I came here for lunch and ordered the chicken cutlet curry rice. It was good, but portion was a bit small and service kind of slow. read more

Ducks - Chicken Cutlet Curry Rice - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

Prepare for a wait if you're coming during peak dining times, but it moves pretty quickly. They're very efficient. Mochi udon - I loved the broth flavor. It's been awhile since I've had such flavorful broth. The mochi was a unique touch that I haven't seen anywhere. i liked the slight crispiness of it being fried while being gooey in the middle. Chicken katsu Curry - fantastic! It's been awhile since I've been wow'ed by katsu curry. chicken was juicy, a very crispy exterior. Wonderful curry. Service: Very fast and efficient read more

I ordered the pork cutlet curry rice and was pleasantly impressed. I chose spicy and surprisingly it was the perfect amount of kick. The outside of the cutlet was also so crispy and paired so well with the steamy rice. I just wish they gave more of the little red radish because it really helped elevate the flavor. I also enjoyed the small cabbage salad, it was a very nice pairing. The service was pretty okay. I went during lunchtime with my friend so it was pretty busy but the lady let us in early since it was just the two of us. I would say the ambiance is very cute and hom-ey. I really don't enjoyed the rubber duckies on the window and the manga book shelf. Overall, the vibe felt like a home cooked meal. read more

See all

Little auspicious restaurant but the food is superb. The chicken karage is the perfect blend of crunchy salty and a little spice. The curry is also wonderful if you are in the mood for curry. Service is quick and the food is always great. read more

Ducks - Karaage Chicken - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

The ambience is less than casual. Like you'd fit right in if you want to pop in after walking your pups, or after the gym. It's def no frills with green walls and have a hole in the wall feel. It is in a strip mall. Service is great. The waiters are highschool students who aim to please and do their jobs promptly. My waiter was super prompt in refilling my water, and I drink like 2 liters during my dinner- so he prolly came like 5 times. And everytime, he asks "how's everything? Can I get you anything else?" And after my food came he asks, "did you like it?" Now the food. I ordered katsu and it's not good. It was flat, bready, tough and dry. The rice was good and fluffy, and the curry was fine. It's... ok. Like I finished it. My friend ordered udon. I don't get udon in general, but it looked good. There was mochi in it and it was intriguingly gooey which piqued my interest but not enough to try it. I think I'd come back if someone insists they want to eat it. Like they've heard of it, and is like "I really heard their curry is good." Ok I can go. But I dunno, I feel like their katsu is slightly not as good as chain fast food joints.. for $16.95. So.. it's not a good value. read more

Ducks - Udon - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

Truly a hidden gem, Ducks is a local favorite for home-cooked Japanese food. The setting is cozy, with a small manga library and modest decor, and the food is clean and generous. Come here for a steal-- great quality, quick service, and (relatively) healthy comfort food at a more-than-reasonable price point. Tried their lunch special with soba and beef curry, the shrimp tempura mix, and the tonkatsu don. I think their lunch special is enough to feed two people! My favorite was the tempura, which is incredibly light, fresh, and well-cooked (no undercooked squash here). The soba was quite good too-- very light, and with no MSG. The curry and don were tender with fresh ingredients, although could be considered more homey (light in flavor) in taste. Ducks deserves all the praise for the lovely quality of food they serve for the price. It's the sort of small business that's rare to find these days. read more

See all

Definitely get the karaage. There were so many good looking things on the menu but I went for a katsu curry rice. It was good the curry comes on the side. I would come back to try their cold noodle dinner combos. Very busy place but I don't think the wait was too bad...maybe 20/25 min. Service was great. read more

I got the udon and katsu don combo. The udon is clearly on another level compared to other restaurants. I'm coming back for it alone. Katsu don was also good! Service is friendly and clean. Definitely a great experience. read more

It surely a hidden gem on Las Tunas... And can't believe I haven't visit once in the last 25 years... Well today, in a casual occasion, first time... It's not a total disappointment... The cold soba and the curry are very good, one of the best in town, however the cutlet is a bit too thick and powdery, tempura too... Service is good, only 2 people running the show, a bit overwhelmed... Ambiance is a bit old ... Well I think the place have not had a remodeling in years... I think it is how to keep itself low key read more

Ducks - Cold Soba Shrimp and Veggie Tempura - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

