Ramen Tenma
| Address: | 487 Saratoga Ave, San Jose, CA 95129, USA |
| Phone: | +1 408-557-8799 |
| Rating: | 4.3 |
| Working: | 6–9PM 11:30AM–2PM Closed 11:30AM–2PM 11:30AM–2PM 11:30AM–2PM 11:30AM–2PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 11
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Jonas Gebhardt
Good ramen in San Jose without the usual hype and crowd? Then this is the right place for you. You usually dont have to wait for a table and even if you have to, they wait might just be a couple of minutes. The place doesnt have the charm and quality of some of the top ramen places in town, but quality of food is certainly high. If you just order a basic ramen it comes without an egg. I usually add half an egg to make the dish complete which is rather inexpensive. Taste is good, not too salty and amount of portion is fair too - rather on the smaller size though if you order their standard size. If you are looking for fancy sides, dont expect too much as they really do focus on their ramen noodles. Also, dont order Edamame from as appetizer as they give you some for free anyways. They place is rather small and rather chaotic. In fact, they have a mixture of mirrors and Japanese art and anime characters posters on the walls - and on the mirrors. So rather dont look up too much as it might keep your brain too busy. There are also quizzes all around the restaurant. If you answer the questions right, which isnt too easy, you get some free snack. Overall a solid ramen place that is recommended when you want to grab a quick bite and dont expect anything too fancy.
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Alan Lin
Decided to drop by and check this place out when I was in town to meet up a friend. The place had promising reviews, what can go wrong? I not sure if I came in on an off day or just a little late in the evening, the place was pretty quiet with only one other customer when I walked in at 8pm. The server was extremely friendly and attentive. The food, however, was quite disappointing tonight. We ordered a tsukemen ramen, ninja secret ramen, pork belly simmered in sauce and a boiled egg. The soup base tonight was salty enough for my friend and I to keep reaching for our drinks. My friend didnt finish her ramen because it was just too salty. My soup was lukewarm, which bother me a little. I DO, however, really enjoyed the consistency of the noodles. One last note: dont expect much in terms for toppings for the ramen, youll get two pieces of meat with your $10+ ramen. In conclusion, I dont see myself jumping up and down over this place unless im feeling for the need for some serious sodium replenishment. Pros: - Friendly staff - Good noodle consistency Cons: - Salty soups - Stingy on ramen toppings
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Jammie Peng
We originally wanted to go to the Taiwanese place next door but it was closed due to some pipe leak. Since this had 4 stars on Yelp, we decided to give it a try. Too bad it didnt live up to my expectations for a 4 star restaurant. We arrived around 6pm and had to wait for 10-15 min to get seated. Its a pretty small restaurant with very few tables. Theres also only 1 server and maybe only 1 chef as well so theyre quite slow compared to other places. We got #1 Tienma ramen and #2 soba for $9 each. Both were quite plain in terms of ingredients. My Tienma ramen only had 1 piece of meat (most ramen place have 2 pieces), 1 piece of seaweed, corn, bean sprouts, and noodles. The broth was on the salty/heavy side so I couldnt drink it after finishing my noodles. I like Myzen, Kahoo, and Santakou much better. It seems more like a place for families with kids, because there were trivia you could answer to get 2 pieces of seaweed.
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Eddie Rodriguez
This ramen shop is quite small! We had to snap together 3 out of maybe 7 tables for a group of about 8 of us. The decor isnt anything crazy but its a quite mom and pop type place where you can get decent ramen for a fair price. The food is good but isnt the best in the area. The staff did try and help accommodate us with our "large" group and let us eat in peace (I expected them to rush us out since some customers were upset about the shortage of seats). If youre going for a quite normal night then by all means you can get your ramen fix here. I just recommend coming in small groups. Also the Red San Jose makes for a good beginner ramen (ask my wife!). P. S. I was in Japan for a good while so my ramen standards are a little higher than average. Although I gave them 3 stars the food and pricing is fair its just a little small and the food didnt blow me away.
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Kristie Mary
Cash Only! Got here around 3pm, and even so, there was a 30 minute wait for my boyfriend and I. I was glad to be able to sit down in that timeframe as we had our flight to catch that evening and I wanted to eat here from all the raves i heard. The dishes come out so quickly which is really nice! I ordered the spicy miso ramen and my boyfriend ordered the traditional tonkotsu. Both were so delicious and rich in flavor. I wish the pork belly slice was a bit thicker, but still tasted great. I love the ajitsuki eggs. Its really a dine in, and get out type of restaurant as its a really popular place and they want to serve as many people as possible. Definitely one of my favorites Ramen Tenma is best.
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Helen Wang
There are a lot of great Ramen places in the bay area. Some places have one or two stellar broths and the rest are kind of "meh". Here, every single thing Ive tried is solid and delicious. I have my favorites but you really cant go wrong with anything. You have shoyu, tonkatsu, miso, bonito, and curry bases all covered :) And, every season they have a new set of specials that are definitely worth a try. Also, my favorite part about this place is that it has sooooo much character. Try the "Ninja" ramen just once if you dont believe me :)
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Joey Kolber
Maybe I went on an off day, but my experience was terrible. Service was good, but I started out with lukewarm water, which was unappealing. When I got my ramen it was oily and the pork was really fatty. Maybe thats the style here, I dont know, but its not like the ramen Ive had elsewhere. If this place is as good as people say it is, then I didnt get any of it.
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Orville Villanueva
This place is as authentic as it gets. Sena, the master chef in the kitchen, is always consistent in delivering my ramen; whether it be the Mt. Fuji, The Ninja, or Tenma - always perfect. My wife and I visit Ramen Tenma at least once a week for our ramen fix... We dont go any place else since discovering this place. Highly recommended..
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Dan Chioreanu
My wife and I got different ramen dishes, however the meat in them was foul. I didnt eat mine at all, tried explaining that it could be spoiled. Ive had plenty of ramen before, and its not supposed to taste like that. They still charged us for both dishes.
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Leesa Yim
I had the ninja ramen and the broth was creamy and delicious. My husband had the curry ramen and that was light and full of curry flavor without overpowering. The noodles even had chewy and flavorful taste. We will definitely revisit.
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Eric Len
After having lived in Tokyo for 4 years, it is nice to find a true Okinawa style ramen shop here in San Jose. Ramen Tenma was absolutely phenominal. The Abri Chashu with Cheese is really good in addition to their ramen.
