Ramen Maruya — Restaurant in Los Angeles

So, admittedly, I have NEVER been to Maruya, despite all the times I have visited Little Tokyo. No idea why - just never happened to get here. Mistake! We came recently on a cold chilly evening because they had a little bit of everything - noodles, sushi, bowls, sashimi…and we had a friend with us who wasn’t very familiar with any Japanese food.

I am so glad we opted to go to Maruya! Friendly and polite service, and quick. We got oyaku-don, katsu-don, and my daughter for some strange reason ordered zaru (cold) noodles. The dons came with miso soup which was perfect on a chilly day, and the dons were both HUGE…so much so, it was almost another full meal that I took home!

I would easily come back again. They are located right on the main Japanese Village Plaza, next to the Neko cat shop. They validate parking (but limited time - we stayed too long and didn’t end up using the validation). They also have restrooms for paying customers.

So, admittedly, I have NEVER been to Maruya, despite all the times I have visited Little Tokyo. No idea why - just never happened to get here. Mistake! We came recently on a cold chilly evening because they had a little bit of everything - noodles, sushi, bowls, sashimi…I am so glad we opted to go to Maruya! Friendly and polite service, and quick. We got oyaku-don, katsu-don, and zaru (cold) noodles. The dons came with miso soup which was perfect on a chilly day, and the dons...

I struggled between giving Maruya 2 or 3 stars but yelp's got it right - I've experienced better. Being a ramen fan, I was excited to hear about a new ramen place opening up in Little Tokyo - I came here on a Saturday afternoon at 1pm with two of my friends. Place was full! Luckily my friends snagged a table first so I just sat right down.

FOOD: tonkotsu ramen - broth was on the oily side without very much flavor. None of that sticky lip richness you get with most other tonkotsu broths. Also, NO CHASIU :((((((( You do get a whole soft boiled egg though, but still! Portions are good, noodles are silky (handmade according to the sign) spicy tuna don (combo) - decently tasty! But not very spicy at all chilled ramen - NO BROTH, tastes like somen due to the sauce spicy miso ramen - this one comes with chasiu but the broth is rather sweet and not very spicy

SERVICE/VENUE: Quick! Our server was super friendly and refilled our waters often, checked on us several times as well. Our plates were cleared away quickly as well. The space is larger than I expected! Full for lunch, and the menu covers ramen, rice bowls, sushi and appetizers.

PARKING: Street (metered) a plenty or various lots you can park at as well.

I don't think I will be back but I'm glad I satisfied...

The broth used is nothing short of amazing, cooked a very long time, but the nice part is that it isn't greasy at all like some of the broths I have had. The in-house made Pork Chashu is fantastic. It resembles a wide cut of bacon a little bit, but compliments the ramen well enough to not offset the broth flavor. Not to mention that you can also have a large side amount of other things that you can add to your ramen dish. The noodles are made in house, making them very good, and they absorb the flavor from the broth very nicely. I most like that you can also see them making the ramen noodles sometimes throughout the day. It's a thicker noodle than you would find in other noodle places, but I also can taste the difference between a frozen noodle and hand made, and Maruya is doing ramen right..... I definitely recommend the Ramen combo. It is a very filling amount of food for a very good price(11.95), and you get the ramen, and a list of side appetizers to choose from. The Gyoza are also made in house, and is really delicious.

All in all, you get your money worth here, and you also get options to go with it. A very well done Japanese restaurant, with a very earthy atmosphere. Nice simple dishes, but done with a great care into what they are...