Ordered the Ebi Tempura, Combo Yaki udon and fried gyoza. Possibly the worst so-called Japanese food I have ever had in my entire life. Shrimp was non-existent and consisted of 95% tempura batter. Yakisoba udon tasted non-Japanese and was oily and tasteless. Fried gyoza looked like someone threw it into a fryer full of old oil and had no resemblance to gyoza whatsoever but fried batter. Total waste of my $$$ over $50 spent and basically threw away the entire meal as unpalatable. This to go order tasted like it was cooked by a non-professional with little if no experience in the kitchen. Shockingly bad. I hardly post but this meal was too much for me to stay silent and keep to myself. A definite no go ever again for me. read more

Yummy curry and wonderful little mom and pops Japanese restaurant! I love the soba too. The ducks theme is just so cute... it's a 30 year old treasure of the community. read more

Ducks is truly a hole in the wall gem in the 626 and looks so unassuming on the outside, but the food is DELICIOUS. I'm surprised I haven't heard about it more considering how good it is! I came here with my friends for dinner and I ordered the chicken cutlet curry rice and my friends ordered the karaage bowl and the katsu don. My dish was so good, I was honestly blown away! The chicken was fried to the perfect crispness without being overly oily and the curry sauce was delicious as well! My only complaint is that I asked for my curry sauce to be spicy, however, I didn't taste any spice at all but I still enjoyed my food a lot despite this. My friends also sang their praises about their dishes and said that they were super tasty. Alongside this, we were also surprised by how large the portions were! One of my friends and I finished our dishes but were stuffed and my other friend took half her dish to go to have later. The restaurant is located in a small plaza with ample parking which is really convenient. It is a smaller restaurant but it's cute because the restaurant is decorated with different rubber ducks (hence the name of the restaurant). Service here is really good as well; our waiter was super friendly and attentive. I definitely recommend checking this place out and will be coming back in the future! read more

Ducks - Chicken Curry Rice - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

Writing this review a few months later and I'm still thinking about the soba lunch special. I'm also wondering if that Escape room is owned by the same owner haha. My friends have frequented Ducks' for to-go on several occassions and we usually get their katsudon (saucy chicken katsu egg rice bowls) or katsu and curry! Hits the spot for delicious Japanese food. However, we finally wanted to dine in while we had some free time during lunch. This place gets filled pretty quickly during lunch and it seems like they have a lot of regulars! Nice homely sort of vibe and it was very comfortable! I sat near the table with the newspaper articles and toy ducks! Since it was a super hot day, I wanted to try their soba set that came with assorted tempura veggies and tempura shrimp. You start off with a sesame dressing salad and then your main meal. I just have to say the soba was AMAZING. Love the bouncy chewy texture, the cold broth with the green onions and wasabi, wow. And then the tempura with the tempura sauce was just perfect. I liked alternating between dipping the tempura in the soba broth or tempura sauce but I think I liked the soba broth more! Also the tempura was light, crispy, and cooked simply but perfectly! There was an array of veggies but I think one of the bundles of veggies was tempura parsley? IT WAS SO GOOD, I was shocked. I love most veggies but this was amazing. I think I also had a piece of tempura fish too which was fall apart good. My partner got the curry and katsu - again fail-proof order! Super delicious curry, definitely made with a lot of love. But if you can get the soba set, I would recommend it! read more

Way too much batter on the cutlet, tastes very powdery than meaty. The curry was very generic, miso soup was the worst I ever had. Honestly didn't know you could mess up miso soup... small store, service was alright, couldn't even get their attention for water refills or the check even when we were sitting by the counter. Disappointed and not returning. read more

Amazing place for soba - hot or cold. I had the hot soba + tempura combo. It was perfect! Highly recommended. Family friendly, great service + lots of parking! I give it all the stars read more

Ducks - DUCKS!!! Cute decor! - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

This was a waste of time we signed in after a family of 5 and then it was us, page was full.. two other got in before us but came after us so it makes no sense. read more

There's ample parking and the service was fast. The interior is small but have cute duck decor randomly around. I got the lunch special with udon and tempura. The dipping sauce for the udon was really good. I've had Tanakaya and I felt like their dipping was more plain. I would come back again! read more

This place is adorable and delicious! We got there right when they opened. When we left, so many people were starting to come in. I don't even know where I saw a post or ad or what, but I'm glad I found it! I knew we had to try to curry of sorts. Ended up with the pork cutlet w curry rice. Then the beef don. The winner dish for me was the beef! I just love how the rice soaked up all the juice! There's so many dishes to choose, I'd have to go back! I've never had soba, so I think that's the next one! read more

