TL;DR - Aggressive wait times, poor facilities, rushed - Mensho Tokyo SF San Francisco - Buy Reservations
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🤢 2/5 - TL;DR - Aggressive wait times, poor facilities, rushed
By 👻 @John W., 03/02/2024 3:00 am
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TL;DR - Aggressive wait times, poor facilities, rushed experiences make this trendy ramen shop stacked against itself. While there is definitely some flavor to be found, this Paitan-focused location is easily outclassed by rival options. So after a cooling off period of about 7 years, I decided to come here again after I had gotten quite a bit more ramen under my belt. Unlike before, I had a chance to eat at a lot more ramen here and abroad, so I understood quite a bit more about the different ramen types. My previous review of 3/5 was pretty soured by the experience of the location itself, it's very poorly situated in a dense urban area with 0 parking, hill-ish walking, and no waiting area. They have folks form a line outside and it can get long, real quick. This is more a symptom of their success so I felt it unfair to judge them in that manner, so let's try this again... We got there at 4pm this time, so we got right in (thank god), because it was pouring rain outside, and super cold (48 degrees F). Last time we had gone here they had communal tables, but now the cramped space has COVID-style booth shields. Privacy is nice, kinda reminded me of Tokyo-style bullet train sushi restaurants but the chairs were super uncomfortable. Additionally, the bathroom was completely out of order, with no option next door or anywhere around. I can only imagine standing in line in the pouring rain to eat here, only to find out there is no restroom at all. Kinda crazy. I ordered tea, beer, the Tori Paitan, my wife got the A5 Wagyu Shoyu and a melon soda. Service was slightly laggy, but nothing egregious. I asked if they could shut the door because the draft was extreme. Wind was whipping inside and for whatever reason they said they needed to keep it open, which outside of a health code thing I see absolutely no reason they need this thing open. Food arrived, we feasted. My wife had said while the A5 was unseasoned, the broth was quite good. Be aware, their paitan ramen is of primary chicken broth, so the flavors can be quite different from more common tonkatsu broth. I had had plenty of paitan in Tokyo, my favorite being some of the yuzu-infused varieties. Their broth was unfortunately quite underwhelming, being heavy in a bad way with a strange seasoning that didn't get better as you ate it. Additionally, the chashu I received was stone cold, despite it being in the soup. The menma, incorrectly cooked and so it was gummy/chewy. The noodles were also a tad overdone but that might just be their style, which I tend to like firmer noodles (my wife enjoyed hers, as she likes more soft). The real end for it all though was the fact that due to the draft, both my tea and my soup were cold within minutes. I was overhearing our neighbors talk about it too. Unfortunately I strongly believe the constant attitude of "get them in, get them out" permeated the entire experience, and the environment is aggressively against making you comfortable. Don't get me wrong, the service had a smile and was quite friendly, but the way they run this spot needs a little work, it's lost it's way. My original review had expressed some hate for the lines, questioning why the hell someone would want this rather than travel a half a mile in any direction to find much better options. My opinion now is even worse, because I know for certain now the food is not as good as people say, and the facilites are worse than they've ever been. Bottom line, the place felt pretty cheap to be charging $25-$49/bowl. First time in awhile I recall a ramen spot not even offering a glass with a beer. All these small details add to an experience feeling more like fast food, sans the bill. If you are looking for paitan specifically, Marufuku in Japantown, or even Hinodeya (though the latter not my favorite) would be far better options, with more space, more respect for the customer, and far better food. Or... you can continue to stand outside for an hour for this. Smh SF...
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