Izakaya Kichinto

This place is really fun! The vibes are great and they will not rush you out the door (defeating the point of an Izakaya) It's a bit pricey and while the food is good. Its not ground breaking, but if you want actual Izakaya vibes this is the only place I've found in all of Oregon let alone Portland that fits the bill.

In a city now somewhat desperate for an Izakaya powerhouse, Kichinto crushes it at a high level. Tucked away on NE Russell street Kichinto has those neighborhood vibes and atmosphere, hospitality, and soul. The chicken katsu curry is one of the best I’ve had in my life and is an absolute comfort fix!

I just wanted some late night ramen (this place is open until 11 pm on Thursdays) but I had no idea how amazing the experience and the food would be. Totally reminded me of some of the homey ramen shops I've been to in Japan🍜🎴😊

Amazing food and atmosphere! We sat in one of the tatami rooms which was a great experience. Had jellyfish for the first time here and the sushi was great! The servers were friendly.

This restaurant stands out for its authentic atmosphere. Service was good and speedy food delivery. Food was above average. We had the salmon teriyaki rice bowl that was delightful. The Shoyu Ramen was very good with excellent tasting broth and good noodles for the price. It could have used more meat, however this may have made it more expensive. Saki flight was a bit expensive, otherwise food seemed very reasonable, for two main courses and two appetizers. This will be a restaurant that we will return to.

Where to begin!? The food was amazing!!! Everything was so carefully put together and you can really taste the high quality food they serve here. I had to stop eating and take a few snaps of our food. We ordered the tuna tartar, soft shell crab roll along with two other rolls i cant remember at the moment. Er also got some the most savoury miso soup my mouth has had the plessure of housing! We were absolutely stunned at how great the food is but also the service was superb!!! Eat here!

Delicious food. Lunch special: perfect - delicious sides and crispy katsu. Sushi roll is impressive. Dinner: hot soba and calamari. Yum. Friendly staff. Nice ambiance for a date. Private areas (perimeters) so there can be an intimate experience.

Delicious food, amazing atmosphere and decor! We got the aburamen with added chashu and soft yolk egg, the karaage, and the 💖ULTIMATE💖 selection of small dishes. All of them were great. We had three of their rolls (unagi, spider, and salmon skin roll). Of the three, our favorite was the unagi. We would definitely return if we could!

I came here for some takoyaki and ramen one evening and had a nice time! Not many shops are open past 8-9pm, so I was so happy when I saw this spot open until 11pm. Walking in, the waiter sat us down and quickly got us some water and hot tea. The inside of the restaurant is really nice, decorated beautifully, and the wooden divisions between tables give your space some nice privacy without feeling claustrophobic. I loved the ambiance here I ordered some ramen and takoyaki and they both came out fairly quick. They were delicious. The takoyaki was crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and so saucy. And, the ramen was rich and a great portion size. Service was so prompt and checked on us often. I would definitely come back here if I were to crave something warm and filling in the later part of the evening.

$63 (after tip) for a bowl of ramen and about 9 pieces of sushi. Oh and a cup of tea ... For that price I expect the experience to be near amazing.. it was far from that. The reason I'm giving one star is not only for the overpriced food, but the employees ... I have a chronic illness that makes me tired and lethargic ALL the time so my boyfriend went out to move the car closer so I wouldn't have to walk as far after dinner. When he walked back in the server standing by the sushi bar looked at him with the most disgusted "what are you doing in here" look ... when our own server came to check on us I politely asked if she had a problem (which I have NEVER done before but honestly the way she reacted to my boyfriend walking in shocked me and I had to say something) our server said she's new and they had just experienced a rush so maybe she's just stressed out ... and the OTHER server there, a younger girl, was SO friendly that she openly flirted with my boyfriend right in front of me right before we left... the atmosphere doesn't make up for the service that is very much lacking. Needlessly to say we won't be returning for $50 ramen and sushi that didn't fill either of us up ... Our waiter was really kind though!

Used to be a favorite ramen spot. The interior is still unique and & drinking vibe but has been unchanged since opening. Portion ratio to prices are not reasonable. Ramen broth was not enough. Unlike other reviewers, our experience with service was unsatisfactory. Frumpy appearance, slow from beginning to end.

