RAKKAN MISO / IZAKAYA

This is a relatively new ramen shop that’s opened up in DTLA. I went for lunch and ordered the pork katsu bowl, which was really good! Service was great, and the interior was spacious and welcoming.

Best ramen and fried calamari I ever tried. The staff was extremely nice as well. Keep it up, guys :)

I loved my experience there! The restaurant is a cute place and the staff was friendly. However, the food is what brings people back. I feel like the ramen reminded me of instant noodles and the broth lacked flavor.

Original miso ramen was so delicious and flavorful! Service was exceptional

One of the best Ramen I ever had. I had spicy miso this time and so excited to try other dishes. This restaurant will be my regular spot to have dinner and so glad they opened. Everyone in the store was so kind even for my fur baby. Soon to go there with my friend.

A restaurant mistakenly created by a tasteless ramen shop that knows nothing about Japanese Izakaya; four of us went there and ordered quite a lot, but everything was so bad that we left 85% of the food. There was no good sake either, even though it is Izakaya. No Japanese would go there and no one should go there. A terrible place that even non-Japanese would strongly not recommend going to, and should not be there. As a Japanese who has loved Japanese food for 65 years, I honestly warn you all.

looked up Ramen in DTLA, saw this place had some of the best ratings. but probably also because it was new so figured I would take the chance. the food pics also looked decent or clean so that was a big draw for me. it's a nice place but it seems they put more emphasis on being upscale. I'm not sure what their menu specialty is but I still left with a feeling of something to be desired. to be fair, I should've gotten a regular Ramen and not spicy to get the real Ramen flavor. but this shouldn't have been a big deal. the food was a bit underwhelming, there wasn't much noodles or ingredients and the meat portion was kind of insulting, two thin slices of pork. I even ordered an extra meat portion and only got another 2 thin slices. I asked how much it was, was told $2-3. it was 4.50. it's probably not really the servers fault she didn't know but just the fact they charge that much for such a disappointing amount of meat is never a good sign. so after all this, I ended up paying $27 for what exactly I'm not sure, the fancy atmosphere? Ramen is usually substantially cheaper than this and left me feeling disappointed. I might return someday but only if it was by invitation. I'm usually a tough critic but I think they almost have a great Ramen, just needs some minor adjustments. and I knew what I was getting into here. I just hope they can adapt. I probably should've gotten something else or at least I wish I knew they don't focus on Ramen

Wonderful little Japanese lzakaya with a great selection of skewers, delicious tasting miso ramen and hosomaki sushi rolls. Staff is well versed in their selection of sake, and extremely friendly, ready to chat and share a laugh. Had a wonderful time full of laughs with Sakura and Viktoriia

Simply put, this new ramen spot in downtown is just OK, and that is mostly in regards to the food. The ambiance is quiet and lovely, but the service was slow despite there only being a total of 3 tables. I opted for the Miso Ramen - this starts at $17.00 with minimal toppings included and less ramen noodles than all other ramen joints I've ever tried (sad). The marinated egg was not in fact marinated and had little flavor (again, sad). The broth was good, so I will say that. All in all, you're paying more money for less food, which I'm fine with if the quality is worth it, but I've had better/more for a more affordable price.

Met a friend there for lunch early when they had only recently opened. We were the first ones there. The service was great because no one else was there yet. I got the signature miso ramen and was pleased with how light it was but I did leave a little bit hungry still.

My date & I came here on a Thursday night after a not so great service from a restaurant whose name I won't mention across the street lol. As soon as we entered we were nicely greeted & able to sit anywhere we wanted. There were a few other parties dining there as well but this place is like deafeningly quiet lol...which we noticed almost immediately after sitting down. The ambiance is honestly really cool/modern but I definitely think they should switch up the music selection as it was almost eerie how quiet it was. The food however was all pretty good! We had the wagyu sushi (this was DELICIOUS), the saba sushi, the cucumber sushi, and the cucumber salad (perfect flavors). We wanted a meal that was light, refreshing, and GOOD. This all hit the spot. As far as drinks, my date got the hot sake (which was more than enough for him so I had to help him out at the end lol), Sapporos, and I got the Grapefruit highball...this left me confused lol. I've never had a highball before but it's basically like a watered down seltzer. Wasn't a huge fan but it was terrible either it was very aromatic & refreshing so I'll give it that lol. Service was also pretty good. Our server was really nice & attentive so no complaints there at all!

Strolling through downtown, this restaurant had an inviting vibe. Cleanliness and service was satisfactory, hence the 2 stars. The food, however, was horrible. We ordered from the lunch menu were extremely disappointed. The cut rolls in the Kaisen platter were very dry. Sabe cut roll was fishy and sour. Spicy salmon sushi was fatty, could they have served salmon belly nigiri by accident? It was torched for too long so it taste burnt. Spicy miso ramen was not spicy but salty. I hope for great food changes to this place.

