Menya Hanabi Irvine - The Original Nagoya Mazesoba — Restaurant in Irvine

I came here with 3 friends on Sat at 1pm, I think a day or two after the grand opening. It was a little hard to find parking but there's a row of Tesla chargers for any of Tesla owners out there. There were so many people waiting outside, we ended up walking around 99 Ranch for a bit and checked out some of the other new stores in the plaza for an hour. We ended up getting our seats around 2:30pm.

After being seated we were able to send orders directly to the kitchen from my phone using a QR code, which I think was interesting. Even though we didn't have to wait for anyone to take our order (since we used the web app instead) the staff was able to answer some questions about the menu and give us recommendations.

I got the original mazesoba and a matcha latte. I don't usually like to get matcha drinks but wanted to try it out because I saw some other reviews recommending it. I thought it was very balanced by not being too bitter and not too sweet, and the milkiness made it refreshing enough to keep drinking.

I like how the mazesoba came with all the toppings spread around the poached egg. After mixing everything together with the egg yolk they made a very rich and creamy sauce. I really liked the noodles because their thickness gave a really nice bite, kind of like the noodles in tsukemen. There was also vinegar on the side for a bit of acidity. At first I thought the serving size was a bit smaller than expected but it was really filling and I started getting full 1/2 way through. At the end there was still a lot of sauce left but our server gave each of us a small free bowl of rice to eat the leftover sauce with. Def recommend asking for some if you still have the extra stomach space for it! One of my friends also got a half-boiled egg and extra chashu as part of his deluxe mazesoba, and I'm probably gonna get that next time even if just for the egg only.

All in all I think the food was really good despite the long wait. I'm hoping the next time I come the wait won't be as long but there's a lot of other stuff to check out in the same plaza...

I am so ecstatic that Menya Hanabi is now in the OC area! The first location is in Arcadia and I’ve ate there many times (in-store and to-go) since I live in the 626 area. I recently have been working in OC and can now enjoy my favorite mazesoba for lunch and dinner!

The food itself is so delicious! It has flavor, umami, and depth all in one bowl. You can tell that each bowl is made with love and uses fresh and real ingredients. I love the variety of entree choices there are as well and each time I try to get something different to try everything. I recommend adding their poached egg so it makes everything creamy and yummy! Their spicy is also quite spicy for me since it’s all in the meat which is their sauce overall, but it’s so good for a once in a while meal. Another fave is their curry!! At the end of the meal, when dining in, they’ll offer a small scoop of rice to add to your bowl since most of the time, there will be leftover sauce. It mixes soooo well and the small scoop is more than enough for me since I’d be so full already. Can’t let the sauce go to waste though take it to-go if you need to! :p We got the original and chashu! Can never go wrong with the classic. Also, I recommend their iced homemade matcha latte. Thank me later!!

Service is great even though they’re in soft opening at the moment! They came to check on us a few times. I noticed the owner went around to make sure tables had everything they needed or asked how everything was. We did come on a Friday evening and it was quite packed, so I’d prepare to wait for at least 10-15 minutes just in case.

Overall, we love Menya Hanabi!! Come visit regardless if you’re trying for the first time or a long time fan. Congrats on this 2nd...

Good mazesoba for usa, but any joint that does mazesoba specifically is never that bad. However, the wait is too long. I came in on Saturday night 30 mins before closing hoping to get a spot and it turned out that there were tons of people still waiting and the staff had already closed the waitlist 1.5 hrs before closing. I ended up eating elsewhere.

The next afternoon I still wanted to try it out and noticed that there was an online waitlist via google maps/yelp. I signed up for it a little over 45 minutes before arriving. When I showed up, the host checked me in and I had to wait 10 minutes more. After I got seated and ordered my food I still had to wait another 20 more minutes before receiving my food. Add in the time it took me to eat and overall, this was close to two hours for a bowl of noodles.

As for the Deluxe Nagoya ramen itself, it was garlicky, and the noodles were cooked nicely although I would’ve preferred just a little bit harder. I think they gave me two or three pieces of small chashu and one onsen egg, and shoyu egg cut in half. The vinegar that you add in on your own is essential to the meal to cut through all the fat and introduce more complexity to the flavor. By the end of meal, I was feeling pretty stuffed and couldn’t even go for the optional scoop of rice. After tax and tip, this ramen...