I love the location. It was a great spot for us to grab dinner before heading to a concert at the Moda Center. The food was delicious, and the interior had an authentic Japanese bar feel. The service was alright. While the prices are a bit on the higher side, the overall experience was well worth it.

On a recommendation I decided to have dinner at Izakaya Kichinto. I have to admit when I was told theres a Japanese Izakaya in town I was pretty excited and don't bother to look at the menu. I was pleasantly surprised by the decor and was getting excited to eat. Little did I know I was in for one of the priciest mid tear meals of my life First, let's address the elephant in the room. Is it even legal to call yourself an izakaya without offering a highball or at least a decent selection of Japanese beer? The majority of the sushi here is uramaki. Translation, something you will basically never see in Japan. Think California roll but with some other junk on top or inside. The selection of "skewers" (or yakitori) was the most basic selection I have encountered. To top it off.... they were out of pork belly. I decided to get a salmon skin roll but the salmon skin wasn't crispy at all. The chicken karage was served with what I think was tartar sauce? No Japanese mayo? The salmon belly "skewer" was probably blowtorched because it had the off taste of fuel. and a rathe uninspired but palatable salmon and avocado handrail. As I was still hungry I added a unagi don. Unagi is usually pretty safe because places like this don't make it themselves and is pretty consistent no matter where you go. It was probably the only good part of the meal and I would bet money they didn't make it themselves. Over priced, underwhelming food for the unadventurous.

Really love the seating and vibe of this place, they got a bunch of semi enclosed private booths as well as more private tatami rooms in the back. The wood rafters gave it a very rustic sake house feel. The food was a little hit and miss, but generally good. I was a little disappointed, they seemed to have trimmed down a lot of their menu. We went around 2ish bc that's when I had heard their happy hour was but I found out it changed to 3-5 pm, and is a very limited menu. They recently had one of their main sushi chefs leave so had a lot less sushi options and the stuff they did have didn't seem very good (mostly hand rolls and poke bowls) so we stuck with kitchen. - Yuzu Shio Ramen: pretty good, nice and light broth with subtle yuzu without being too lemony - Takoyaki: meh, mushy on the inside but I haven't been able to find takoyaki anywhere that's not mushy inside still - Jellyfish ponzu: ok at first, then quickly got tiresome, 3/5 - Calamari: felt like they were the fried scraps, tasted ok but they were all tiny pieces like the size of matches. Still eating 4 stars tho bc the ramen was good and the ambience.

Yum. I saw the place driving to the hotel and had to try it out. I ordered eggplant, salmon musubi, and shrimp tempura hot soba. The eggplant was tasty in a sweet dashi broth. The salmon musubi was a little salty. The soba was great. They make the soba noodles in house. The broth was of bonito and wakame. They have a good selection. I would come with more people and drink and eat their tapas.

The service was okay--nothing to say poorly about it. I ordered the spicy miso ramen and was pretty disappointed in the dish. I'll preface by saying I'm not a traditional ramen connoisseur. Truth be told I was craving Boxer ramen's spicy red miso and their unfortunate closing sent me to Izakaya. The dish came with an enormous amount of corn and lettuce/cabbage. It was very unexpected dressings for a ramen--perhaps I'm under educated with traditional ramens, however, I did not enjoy the combinations of sweet corn and savory miso. The broth lacked any spice which was disappointing. The noodles were different, wider, and not standard noodles which was so so. The pork was dry and lacked flavor. Kinda bummed. Cool atmosphere.

Fantastic food, drinks, atmosphere and the server was super friendly. highly recommend if you haven't and if you've ever been to Japan and miss it, this place holds it down

The decor is very cute and the seat booths were a very cute and cool experience. The wait wasn't too bad as we had a few parties ahead but waited no longer then 15 min on a Saturday night. My husband got the spicy miso ramen and he said the broth was the most delicious spicy miso he's ever had. His on critique was that the chasu pork lacked flavor. The hand made ramen noodles was very unique and special experience (not your typical ramen noodles). Hand rolls sushi was meh, tasted like it could be any sushi place I've tried. The Abu-Udon (brothless) surprised me the most. It was a very unique dish to experience and the seasoning and flavoring was so well done. It was balanced to not be too saucy or salty. The crispy flakes and egg really elevated the udon taste. Service was okay, I understand when business get busy. The waiter forgot to give me back my leftovers after I had asked for a box. He said he would box it for me and forgot so we ended up sitting for awhile (extra 15min ish) until it was bought to his attention. Overall it was a good new experience and definitely worth returning.