Rakkan Miso Izakaya opened just a few days ago in the space left vacant several years ago by Fundamental. Aside from removing the hanging plants that must be long-dead by now, little has changed in the interior. The menu is what I'd call "izakaya lite": a little sushi, a little ramen, some rice bowls here, some skewers there, salads because it's L.A., and not much else. You want yakisoba? Gyōza? Curry? Look elsewhere. The alcohol is limited to beer, wine, and sake, but that's expected at an izakaya, anyway. In addition to Sapporo (brewed in Wisconsin) and Asahi (now brewed at the Peroni brewery in Italy) (both $8), there are two beers actually brewed in Japan on draft: Suntory's Premium The Malt's ($12) and Orion ($10) from Okinawa. The food was decent but not exceptional given the prices. I ordered several of the kushiyaki (grilled skewers): arabiki sausages ($9), negima (chicken and green onion) ($11), and shishito peppers ($7). The portion of the negima was especially small for the price, while the shishito seemed as if they had been precooked (perhaps blanched) before grilling, thereby seeming overcooked. I had ordered the spicy miso chicken version of karaage but instead was brought the miso chicken katsu ($15); I was unsure if this was just what their karaage was like until I noticed the katsu on the menu after I had eaten half. It was cooked well but rather bland, and the salty miso added little. I later ordered the regular karaage ($14), which came only with lemon and a matcha salt as a condiment. If the karaage is good, a lemon wedge is all I need, but this was, again, rather bland. I had considered ordering more -- specifically, the curry ramen ($20) -- but I found myself in a service black hole sitting at the bar, where I was largely ignored by the staff for a long period. I put in my second order for the karaage that got mistaken the first time, and that took a small eternity to arrive. By then, I was ready to move on. And even so, after two beers, three skewers, and two appetizer-sized fried chicken orders, my bill was nearly $90 before tip. I visited on the first week of service, so I understand they are getting their legs under them. But a place like Miso Izakaya will live or die by service, and they need to be more attentive to all diners -- especially at these rather steep price points. Hopefully they can get the kinks worked out, but it will be some time before I consider another visit.

Decent place with decent food! The mushroom thingy is surprisingly good~ I'd love to try more of their grilled items next time.

Being that I'm a huge fan of Rakkan Ramen, I had high hopes for their new izakaya concept, and they did not disappoint! Their yuzu sake cocktail was so refreshing...I had three of them lol. You can still order ramen here, but the difference is in their noodles. Here you'll find thick egg noodles with that same addicting broth. They have a good variety of skewers - my favorites being the negima (chicken thigh and green onion), beef, sausage and hotate (scallop). Their salmon belly cut roll was simple, but delicious, but their salmon belly sushi just melted in my mouth. It was perfection. I'd skip the uni and cream cheese cut roll. Unfortunately the cream cheese overpowered the uni and it was all I could taste. We also tried the spicy miso katsu donburi, which was perfectly fried and still juicy on the inside. The restaurant itself looks really modern and inviting - it would be perfect for a date night or a night out with friends. The service was good, even though it was their first day training. Everyone was so nice and accommodating. Please keep in mind this is a new restaurant and they're still training, so please be understanding and patient. Can't wait to see what the future holds for Rakkan Miso Izakaya! I'll definitely be back if I'm ever in DTLA.

Good environment. The waiter/waitress were a little nervous when they took our order, probably needed more trainings. We ordered karaage chicken, calamari, miso ramen and spicy miso ramen; calamari was the best out of four, tender and juicy; the karaage chicken was a little salty. The ramen in general were on the heavier side; my biggest problem with it was the soup was very oily; I usually finished the soup but I couldn't do it for this place. My friends mentioned they put a lot of bean sprouts and at first all they tasted was the bean sprouts. The spicy miso ramen wasn't very spicy; the spicy sauce was pretty good and you could always just order a regular miso and add the spicy sauce. Overall it was a pretty good experience.

Came here for lunch with my sister visiting from out of town and it was good. Not exceptional, but decent and we will try it again. My favorite was the seared Salmon Sushi and tuna sushi. Really tasty. Service was okay, definitely got an inexperienced server but hey, I appreciate the fact that she's part of the work force. I see a lot of complaints about price...come on y'all, inflation is ridiculous right now. Give these people a break.