See all

Whenever I come to Ducks, I HAVE to get their oyako don! The chicken is very juicy, and tender. The soft/scrambled egg is made where it's still a bit runny. Not only is their oyako don amazing, but their curry is to die for. The curry is simple, but very flavorful. You are always provided a generous amount of food where you'll be leaving full and satisfied. They also offer wonderful lunch combo special. When you walk into Ducks, you're quickly greeted by the rubber duckies placed along the window ledges and duck decor all around the restaurant. The staff is always so welcoming and helpful! This spot gives off a "hole in the wall"/"mom and pop shop" vibe which I love because you know that the food is going to be delicious! read more

Ducks - Oyakodon - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

We've had this place bookmarked for a while now and finally made it out! It's a cute tiny joint with maybe 10 tables for 2-4 ppl. Not meant for large parties. Everything we ordered was surprisingly delicious! Karage - it's a lot of batter, but the batter was so lite and crispy I didn't mind it. The Mayo dipping sauce was what really did it in!! Mild spicy mayo with hint of lemon. So nice! Pork cutlet rice - this is the closest we've come to curry house style. We asked for curry HOT. It was barely mild. Literally just a hint of spice. But the flavors were delicious! The pork cutlet was impressive meaty and juicy! And having the side of fukujinzuke is "chef's kiss" Udon - broth is dashi base, very lite and soothing. A nice surprise at the bottom of the bowl when I started getting hints of something herbaceous... Turns out, they add lemon zest!! So neat!!! Katsudon mini bowl - was plentiful and packed full of flavor!!! Probably one of the best I've had! Ribeye - who goes to a Japanese restaurant to get steak? My sister did lol. She was craving it. Enough said. Service was good. Couple of the servers seemed new and unsure of what they were doing? But overall service was good. Ambience is Japanese quirky! I love it!!! Thoroughly enjoyed admiring the decor, tiny rubber duckies, cat photos on the walls, manga shelf, baseball memorabilia etc!! What a cute place!!! Definitely would recommend if you need a curry fix or just some noods! read more

See all

This restaurant is very homey, casual and unique. They have little duck decorations everywhere, duck themed merchandise, and racks of old manga in the back. Very mom and pop feel. The food was tasty. The sets come with a cabbage salad and miso soup. My soba was cooked perfectly and the tempura was very crisp. They have some uncommon ingredients for the tempura like sprouts, carrot, and squid, but it was all very tasty. The place was pretty packed but the staff were attentive and our food came out real fast. There's plenty of parking for the restaurant as well. read more

Ducks - Grilled Eel set - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

Ducks has been a staple hole in the wall with great good and great service Katsudon - I really like their katsudon here. Good amount of flavor in the sauce that it's cooked in and the cut of katsu is thick juicy pork. The only wish would be for more of the sauce to be added onto the rice but that's just me. Curry katsu - got mild curry this time, and the katsu curry was good! Love supporting local authentic family owned businesses and will definitely be back soon! read more

See all

Second time eating at Ducks after 6 years. We ordered the lunch special with udon/soba plus a mini curry with an extra order of Karaage chicken. Salad is free. Can't complain. The Soba/Udon is bland. Soba is overcooked and soggy. Udon is passable. Mini curry: Bad. It tastes like no vegetables were added into the curry sauce and the taste is so man made. The chicken/beef are just tasteless hard boiled chicken/beef with curry poured on top of them. The meats were supposed to be cooked in the curry sauce to absorb the curry flavor. Karaage Chicken: way too breaded and not marinated like Japanese style. It tastes like American style fried chicken. The sauce that came with it is just salad dressing. Overall 2/5 and not coming back. I wonder if the Japanese owners sold the store with recipes included. It's kinda depressing to have such bad meals read more

Ducks - Overly breaded Karaage chicken - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

Was super excited to try this place out but it the end it was just okay. My friend and I stopped by for lunch right at opening and when we walked it we were seated quickly. We noticed the AC wasnt on and it was pretty hot that day, almost 90 degrees by 12pm so we decided not to get anything soupy related. My friend got the cold soba noodles and I got the katsu curry. The food arrived in about 15minutes. I thought my plate looked a little plain. Just a whole bed of white rice and circular pieces of katsu. I poured some sauce on my rice in the picture. At first bite I thought the breading of the katsu was hard. It was hard and crunchy and it definitely hardened or was over fried because it was separated from the meat which was super disappointing. Since the breading separated I was able to just eat the meat by it self but was missing the the airy and fresh katsu breading it was supposed to have. The pieces were sized okay, it could be alot better like thick cut katsu slices like I am used to. It was very mediocre nothing special at all. Maybe I ordered the wrong thing? My friend who ordered the cold soba noodles said it was just okay as well. We decided we wouldnt be back for awhile. Service was okay and quick. Plenty of parking during opening. Next time we might come back to try something else but for now, it was nothing memorable! read more