Dropped by this spot for lunch and can happily say, I was not disappointed! I was smitten by all of their vegetarian and vegan friendly options especially since there were a couple of ramens as well as udon and soba which all had veggie options! Woohoo~ There were also gluten free options for those who have a sensitivity/allergy/preference. We tried the curry udon and the spicy miso ramen -- both vegetarian; and we also had the veggie gyoza and the veggie roll. I loved both of the noodle soup dishes and would get them both again. Now the veggie gyoza I would 1000000% get again -- it was crispy without being oily and honestly tasted sooo good. The veggie roll I may pass on because it was a bit standard and not too interesting. I would say that the price is a bit steep for the portions but also have to mention that everything I've tried so far has been good. I am just itching to go back for dinner so I can try their soba greatness and have a better idea how I feel about this place. Overall, came for veggie noodle soup options and definitely had them. Street parking in the area is usually easy to come by but plan accordingly!

I had high hopes for this restaurant because it had good reviews. I'm not sure if it was just an off day or what, but the food and service was terrible. We ordered the shrimp tempura roll, chicken karage, calamari, spicy ramen, and a brothless ramen. The chicken karage and roll were actually the only decent thing, but expensive for the 5-6 pieces they give you. We already knew we were gambling by ordering the calamari based on the photos that we already on Yelp. We wanted to give them a chance and that was a disappointment because it looked as bad as it does on the photos already provided. It was 95% batter and majority of the plate was messy and soggy. The ramen with broth was pretty bland. I did appreciate the noodles because they seemed to be fresh ramen noodles. Other than that, the meat was dry. The part that made us pay and leave ASAP was the fact that we never got the brothless ramen. I had to walk up to the front and ask to pay and take off the brothless ramen. Apparently it was given to the wrong table and they knew that. They didn't give us a heads up if we wanted another one or taken off the bill. Seemed sketchy at first because they didn't take it off until I mentioned it. It was also not that busy so I didn't think the workers would be able to forget. Typically if someone gives a table someone's order by mistake, it would be common sense to notify the correct table and try to solve it. They offered nothing and it was just sad Overall, I'm okay with bad food with good service. What I am not okay with is the combination of mediocre service and terrible food. I usually take pictures, but the food was not worth my phone storage. Thanks!

Came here on a Sunday afternoon for a late lunch with my girlfriend just because we were in the area. Though it seems to be popular for a late-night izakaya spot, we were hoping that their lunch service would be just as amazing. We went around 4 pm and there was no one else in the restaurant, so we were able to get a seat immediately. We were seated at one of their several Japanese-style booths. We ordered the jellyfish as an appetizer, and for entrees, we got the Oregon roll, tempura soba (cold), and yuzu shio ramen. The jellyfish appetizer was delicious. It was slightly crunchy and acidic but also slightly salty from the sauce. It was a great way to whet our appetites. The Oregon roll was essentially a California roll with albacore on top. The roll was pretty average, nothing to write home about. The tempura soba was solid. The shrimp tempura was light and crispy and the shrimp was cooked well. The soba noodles themselves, house-made, were chewy and had a satisfying mouthfeel. I found them very slightly undercooked, and I wish I had ordered the soba noodles hot. I feel that the hot version would've been more satisfying, as it seems that I'm still not the biggest fan of cold noodle dishes. The yuzu shio ramen was average at best. The noodles, also house-made, were cooked well, and they had a unique chewiness that showed that they were made in-house. The broth, however, was disappointing. We didn't get any of the citrusy yuzu flavor that we were looking for, and the overall flavor profile reminded me more of a shoyu ramen rather than a yuzu shio ramen. On top of the that, the broth was a bit too salty for my liking. Pricing is pretty reasonable for Japenese izakaya dining. Given that you're supposed to come here with a large group and order a ton of dishes, the price per person would actually be lower than what we paid, I'm assuming. The interior is really nicely decorated to create a Japanese vibe. And the staff were extremely nice and prompt with their service. Free street parking is available on all of the neighboring streets. A decent spot, and I'm sure it's better at night if you go for an izakaya experience (which we didn't). But it just didn't do it for me when we visited.