Saw this new restaurant open a couple of weeks ago so decided to come try it out for dinner with the gf. Parking was easy as we found street parking right in front of the restaurant. First off, 3 stars for the food. The menu offers a variety of appetizer, sushi, ramen, skewers and etc. We ordered an avocado salad, the spicy miso chicken, and 6 different skewers. The avocado salad was really good and was my favorite out of everything. We wish the skewers would come with less sauce. A drizzle would be nice, but instead some came drenched in sauce. This made some of the skewers way too salty like the mushroom, shishito, and sausage. 1 star for the service. The girl who served us was not very knowledgeable when it came to the menu. For example, we asked her what kind of beef was in the beef skewer and she answered "I don't know". Instead of a "I don't know", wouldn't a "I'm not sure, let me go check with the kitchen" be a better answer? Also, we asked for water and she never brought us any until we asked again. Another issue we had with our server was she took forever to open our bottle of wine that we brought in. She brought out a box of ice and some cups, but didn't offer to open the wine for us. We ordered, and wine was still just sitting there. The salad arrived and the wine was still not opened yet. Did she expect us to open it ourselves? We finally asked her to open it for us and she legit struggled opening it for a good 5 minutes. All of our dishes came out before she got our wine opened. I saw she almost broke the cork and as a result, my gf's glass had a few tiny pieces of cork in the wine. Since the wine wasn't open immediately when we sat down, we ended up drinking only half the bottle and unfortunately had to leave the rest. Please teach the servers how to open wine bottles! Overall, food was so so and service was not too good. I probably would not come back.

First service was not the best. Server never came to get our order. Tried to get the servers attention but no one was paying attention. They weren't busy at all. Food was not good and for the price I don't think I would go back. Food tasted like something you get at the food court if not worse. The chicken Karaage was soggy not crispy at all. I've never has Karaage that tasted like this. The miso shrimp tasted like those frozen ones at the market with some conventional sauce. I couldn't taste any miso and the sauce was very overpowering. The rolls were all mediocre and overpriced. The skewers were the same. The only things that was decent were the sausage skewers. And it was awfully awkward in there bc it was so quiet. You can other tables conversations. I really wanted this place to be good so am truly disappointed.

Came here in a Saturday lunch and probably because they are still relatively new, not many people were dining at the restaurant. U would say the menu is quite limited for an Izakaya. The fried calamari had way too much flour and had no taste. Miso chicken katsu also was tasteless. The soup of the Ramen was good but didn't care for the texture of the noodles, but that is a very personal taste. Overall I think they will need improvement.

I had visited Thursday afternoon with my husband for lunch. the place looked great! had a warm and inviting atmosphere. the hostess who had also been our server politely greeted and sat us down. we were super excited to try the menu, we love Japanese food! though problems started to arrive after the fact. the food itself was definitely a let down. we had ordered the tuna carpaccio, an avocado salad, and some hosomaki rolls. the food came out with little to no wait which was great! but the taste itself could definitely be better. especially for the price it's held at. the carpaccio had a funny smell to it, so instead we decided to replace it with the miso chicken. which was alright. nothing special. they do tend to over sauce their food which can make it really overpowering. we had also inquired about different sauces, but they seemed to have limited options. the food might've been a let down but the service wasn't. which is why the two stars were given. the server was very kind, professional, and knowledgeable. she handled our concerns with the upmost respect. though I may have forgotten her name, we appreciated the fact that she tended to our needs. she had even voiced our problems to the manager who had then spoken to us. most of the reviews are pretty accurate, the only thing my husband and I noticed that hasn't been previously discussed was the lack of diversity within the staff. my waitress was the only person of color we could see, other than those who cooked in the kitchen. that aspect made us feel slightly uncomfortable. it's 2023 they can definitely do better on improving !

Came here for dinner before a concert. No idea why there are any bad reviews here, they do not take into consideration Japanese culture and the new-ness of the restaurant itself. The portion sizes are correct for Japanese cuisine. We had the shishito peppers, wagyu sushi, cucumber salad, spicy miso negima skewer, and miso chicken katsu. All of the dishes were explosive with flavor and so fresh. The yuzu sake cocktail was incredible. I should have had more.

Bummer I really wanted to like this place. Everything was average at best. Too close to little Tokyo for an average "izakaya"

Food is great and the skewers are freshly made. Servers are friendly and just a good place to come relax and enjoy a good meal.

Very nice and quiet little restaurant amidst the DTLA noise. We had a great meal! We loved the rice bowls, which are big enough to share if you're not that hungry. The furikake fries were fun too! Service can still be improved but I'm sure it'll come with time. Overall, great experience and we can see that it has potential.

Really tasty and authentic food at a great price. Very nice new location with nice decor. Was easy to get a seat without reservations. Friendly and attentive service. Welcome to the neighborhood, appreciate having yall here.

DELICIOUS. Victoria and Viktoria were very attentive servers. It is an Izakaya style restaurant and the dishes will be of a smaller portion than a full size dinner plate. We tried a variety of dishes. Each had unique flavors. HIGHLY recommend and am looking forward to returning and enjoying this location.

Aesthetically pleasing..... very clean bathrooms and nice ambiance. Service was good sushi was ok not great but the ramen soup was delicious! Drinks are weak better off just ordering sake bottle!

Stopped by here a couple days ago on a whim and glad I did. Good food good service excited to see this new place. Come up in downtown LA would recommend!

This is a new restaurant-open a couple of weeks. Had the spicy miso ramen. It was delicious & spicy. Really good & spicy. Other options if you don't like spice. Recommend you give it a try. Jane, my wait person took good care of me.