Hinoki Noodle Soup — Restaurant in Rotterdam

Despite high ratings of this restaurant from other visitors, unfortunately I can not rate it so high. First of all the menu has a lack of vegetarians meals (2-3), only one vegetarian Ramen (kind of asian soup). I am a vegetarian and I could order only this vegetarian Ramen, that I didn't really like. It wasn't bad, it was tasty, but expected more considering the other reviews. I didn't also like how the manager acted. When we went inside there were 2 unoccupied tables. One was placed literally in the middle of the restaurant. When we took a seat behind this table we realized that we didn't feel comfortable sitting there at the middle of the room. That's why I asked the manager to move to the other unoccupied table. She told me that that table was supposed to get used by a group of people, but we could anyway take a seat overthere but provided a big group of people comes to restaurant, we would have to move back. We didn't want to do because it would be quite uncomfortable to us. Accordingly we told the manager that this option didn't suit us, without any claims, I fully understood their decision in terms of keeping a big table for a big group. Just personally for us it would be easier and more comfortable to go to another restaurant without any obligation to come back to sit behind the table at middle of the restaurant if a big group of customers arrives. So we didn't have any claims, we just informed her that this option didn't suit us. But the managers started acting weird as if we were kind of impudent that we didnt like this option. She started asking me something like "What do you think we should do if a big group comes? Should customers wait outside until you finish?". It was very unexpactible and strange that she became aggressive. We didn't want to compel someone to wait outside, we didn't imply something bad. This option didn't just suit us. We did not any claims.

As a result she let us to take a seat behind the big table without condition to move back if a big group of customers arrives and after that everything was great in terms of service. Waiters were pretty friendly and food got...

I've only eaten Ramen Noodles in a restaurant once before, that was in Japan itself. I wanted to try out a Ramen restaurant in my country to see how close it can come to the real thing.

=Environment= We arrived at peak hour on a Tuesday and the first thing we noticed was that there was a line forming outside the restaurant. The restaurant itself is fairly small and there are about a dozen small tables inside, so it can get full very easily. If you want to come to eat at this restaurant, please keep an eye out on the time and the weather. The waiting time outside can be about 5 to 10 minutes. Due to the size of the restaurant and the tables, It's ideal for 2 to 4 people. The interior is pretty good; it's clean, decorations are not bad and the seats are comfy. It's not super authentic Japanese, but it's good enough.

=Employees= The waitress/hostess we interacted with greeted us with a smile, similar to what you'd expect from a Japanese employee. She is nice and is very proficient in English (which seems to be the default language she greeted us with). She's also good enough in Dutch and I might have overheard her speaking in Japanese. (She might be a native Japanese).

=Food= I ordered their Special Hinoki Special Ramen with Shoyu flavored broth. My companion ordered Shoyu Ramen with Leek. The waiting time for the food was about 5 to 10 minutes. The ramen was pretty delicious. It wasn't 'as' good as the ramen I ate in Japan, but it's still good nonetheless. I noticed that the broth of my companion tasted different than mine. I'm not sure if the difference was caused by an error by the chef or if it was caused by the slightly different ingredient in our bowl. The Noodle soup is on the salty side. So keep this in mind if you don't like to eat salty thing.

Overall I enjoyed eating there. If I ever get the chance to go to Rotterdam again, I'd try out a different noodle...

After years of walking by and seeing large queues outside, I finally decided to dine-in here at Hinoki Rotterdam, nearby the Markthal.

The venue feels like a small diner and has this ramen shop vibe. There is also the option for take-out or online order and collect, as well as viewing the full menu online.

I'd give the service a 6 star if I could. The staff is really friendly and makes sure you feel right at home.

When asked about food allergies, I got a seperate menu and the staff helped me walk through it. When confirming the order the staff spot a mistake, as the dish I wanted contained peanut, and recommend me another great dish.

I had the Traditional Shoyu Ramen with extra cha siu, egg and ramen. My girlfriend ordered the Mala Tonkotsu (which contains peanut broth, all special dishes contain peanut so be careful)!

The food itself was delicious! It comes very close to the food we had when visiting Japan earlier this summer. The cha su is one of the finest I've had in The Netherlands. The dishes were served really fast as well. Even though it was a full Saturday afternoon (5:20PM), we got served our full order within 10 minutes.

The menu offers lots of options and side dishes. We had the takoyaki (squidballs) and toriteri (chicken).

We also ordered one of the seasonal drinks, the Yuzu Matcha, which was really good on its own.

Food: 5/5 Service: 6/5, very personal service and exceptionally kind staff. Athmosphere: 5/5, easy to hold a conversation and with full diner...