The food was delicious, ambiance was nice and chill. The service was also amazing. The fatty maki and fatty unagi were amazing. My favorite items were the obanzai where you got to try the different veggie dishes.

The calamari was in thin strips, maybe the size of a shoestring fry, no tentacles. It had a nice flavor, a bit chewy, but tender. The edamame was done well. It still had a bite, no seasoning.

Super charming restaurant with seats that feel intimate and personal. I came during a happy hour time so the menu was limited but prices were extremely fair (you have to order a drink) I'm not entirely sure if you can ask to order off the main menu during their happy hour to possibly get the full menu. I ordered their ramen and added two soft boiled eggs. The broth was fantastic and the small size was just right. I ordered some pumpkin to share and it was also delicious. The dumplings I ordered a veggie and a pork and got them fried bs steamed and they were amazing! The server was incredibly friendly but when asked what certain items on the menu, they were not very helpful. So google was used to figure out some items!! Parking was easy for a Saturday afternoon and I was able to park right out front!

I went to Portland to eat, and this stop for a late lunch did not disappoint. Try vegan Ramen- probably will change your life. One thing I love about Portland is their ability to make the vegan food taste as if you had no dietary restrictions. The facility is clean, not a long wait time for our party of four. Takoyaki balls are really good as well. Not a huge place but plenty of room. a solid spot for Ramen in the city

Just what I needed for a rainy day. Super cozy inside, great customer service. I got hot sake, edamame and the spicy miso soup. All of it hit the spot!

I'm sure it's a wonderful place, but opens at 4 on Friday, not 1. Really want to go back and try though, looks good!

Food was great, service and ambiance was perfect l! Their spicy miso ramen was yum, calamari, and chicken karage were on point yum!

Taiyaki!!!! Yes they have and is very good I came just for this but ate sushi too also very good

Friend and I popped in last night for a quick dinner and a drink - definitely want to come back to try more! We got the sweet potato korokke pancakes as an appetizer. There will only two pucks, but each good sized (about 2-3 bites), fried and delicious, especially with the tonkatsu sauce. For a main, I got the abu-udon, which despite being a brothless dish, the server said that it did have a sort of dipping sauce at the bottom that when mixed with the soft boiled egg on the top becomes a sort of carbonara consistency, and he was exactly right! The portion size was perfect, but I'm a big eater so it left me wanting just a little bit more. My friend had the veggie udon, which he said was good, but not good enough for him to want to make a second trip for. He said that the fish sauce was a standout flavor, but it's supposed to be vegetarian, so maybe his taste buds are bad? I do love the layout of this restaurant. It's a corner building with the door on the corner, and the interior is all very private booths with interesting shapes and high backs all puzzle-pieced together. You really can't see other diners while you're at your table, and I love it when a restaurant can make you feel like you're in your own private space without it feeling claustrophobic or too boxy (because the booths aren't all square or rectangles). The bench seats have individual cushions too!

The food was very fresh and flavorful. Came in at 10 pm and service was still great! Spicy ramen broth was amazing and California roll was crisp. The ambiance was very serene and I loved the set up of the tables. Overall loved it as an Angeleno!

First time here, and I must say that it was worth the visit. A small, but comfortable restaurant with great (and fast) service, although we were there early so that may have been why the food was brought out so fast. The service was good and friendly, and the food was delicious. We had the Chicken Kaarage, the Poke Don, Chicken Katsu Curry (w/Rice), and the Gyoza (deep fried). All if these were prepared well, and very flavorful and good. Will definitely be coming back to this quaint restaurant again in the future. Thumbs up for sure.