Ducks - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

I was pleasantly surprised by this restaurant in SGV. I kinda decided there is no good Japanese food in this area years ago. Always a miss when I try so we stick to Chinese food. However, I tasted good soba and pork cutlet. The beef don was just okay. We all shared a bit. It's in a low key shopping center, good or bad, it has the hole in a wall vibe. Storage spills out into the dining area, etc. Service was friendly, Family will be moving to just a few blocks away so we will definitely be back. read more

Want to say thank you to this business who went above and beyond no other restaurant would do. We made a delivery order and we're missing a part of the meal. The quality of the meal was not like other days... clearly they were understaffed or something that day. We were taking care of an older family member who recently had surgery and also had a car in the shop so we were not mobile. Don't want to explain in detail because if I was a business owner I would not have gone to such lengths to help a single customer but thank you to everyone that made it so they were well fed with your good food. Definitely ended up with more than needed. God bless. Review update: a local staple in the area that satisfies your Japanese curry, udon, soba needs. It's Japanese home food that's prepared in clumsy to go containers but with incredible service. :) tip: request your broth to be on the side for carry outs. read more

I've been coming to Ducks throughout the years and my last visit was on Sun, 3/13 at noon. The restaurant isn't too big and can potentially get pretty busy throughout the lunch rushes. I've come with big and small parties and they have always been accommodating to us (ie. moving tables around, etc.). There are around 10 (or so) tables so there may be a wait depending on when you come. This time we ordered: -- Beef Don ($13.95 as of March 2022) This dish includes tender shredded beef cooked with eggs and sweet soy sauce over rice. The rice isn't too soggy if you eat it right away. The sweet soy sauce is a little too sweet in my opinion but still enjoyable. -- Cold Soba + Mini Chicken Curry ($11.50 as of March 2022) Yummy. I craved cold soba from time to time and I'm able to get my soba fix when I come here. They don't really give you too big of a portion but this + mini chicken curry does fill me up. The soba + sauce is so refreshing on a hot, summer day. The mini chicken tastes standard. However, the meat is tender and it's a nice balance of a hot + cold meal. We have also previously ordered the Katsu Don ($13.95) and Oyako Don ($13.95) and they have all been so tasty as well. In case you are interested, here is a link to their online ordering: https://www.toasttab.com/ducks-restaurant/v3 Please note that they are not opened the whole day. They open Weds-Sunday from 11:30 AM - 2:00 PM and reopen for dinner at 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM. All in all, I'll continue to stop by Ducks. Sure, the prices have gone up throughout the years but that's to be expected. Something about the food just satisfies my love of soba, dons, and udon! read more

See all

My family and I have been coming to Ducks for over 15 years and it never disappoints. We've enjoyed everything on the menu from their mochi udon, steak plate, ramen, and curry! True definition of a mom and pop shop and feels cozy and tastes like home. Natsumi and team continue to provide great service and happy to continue supporting one of our local favorites! read more

my fav here is the hot udon. The broth is authentic, old school Japanese!! And the noodles are so nice and chewy!! Thank goodness for Ducks because I lived in the Southbay before moving here and NEEDED authentic Japanese. I also like the curry. read more

Ducks is a local Japanese comfort food restaurant in San Gabriel. It's a small place, with only 10 small tables at most. The restaurant is decorated with a ton of rubber duckies and duck stuffed animals, hence the restaurant name. We came for lunch and tried the following dishes: - Katsu don: large portion size, katsu was tender, nicely costed with egg and katsu sauce. This was probably my favorite item. - Karaage chicken: the batter was a bit thick. Not what I'm accustomed to for chicken karaage. The chicken was juicy, but the batter was a real miss. - Hot udon with mini tempura bowl: the udon soup had great flavor...I tasted a hint of yuzu which I thought was unique to udon broth. The tempura was only so-so. It was lightly fried, but quickly became soggy with the sauce covering the tempura. It also came with 4 veggie pieces, 3 of 4 were root vegetables and were pretty hard. Not a huge fan. What bothered me the most was I came out of the restaurant smelling like oil/grease. I typically don't get too bothered by this, but it was more noticeable than most restaurants I've been in. Overal, the food was okay. Nothing to rave about, but not bad. read more

