this place was pretty full so be ready to put your name on the in-person waitlist if you come at a popular time. service was friendly and prompt. interior was clean and well-decorated. kurobuta kakuni bowl was quite good and came with pickled carrots, bok choy, a marinated egg, and tender pork. my friends got the tonkotsu and it was standard ramen pretty much exactly what you would expect. the katsu curry came in a HUGE portion (probably the best calorie to dollar ratio if you are bulking). it looked pretty good as well.

Passed by this restaurant and decided to give it a try and i'm so glad I did !! the food was so great, I tried the hoshi bun, kakuni bowl, and shared the gyukotsu! the gyukotsu ramen is some of the best ramen I've had at any ramen place - the broth was flavorful and light even though it was a bone broth and the rib was so tender, it fell off the bone! I came in a bit early so the restaurant wasn't packed but regardless the inside was beautiful! I really enjoyed the back wall detail once you walk inside. Our server was very attentive and service was really fast. I'd definitely come back again to get the gyukotsu!!(come early as it's only served 15 times a day!)

I didn't know where to have dinner and stumbled up Hoshinoya after walking around Japan Town for a bit. I came around 6 pm so the restaurant wasn't too busy and had the undivided attention of the waitress. I was met with hot tea which was excellent! I ordered the Gyukotsu Ramen to share as well as the Katsu Curry The Gyukotsu was A LOT. The amount of meat you get was incredible but if you're interested in this, they only serve it about 15 times a day! This can definitely feed two people, if you're in the mood for a hearty, hot bowl of meaty ramen then I highly recommend this! Like the Gyukotsu ramen, their Katsu Curry also had very big portions. The curry was a basic mild, with a side of pickled daikon and a ton of fried katsu on a bed of rice. Katsu was what I was craving the most and this definitely hit the spot. I am not sure how busy it is later in the day but if you're looking for a solid spot in Japantown then I definitely recommend you check this spot out!

Visited with friends before going through the Japantown mall. I opted for the bento, going with takoyaki and chicken teriyaki. My friend got the Katsu Curry, while my boyfriend got the Black Garlic Tonkotsu ramen. The bento was pretty typical with rice, salad and miso soup. The takoyaki had a nice balance of crispy on the outside and soft inside. The teriyaki sauce on the chicken was a bit runny, but the flavor paired well with the rice. My friend seemed pleased with the Katsu Curry, which had a good portion size for the katsu. The boyfriend really enjoyed ramen, and said it was pretty much perfect. I thought the soup was pretty garlicky, but I didn't notice anything extraordinary. In a nutshell, a solid spot for Japanese food. Service was pretty good, and the ambiance struck a nice balance between casual and slightly upscale. Great for a no-fuss Japanese meal.

We came in on a Sunday afternoon to try Hoshinoya for the first time! I ordered the veggie ramen and my brother ordered one of the pork ramen. We were seated outdoors right away. The staff were patient while we tried to decide what we wanted. Once they took our orders, our plates came out pretty quickly! The veggie ramen was a bit bland. The tofu they used was plain soft tofu. I asked for chili oil to add some more flavor and it added the touch it was lacking! The portions were large and filling. The noodles were soft and chewy and the veggies (aside from the corn which tasted canned) were very fresh. My brother also enjoyed his ramen and said the broth was very rich and flavorful. My only complaint is that they have these red umbrellas and metal tables which reflect the color and it's difficult on the eyes. Aside from this, we really enjoyed eating here and would come back again!

This place wasn't as busy as others in the same area but that happened to be a good thing. The waiter attended us quickly and was helpful answering our questions about the menu. The inside of the restaurant is clean, well lit, and I liked the decorations. The menu isn't as extensive on the ramen side as I would've hoped but has a lot of options which may be good for a large party. In addition to ramen we also ordered veggie tempura which was very crispy. Ramen was solid but just a touch thin on flavor for my liking. Would come back and try other styles of ramen as well as other menu items.

Overall this is a good restaurant but I think they need more staff during busy times. I came on a weekend evening and one server was basically taking care of the entire outdoor section. Because of this, it took so long to get off the waitlist even though there were at least 3 available tables and we had to ask to be seated. The server did a really good job but seemed overworked. After being seated, we were able to get our orders out quickly. I got the beef teriyaki and chicken karaage set and had no complaints. The beef was very tender and seasoned well. The chicken karaage was very crispy. One small note is that the menu is slightly misleading -- the Thai entrees don't come with miso soup, even though it's under a section that says that it does.

Because I was concerned about the salt content, at least the amount sticking inside me, I was experiencing a ramen moratorium, but I noticed I've been weakening lately. Hey, life's short. What can I say? I suppose they could find me dead with a stray ramen dangling from my mouth. But I digress as I came here for a quick bite for the first time since it changed hands from Tanpopo a couple of years ago. They appear to serve mostly variations of tonkotsu ramen with vegetarian and soba options available. I was totally unadventurous and went with the basic $17 Tonkotsu Ramen with Pork Belly Chashu (photo: https://bit.ly/3NNLCJh). What arrived was a picturesque bowl with plenty of the expected ingredients -kikurage mushrooms, menma, a seasoned boiled egg halved, and shredded green onion. The combination pork/chicken bone broth was appropriately cloudy with just a couple of thin pork belly slices. Probably because I was a bit more famished than usual, I thought the portion was smallish. When I pulled out the noodles, they were nicely al dente, and the combination was satisfying. Just could've had more to be honest. Yep, it's on the cobblestoned section of Buchanan. FOOD - 4 stars...a solid journeyman ramen suitable for a smaller appetite AMBIANCE - 4 stars...more spacious than the Tonkotsu era SERVICE - 4 stars...very polite here...remember good manners? TOTAL - 4 stars...if you need a tonkotsu ramen fix RELATED - Exploring Japantown? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/2C8Z4mZ