I probably would say the food was closer to 3.5 stars but rounding up for the menu variety and quick service for our to go order. Reading the reviews they seem to have a cool space so would be down to come back and enjoy indoors. Looking on their menu they seem to have a solid happy hour menu as well with plenty of items ranging from hand rolls, curry, rice dishes, and noodles. | WHAT WE GOT | + Fatty Unagi Maki + Seafood Poke Don + Salmon Onigiri + Chicken Karaage + Unagi/Avo Hand Roll ________________ All in all, the menu had a lot of variety for whatever you could be craving. The items were alright but wasn't the freshest I've ever had. Portions are worth sharing and I would suggest getting a couple items if you're getting rolls to satisfy your craving since portions are on the OK side. We shared all items between two people and felt satisfied afterwards with the Japanese meal.

We absolutely love this place! The veggie udon (add tofu) is the best. This place means a lot to me because when my dad was at Emmanuel hospital for three weeks, I would come here after a long day visiting him. Their late hours made it so that I could come when visiting hours ended around 10pm. It was always just what I needed after a hard day. The staff are really kind and the atmosphere makes you feel like you're in Japan! It's one of our favorite places.

Izakaya Kichinto is a solid Japanese restaurant. We visited for dinner with a total party of 4 people and were sat immediately outdoors. Dogs are welcome for outdoor dining, our server even brought us water bowls! I echo what previous reviews noted, the service here is top notch. Our server was very polite and easy to approach. We tried a couple of their menu items, fried gyoza, Takoyaki, okonomiyaki, spicy salmon hand rolls, and I had tempura soba. All of the food came out so fresh and was flavorful. I highly recommend Izakaya Kichinto to anyone who craves/wants to try quality Japanese food.

I chose Izakaya Kichinto because it is one of the very few places in Portland that stays open late. Since my group got there pretty late (around 9:50 pm), we had to order immediately before the kitchen closed. It was fine because we knew what we wanted. There was still a fair amount of people at that time, but no wait or a line. The spicy miso ramen came with a very generous amount of bean sprouts. I got the Abu udon, and I thought it was pretty good. It was unique, and I hadn't had anything like it before. It was kind of like mazesoba, but not nearly as heavy. It is however a very lukewarm dish because of the other things that go in it. The portions of the sushi bowls were smaller than the noodle bowls. Our group also ordered the Alaska Don and a Seafood Poke Bowl and finished those off pretty quickly. Just something to consider. I thought the seating areas were cute, though not the most comfortable with the cushions because they shift around.

Smallish cozy restaurant on a corner near NE Fremont had just a 15-20 mins wait on Friday night for our party of 7. The menu has a limited number of items in each category: soba noodles (which they make in house daily), rolls, ramen/udon, hot pot, and appetizers. I ordered the curry ramen and had a takoyaki ball from my friend's order and both were delicious. The decor gave us the vibe of being in Japan. A dinner experience where all the plates were clean with no leftovers means 5 stars!

My sister found Kichinta on Yelp. We love Japanese food, specifically izakaya, so we were looking forward to trying this place out. I was pleased to find that Kichinta did not disappoint. Food and service were great. We arrived at Kichinta around noon on a Wednesday. It wasn't super busy, but we lucked out getting the last outdoor table. The restaurant was cute and quaint. I got a quick glance of the place when I had to run in to use the bathroom. Speaking of which, not only was the women's restroom super clean, but they also had the Japanese style toilets. The toilet seat was nicely warmed, which is honestly the absolute best, and the toilet had all the bidet features and functions. I always get a kick out of seeing these kinds of toilets. There was one waiter managing the tables, and he was awesome. He was such a friendly guy, and he was very attentive. He checked on us frequently to see how we were doing or wanted anything else. I appreciated his attention to detail as he was on top of clearing plates for us. I could see that they had a small menu. It could be due to Covid or a limited lunch menu or both. Either way, it wasn't a make or break for me. I was able to find something I could enjoy... and enjoyed I did. My sister and I started with some good ol' takoyaki. I liked the breading of their takoyaki, and the squid inside was a good-sized piece. I ordered the hand roll trio for my entree. There were several options to choose from, and I got the negi-salmon, avo unagi, and California. Each one was tasted so fresh. I could certainly tell, for example, that the nori used on the rolls weren't old because they easily tore away with every bite. I also loved the sweet house unagi sauce on the avo unagi roll. The quality of the ingredients shone through the rolls.