See all

Everything you could want in a hole-in-the-wall: no-nonsense prices, comfort food, and full of flavor. It's a great venue for a casual meal, though the interior is a bit small and unpretentious. I really enjoyed the Karaage Bowl. The batter was incredibly savory (though the batter to chicken ratio was a bit uneven). Also tried the Beef Don and Katsudon which didn't disappoint. The Veggie Yaki Soba was just fine. That said, great portions and service all around, so you really can't go wrong here. read more

Ducks - Karaage Bowl - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

Do not order the ramen! Worst bowl of ramen I have ever eaten from a restaurant. However their other dishes were ok. Namely fried items like the pork katsu. Overall ok food but ramen should be removed from their menu. Rubber ducks lined up along couple window ledges, which I assume inspired the name of this restaurant. Friendly and efficient service. read more

Ducks - Do not order the ramen! - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

See all

Loved the soba noodles and curry here! Had such great takeout experience here. Went home and enjoyed with my best friend

very cute spot. I recommend going right at opening cause the place fills up fast. they give super big portions. it was worth driving out 20+ miles for. service was very kind, helpful and didn't rush us. read more

Local hole in a wall restaurant that serves soba, udon, curry, and donburi! Its in a small plaza with plenty of parking, so parking is never an issue! It's a solid place. Their curry can be mild to spicy, and very thick. The fried chicken uses a different kind of batter than is typical in Japanese restaurants, I wish it were crispier! Good comfort food nearby at a small family restaurant, will come by again when I'm craving curry, katsu, or oyako don! read more

If you're looking for Japanese curry katsu or soba noodles this is the place to go. I usually crave soba noodles in the SGV area but never knew about this spot. I went here recently and their cold soba noodle and tempura set hit the spot for my craving. The place seems to be a family owned business because their service was so nice and friendly. You should also get the chicken karaage. The batter is way different from other restaurants as they used a tempura batter so makes the chicken light, crunchy but moist inside. read more

Ducks - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

Haven't been Ducks for dining several years due to pandemic and bad ventilation for air. Used to be smelling so bad after dining. But I miss the foods for having Japanese curry in a traditional way!! Then I ordered a curry spaghetti beef to go!! It's packed on the weekends n holidays!! read more

Ducks - Curry Spaghetti beef - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California

This restaurant has always been around as long as I can remember. The food is super delicious from their curry to noodle soup or cold noodle. Their tempura is fried to perfection and served freshly fried. They also have beer where you can sit and hang out with friends. I love their curry and also the cold noodle for the summer. The service is excellent and friendly. It's great for family or friends.. or couple nights out around the SGV . Must try read more

See all

A wonderful lowkey spot to have a meal! The name of the restaurant doesn't tell you much about their food but that mystery makes it all the more interesting. I've been here multiple times and they serve some of the best Japanese food in the area. For an appetizer I typically always get their karaage chicken and be ready to eat a lot because the portion are generous! Not only is the portions generous, but the chicken is also very tasty. In terms of mains, I recommend checking out their combo sets because the variety is great and you get miso soup + salad! My go to order is the mini katsudon & mini tempura bowl. The katsu and tempura are fried to perfection and the salad + miso soup make for a good side! I've also tried their cold noodle dish which is perfect for when it's a hot day outside. Moreover, if you're craving curry have no fear because the curry here is also really yummy. The staff here are also really friendly and professional. The restaurant itself is a bit tiny so sometimes you'll have to wait before you can get served but I promise it's worth the wait. Once inside, you'll see the very cute duck decorations scattered all over the restaurant along with an impressive manga collection towards the back of the restaurant. Overall this place is one of my favorite spots for Japanese food and I love taking my friends to this spot. Food: 5/5 Interior: 5/5 Service: 5/5 read more

So YUMMY!!!! I'm a bit biased because I love cold soba and katsu, so this meal was perfect for me. The wait for the food was pretty long, but I'd say it was worth it. This place really had a mom&pop kind of vibe, so it was really cozy. Lots of parking in front and lots of great food options, would definitely return if I were ever in the 626 read more

Ducks - Japanese Curry Near Me - San Gabriel, California