Mango Tango Sno-Crave Tea House — Restaurant in Merced

I had high hopes for this place, as no where in Merced seems to serve ramen but here. Unfortunately, the ramen was bad.

The front of house was clean and well kept with a fun show of kpop music videos playing, but that’s the only reason I gave it 2 stars.

I ordered my ramen, and when it arrived, I tried the pork first, and it was okay, then I went to try the egg and I noticed it was undercooked and cold in the middle. I figured, okay, no big deal. I tasted the broth and there was no real flavor to it (I got Shoyu so I was expecting something salty and it was just so plain). I figured maybe the noodles were the main point of the dish, so I gave it a try. The noodles were soggy and had no flavor.

I contemplated for a bit and tried to eat a little more but I just couldn’t, so I asked for my money back. I only ate maybe 2 small bites and a little of the pork pieces. The bowl was still full.

The girl who initially helped me was kind as I explained the issue and went to get a guy who I think is the manager.

I explained, starting with the egg being underdone. I told him about it and before I could mention the poor quality of the broth and noodles, he was trying to explain away that the egg wasn’t underdone (mind you he hadn’t looked at it), and that was just how they did it. It looked much less done compared to the other reviews I saw. I was expecting a soft boiled yolk but instead got runny whites. He then asked if i’d ever had ramen before. He tried to tell me the egg was supposed to have runny whites.

I explained that I've had a lot of quality ramen (I frequently went to Little Tokyo for authentic ramen when I lived in so cal), and that the egg wasn’t the only issue. I explained that the noodles were soggy and he agreed that they should be chewy but tried to say I was wrong. I said the broth was lacking in flavor and he seemed to fight me on every issue.

He also made it very clear that I was the first ever person to complain about the ramen.

He was very rude and while he did give me the refund, his attitude was a total let down.

I would have come back try the crepes or the teas, but this will be my first and only time going...

The staff is friendly, but the food is okay. Pretty disappointed in the food. The kikimbap’s egg is supposed to be sunny side, but we got a fully cooked boiled egg. The kikimbap taste is bland. It doesn’t have much flavor in there. The kimchi fried rice and spicy tonkatsu are okay too. A lot of the food isn’t savored. The eggs for the tonkatsu isn’t supposed to be fully cooked egg, but be marinated in salt and sweetness in there and be soft. I asked if they had black garlic for the ramen tonkatsu, and they didn’t know what I was talking about besides saying if I was talking about the seaweed. I’m a big fan of ramen tonkatsu and seeing this disappoints me. No seaweed in the ramen as well. We dined in, and I don’t understand why they served us in to-go boxes and a bowl. I would want to think maybe due to Covid, and probably it’ll be easier for them if the customers have leftovers and wanted to take it home? Anyways, I wouldn’t recommend it unless you want to try it out for yourself. Probably the dessert is better than their food. If you want actual ramen and real food then this isn’t the place for it. You should save your money for actual restaurants. Overall, I paid $32 for these three dishes. The price is too much for its small...

Surprisingly found some Asian dishes as offerings on the menu: Taiwanese braised meat rice bowl, Japanese Okonomiyaki (pancakes) and Ramen, Korean Bibimbop and tofu. Although the taste was only 80% authentic, this is the only place in Merced where one can find such dishes, so it's still our go-to place when we crave for Asian food.

They also have a large selection of teas and desserts offerings. We tried their hot flavored milk tea that was served in a teapot, which was a cute idea (and help keep tea hot longer?). There is a very authentic taste in the tea leaves (as in Taiwanese boba tea), but the flavored milk tea could have been...