Came down late night as I often do, told to add myself to the waitlist. No one waiting, at least 5-6 open tables, 9:50 pm restaurant closes at 11pm. Got told after a 18 min wait, that they aren't taking anymore customers because they have 5 tables full. Good bye. As a usual customer here, 18-22% tipper, spending 100$ plus on food every time I step in here, I won't be coming back. You made me wait almost 20 mins to tell me you aren't taking a customer as we sat there. Complete trash service.

We came here around 1pm on July 4th after going to see the Multnomah Falls. We saw that they had bbq foods on Yelp but when we got there, the menu was a bit different so there's no bbq foods. Sad...but the waiter told us that it was actually happy hour from 1-4 if each person bought an alcohol drink. So we got 2 pitchers of beer. It also took a long time until someone seated the 8 of us. We tried a bunch of stuff. I liked the spicy miso ramen the best! One of the best I've had. I also liked the jelly fish ponzu, takoyaki, and calamari. Food came out at a good pace.

Food was delish! Couldnt decide what to order so got 4!items and all were great. Could've done without the ramen because the rest filled me up.

Food was pretty good but service was extremely slow. Ordered appetizers and small plates initially without incident. Then ordered four entrees. Two Ramin dishes came out, but curry dish and salmon don dish did not follow. After 20 minutes, the curry dish was delivered. After another 10 minutes, the waiter stopped by and asked us if we were waiting for anything after catching our eye. He said he would check on it. After another five minutes he came back and said chef overcooked salmon and had to remake. 20 minutes later, the food finally came. There were four thin slices of salmon on rice. Cooking time couldn't be more than a few minutes. Waiter made a point of saying he talked to his manager and would do as much as possible to account for the poor experience. When bill was presented, the $155 total was reduced by $1.80! Very insulting, needless to say.

Awesome fresh food. Limited gluten free options but they were able to accommodate a few of the rolls to be both soy and gluten free. The veggie dish was just as good as the rolls. Our waiter made a great recommendation for the sake and that was also very good. Wish they were closer to where I live! Will definitely be back !

The food is not only amazing but really good size! Particularly the rice bowls and noodle dishes (I got both the Pork Stamina bowl and Curry Udon with an added chicken katsu on top). Altogether turned out to be $35 and well, well worth it. Loved the convenient late night hours as well. Looking forward to come again!

I really liked how the restaurant looked both from the inside and outside. 3/4 of us ordered the Miso Ramen, it was really good but I feel like other Ramen places outshine it a lot better. One of my friends ordered the seafood ramen, there was not much seafood in it besides the broth containing clam. Overall the food was good but we most likely wont be coming back because nothing really stood out.

The spicy miso ramen was delicious. I would recommend that. I ordered the slider roll, it was good and had a unique flavor. I would recommend coming back to this place.

We picked this Japanese restaurant as our izakaya in portland hoping to make it to their happy hour. Unfortunately, our plans ran late so we visited for dinner instead. Wanting to get some ice cream after dinner, we ordered just enough dishes to satisfy and although it didn't look like much, we were quite full! First, we started with their green salad with an interesting japanese twist on the dressing but very high price for the small serving of greens. Also tried out their garlic seafood poke which again was pricey but tasted pretty good with a strong garlic flavour. Next we had their yuzu shio ramen which was a clam and chicken based ramen with thin homemade noodles. Their noodles are very al dente and their soup is not too salty. The toppings are sparse though with two thin slices of pork and some green onions. Not the best ramen but nothing wrong either! Also we got their grilled pork cheek which was expensive for the portion and a little tough but the char was great. The frenchy roll was spicy tuna and avocado with a seared salmon topping. This was rolled tightly with a good filling to rice ratio and a spicy kick without being too saucy. The absolute best dish of the night was their bo-gyoza. It is homemade and the long kind but cut in half. The inside is so juicy and flavourful that each bite exploded in my mouth. It was a little oily from the pan fry but I couldn't stop smiling with each bite of this gyoza. One of the best things I hate in portland. Overall, the food here is pretty good and the space is really nice but their prices are VERY high. Yes, it is an izakaya but we expected a larger portion for the dishes.

