow
Santouka Ramen, inside of Mitsuwa (grocery store), is in my opinion, one of the best ramen joints in Los Angeles. My go-to is the spicy miso ramen, which you can get in 3 sizes, or plus-up to a meal which comes with a boiled, seasoned egg, and a rice dish (like char siu over rice). Delicious, and affordable. Pro tip- cash only, you can only eat there (no take away orders), and they close rather early (I think 7 PM).
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John Satterwhite
Yummy! Located in the mitsuwa marketplace, this place had the longest line. Had the shio salt ramen combo with the marinated boiled egg and pork rice dish. I thought it was all very yummy, the broth was flavorful. Seating was limited during dinnertime, had to scope out people who were leaving. The only other thing about the ramen itself was that I didnt really like the noodles. They were pretty hard for my liking.
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Randall Uyeno
Im a ramen lover. I love it. This was a very pleasant surprise considering Im not a fan of hakata (cloudy broth) ramen. This was excellent. Broth is delicious. Noodles are tasty and firm. I recommend it! Ill definitely be eating here more often. Its in a food court so the decor was rated "fair". On the plus side of its location, its right next to the market so you can pick up all sorts of japanese goodies!
