Tom San Ramen — Restaurant in Daly City

Solid choice for Japanese food in Daly City.

Went right when it opened at 11:30 am because parking can be difficult. I suggest parking in the old Burlington parking lot and walk up to the restaurant.

Food: ordered the bento box ($17). I chose the beef teriyaki and tempura combination. It is also served with rice, soup, and salad. The beef teriyaki was cut into thin slices and not drenched in sauce. The meat was cooked perfectly.

The tempura is a simple dish, but I've found some places put too much batter or overcook the vegetables. This wasn't the case at this restaurant. The vegetables were crisp and tasty. The shrimp tempura wasn't caked in batter. The salad could use a little more dressing. It was just average. The same can be said for the miso soup that arrived warm rather than hot. They do add mushrooms to the miso soup, which was a surprise.

Finally finished up with their California rolls. Well, it was just average.

Service: Our waitresses Lily was awesome. It's nice to run into people who actually enjoy their job. She brought our food out promptly and checked in on us several times to make sure we were enjoying our meals. Service with a smile made our dining experience that...

Staff seated us right away — great start.

We came here because a vlogger recommended their Chirashi. Should’ve checked Yelp first though, because after reading the reviews, it lined up exactly with our experience.

We ordered the Chirashi, and that was the highlight. The sashimi melts in your mouth, laid over perfectly seasoned sushi rice. For $21? Totally worth it.

The ramen, however, was oily and lacked flavor. Disappointing, especially since I assumed it would be a specialty. The beef teriyaki was dry and needed more seasoning. Overall, the hot dishes didn’t deliver.

Also, something I couldn’t unsee: servers wearing gloves while handling food, then touching cleaning rags and other surfaces — all without changing gloves. Gloves are not a substitute for handwashing, and seeing that really took away from the dining experience.

Bottom line: ✅ Get the Chirashi 🚫 Skip the ramen and beef ⚠️ Hygiene practices...

The food vs price is definitely overpriced. I ordered a shoyu ramen but it's about a pack of instant noodles. The chashu was thin you would think you are at a hotpot. The broth was sweet don't taste like shoyu at all. The only thing that is good is the egg and that is 14 bucks. The squid tentacles appetizer (the fried one) I forgot the name is good. The beef yaki udon was way too oily. It's like the plate shines with the oil. The waitress was great she was awesome. The dishes itself sigh... how can you give some a cup with 2 chips on the lips? Same with one of the plates that we got for the appetizer. Definitely not worth it. I was debating to give a 2 or 3 star if I can't give a 2.5. I choose the former because I want...