Flew in on a late flight. No meals. Besides, with the super-transmissible BA.5 variant, who wants to take their masks off in a sealed aluminum can stuffed full of sniffling coughing people? It was pretty late when we got the car and realized we were really hungry. First order of business was to decide what we wanted to eat. People wanted Japanese for some reason. Searched for places open (after 10 pm, Thursday night). Found this place on the app. Slightly out of our way, but not a log of choices at this hour. We had to order quickly before the kitchen closed. We ordered a few shoyu ramens (no tonkatsu unfortunately). Also some takoyaki, some karaage, edamame, a teriyaki salmon don, and a couple of Ramune sodas. The food was fine. We didn't eat it fresh as we had to drive a distance home and it had cooled down. Even so, it was fine and sated our Japanese food jones for the night. The atmosphere /decor of the place is, I guess what you imagine a typical izakaya looks like in Japan. Kind of charming. There were still customers eating as we saw shoes left in front of the traditional-appearing tatami floored booths. The waitress who put our order together seemed very nice, if a little flustered. Overall, a pretty decent experience.

They got many vegetarian options in the menu. Most favorites are veggie gyoza, veggie sushi and veggie soba ji. Great indoor outdoor options. Definitely recommend

Ended up here for a pre-concert meal when i realized the restaurant I'd planned on eating at was only open for takeout these days. Convenient location for concertgoers right next to Wonder Ballroom. As a solo diner, definitely felt a little awkward as the setup is clearly designed for groups, but the servers were pleasant and attentive (if anything too attentive i thought at first--then read the front of the menu and learned that you're expected to order multiple times throughout the meal if you want, which is why they kept asking me if they would get me anything else!) I got the curry soba, a fresh veggie side, a side of miso soup, and a glass of plum wine, which came to $35 with a big tip. The curry was not as flavorful or spicy as I expected, but it was still tasty, and the vegetables in the soup were delicious and cooked to perfection. The soba noodles were lovely too, and there was a nice richness to the broth. A generous portion too--with a couple sides it definitely could be shared with two people, alone I didn't finish all of it but enjoyed what I had. The miso was simple but delicious, garnished with seaweed and green onion, as it should be. The veggie side, kinpira goba I believe, was julienned burdock and carrot in a sweet and salty soy sauce. It was tasty but as a fresh counterpart a little tang and less salt might have been nice. I'd never had plum wine before and was surprised to see it served on ice, but it was very tasty, and I'll definitely be ordering it again when I see it. The atmosphere was fantastic. It definitely made me want to come back with a group; I was seated in a sweet little booth that could easily seat six. another reviewer said all the booths were very private, but my booth had a full line of sight to another and partially to a third. This was a plus, though, because the jovial families nearby made me feel less lonely and the place feel very cozy. Overall, it was a great spot to get a bite before my show, and I hope to come back with a big group to sample more of the menu

My boyfriend and I went to check this place out last night. My boyfriend politely asked the server what meats they had. The server laughed in his face and proceeded to answer the question as if it was a joke. My boyfriend is Mexican and there's a language barrier , meaning he doesn't really communicate punctually. I understand that it may have been a weird questions considering there was a menu in front of him, but the fact that this server laughed in his face as if it was a joke really made me mad. The server had long hair and was a male. He needs to learn how to be polite and more diverse.

i have never written a review before i think?? but i am incredibly disappointed with the service here. i ordered a cocktail that was experimental for my taste being that i am not heavily familiarized with asian liquor. the drink was 15$, came in a tiny glass, and tasted like bitter water with a hint of vodka. i could hardly swallow it down. neither could anyone at my table. i asked the waiter super kindly if i could switch it out, as i work in food service and know this is a service i offer and have seen every other food establishment offer without question. and he refused, saying that i should have known what the drink was going to taste like. now, is that not the most ridiculous thing you have ever heard? i couldn't help but to wonder if there was something personalized towards me he didn't like that made him want to act so unkind. this definitely makes me not want to come back here and not want to recommend it to others. i was really excited to try it here and was so sad to feel so unwelcome and have to waste 15$ on a drink i couldn't even ingest.

