Bonito Ramen — Restaurant in Guatemala City

We travel the world for ramen, often going to Japan in search of the very best bowls we can find. Over the years, we’ve had ramen in more than 100 different cities around the globe. We are an Asian family—Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and Mongolian in heritage—so we are very particular about Asian food, especially ramen. It is, without question, our favorite noodle dish on earth.

We came to Bonito twice during our visit to Guatemala City. The first time happened to be during the one weekend each month when they serve shoyu ramen, their sole offering for those two days. Most ramen shops treat shoyu as a side option, but not here. At Bonito, shoyu takes center stage—elevated, intentional, and given the spotlight it deserves. That focus and effort show in every bite: the broth is balanced, rich, and deeply complex. Most shoyu broths lean either too salty or too thin, but this one was a masterpiece. Our entire family agreed—it was the best shoyu ramen we had ever tasted.

We returned a second time to try their tonkotsu ramen, and it was flawless. There was not a single element we could fault. Two of my sisters are world class food critics, and so I grew up with an eye and taste for food. In the company I serve as CEO, the joke is that CEO in my case stands for chief eating officer because my “real role” as the leader is to wine and dine. Our family has always been centered around food, and we are not easy to please—yet Bonito delivered perfection.

What truly completed the experience was the warmth and professionalism of the team: we were greeted by the gracious host, Emily; cared for by servers Paola, J, and Alexandra; and welcomed by Cacho and Lauren, the chef-and-designer owners whose vision defines Bonito. Together with their talented culinary team, including chef Chang, they delivered a meal—and an experience—we will never forget.

Who would’ve ever known that the best ramen on the planet is in Guatemala City?

By...

Arrived with friends. They denied us extra portions (we offered to pay for more ramen), they cleared our table as we were eating. The staff was rude, the toppings were served cold, somehow, inside the restaurant even though whoever replies to reviews insists this is only done for pick up. It's outrageously expensive for what it is. The best part, in all honesty, is the actual noodles, but with several other competing restaurants, I'd be terribly hard pressed to give Bonito another go. I dislike leaving bad reviews but slow, bad service, overrated food, terrible atmosphere, extremely tight seating, extended waiting times and overall rude staff make this an experience I'd rather skip, even if the noodles themselves are...

Everything about this place was amazing! The atmosphere of the place was great, as you enter the restaurant, they salute you like in a traditional ramen place in Japan. Our waiter was really helpful and spoke English. We ordered one of each of the ramen. Both were absolutely sensational! The flavours were there and each elements were so tasty! We also took away a box of their sesame ice cream, it was so so delicious! Overall, we had an amazing time with delicious food, the whole place feels like you’ve transported to Tokyo! 100% recommend if you’re...