Went in for Happy Hour. The HH menu was extensive and the price was ok. My friends and I ordered hand rolls of spicy tuna, spicy salmon, avocado unagi, and avocado salmon. Also had calamari, squid legs, and salmon belly skewers. Everything was decent and the service was good.

My daughter found this Japanese restaurant when I was visiting Portland. Waited 2 minutes at the door for 1 pm opening. Inside there were numerous Japanese posters, memorabilia, antiques and drawings covering every space, bit overwhelming, but fun to look at. My daughter had tempura soba and beer, her friend had vegetable soba and seaweed salad and I had Tanuki soba with seaweed salad. Tanuki is raccoon kind animal in Japanese. Pieces of wrapping coats of Tempura might look like raccoon's fur! Maybe that's why it is called Tanuki. Anyway soba noodles had good texture and the soup had very good Dashi ( ingredients). Louis, our waiter was very attentive and charming, It was very tasty time for us!

I hate to leave a negative review but in this case, it's a Must! We came in and were seated immediately. The gal sat us in a tatami room, she suggested it saying it's cooler there. Since Portland is having a heatwave, we wanted someplace cool. So she sat us, gave us our menus and leaves. Another girl delivers a bottle of water. We thought we were off to a good start, considering there were no other customers. So we sat, sat, sat, and sat. After waiting over twenty minutes, we said F' this! Plus after reading the menu selection, the place isn't authentic. The employees are all a bunch of young Caucasian kids with nothing to do but hang out at the sushi bar chit chatting, while customers are waiting. As we walked out, we pass the sushi bar and no apologies whatsoever. Im surprised this place isn't out of business with that kind of service.

Really good food, really BAD service. Might have just been our server (lazy & morbidly obese) we arrived at 10:08pm directly behind a couple who were seated. 4 min later our server tried to come back and tell us that they seated their last table already (restaurant closes at 11pm) and begrudgingly sat us after we mentioned we were already ready to order and had arrived at the same time as the couple they had already seated, he angrily threw the menus down on the table when he sat us and then didn't come back to take our order for 10 minutes. Our servers gut was hanging out of the bottom of his shirt when he took our order, food was AMAZING but at 10:33 the only additional food we could order was dessert, which if they had already cleaned the sushi Chef's area and tools I guess is understandable. I will try them again and hopefully get a server who treats their customers with respect. If you want to close earlier, maybe don't have hours until 11:00 p.m.

Needed some dinner on a Sunday night. This little Japanese place looked exactly like Ramen houses you find in Japan. Additionally, there was outdoor seating, and it was a rare beautiful April evening, clear and 68 degrees as the sun was setting, so we sat outside and ordered. Our waiter Keenan was perfectly attentive, knowledgeable about the menu, friendly, honest, and didn't hover too much-he let my lady and I enjoy our meal, checked on us occasionally, and only was there when he needed to be. First, we ordered the Obanzai (Japanese tapas) as an appetizer, which included Kimpira-Gobo (sauteed burdock roots & carrots with sweet soy sauce, spinach-wasabi as (boiled spinach w/ sesame oil, salt, wasabi, topped with nori) and kabocha nimono (simmered kabocha pumpkin seasoned with sake & tamari). It was an amazing simplistic and favorable appetizer that inspires you to eat more. I ordered the spicy miso ramen and my lady ordered abu-ramen. Mine included pork chashu, and I ordered some shrimp tempura to throw in, as did my lady for hers. Both were wonderful, warm, seasoned well, and quite filling. Just a great bowl of ramen. Excellent food, service, and aesthetic. If I had one tip: If you like spicy food, let me forewarn you that the spicy miso ramen didn't seem spicy at all. Its spicy perhaps for bland eaters. I'd encourage others to discuss the spice level when you order. Next time I'll request it to be spicier. Wonderful-will eat again!

Tapas. Small but delicious. We ordered chicken katsu, poke and Spicy tuna roll. It's good but the value isn't great to bring me back