I live in the area but never really think to go to Rakuya, though a friend recently suggested it…read morefor dinner and I'm glad they did. Everything we ordered was fresh and well-prepared, with a few standout dishes: the black sesame yellowtail, deluxe tuna roll, and tuna crispy rice were all excellent. Service was a bit inconsistent, and toward the end of our meal they started cleaning up around us, including spraying chemicals with a pretty strong smell, which took away from the experience a bit. That said, the food really impressed me, and I'd definitely come back.

Vibe: cozy and upscale without feeling stuffy Service:…read moregreat and quick service during happy hour Value: love their happy hour Our happy hour experience was great! We particularly loved the chicken kara age, hangar steak with lettuce wraps, Dragon roll, and Soul train roll. Not sure about their dinner pricing, but happy hour feels like a great deal. Get there early for seating!

This place is truly a hidden gem! I've been wanting to try it for a while after being a loyal…read morecustomer of the matcha shop next door, and I'm so glad I finally did. I had the chicken rice curry bowl, and it was delicious. The curry tasted homemade--not like the typical instant Japanese curry--and instead of the usual fried karaage-style chicken, it came with tender boiled chicken, which worked surprisingly well. It was comforting, flavorful, and reasonably priced. This will definitely be my new go-to whenever I'm in Georgetown and craving Asian comfort food. Highly recommend!

Their cold sesame noodles are PHENOMENAL!! I would come back here just for that! The curry was a…read morelittle salty but the chicken in the curry had a really good grilled flavor. It's inside the same area as Spot of Tea and South Block so there's not a ton of seating inside, but plenty of spots to sit outside if you walk a few minutes nearby! Service was good!

Last weekend my niece and her husband came in from out of town and I had promised to take them to…read more Sakuramen, since I had raved about it before. They were NOT disappointed and praised the food and the warm welcome we got from the owner, who greeted us at the door. We ordered spicy miso ramen soup and appetizers, and each dish was customized to our tastes and full of rich flavors . It's obvious the food is made with fresh, wholesome ingredients and prepared with care and attention. The kimchi was a favorite, and we found out it was freshly made each week by the owner's mother. Sakuramen was busy and a person at the next table told us she came every Saturday. If I didn't live so far, I would too!.

I have always had a good experience here. Sometimes it does fill up quickly, as there are limited…read moreseats, and you do have to shortly wait in line outside

Food is always good. One of the few ramen places that I can actually finish my bowl. Favorite ramen…read morein the menu is the Shio, but I gave Mugi-miso a try, and it was really good. Not strong miso flavor that hurts your throat, but still has that umami flavor. Place can get packed especially at dinner. But quick turnaround. Can be a group or solo.

Daikaya -- Washington, DC…read more Walked in expecting a solid bowl at a shrine to Sapporo-style ramen and left feeling swindled by a soup that tasted like it had never been to Japan. This wasn't a bad day in the kitchen -- this was a fundamental misunderstanding of what Ramen is supposed to do. The Breakdown Broth: F -- I ordered the shoyu. It's way too simple, flat, and an insult to the bowl it was served in. Does it really take 16 hours to make soup that tastes like beef broth bought at Walgreens? I'm not a heavy oil person but there was also a noticeable lack of oil to give the soup any depth either. Is anyone in the kitchen tasting the soup or had ramen before? Genuinely puzzled by how bad this is. This would never fly in Japan. It shouldn't be ok here either. Noodles: B -- honestly the only competent part of this bowl. They say they're shipped in from Japan. Protein: F -- a pile of unseasoned ground pork sitting next to massive slice of chashu so bland it made me question the pig. What are we doing here? This is too much poor meat. Quantity over flavor, and it showed. Toppings: C -- the egg was tasted great, perhaps the most flavorful part of the meal, but half of it was warm and half was cold. Green onions seemed to be all the green bits from the top and none of the white parts on the bottom. And then -- the cucumber salad. A tiny $10 side dish for a quarter of a cucumber in soy sauce and sesame seed oil. Charging this much for such a small quantity is it's own kind of crime. Mind you, it tasted fine but I really expected more and it's ultimately what bumped this 2 star review down to 1 star. Overall: My Japanese ramen radar was blaring "fake ramen" the whole time at this place. This felt like a Ramen place run by people who had never been to Japan. And while that is ok, if you end up serving ramen that's so lacking in redeeming qualities then I have to call it a failure. That bad pricing on top of that is just a kick in the nuts. I felt misled by the reviews. DC's ramen scene deserves better than this 2/10

I'm a huge fan of this place…read more My friend and I had the ACYE option here, and the food was fabulously good. I didn't have many of their rolls, so I can't comment on that. Their appetizer game was fire though. I did several rounds of the ceviche, maguro avocado, pepper tuna tatami, yellowtail jalapeño, and everything was absolutely delicious. The ceviche was a standout--the mango added just the right touch of sweetness to balance everything out. Overall, the apps were super fresh and light, so I never felt weighed down even after multiple rounds. Honestly, I wish I lived closer to DC--I'd be here all the time.

If you don't know about this place, you'll probably miss it like I did. The establishment is…read moredownstairs. The lunch rush was CRAZY busy! Maybe because of their lunch deal (which is a good one). It seemed like everyone was running around trying to take orders and drop off drinks and drop off food. My and my colleague's bento box was missing an item and we waited quite some time for it--along with my drink from the bar. Not saying all restaurants have to be personable, but there was no moment of respite for the staff so the entire meal, no one checked on us and I wasn't even able to inquire about the missing items and just waited for it to come. The food though was delicious. No one had any issues about the taste of their meal. There was concern at the end of the meal when the staff couldn't remember where a colleague's credit card was. Go for the food but have patience.

I came here on a weekday night to get ramen with two of my friends. We were seated right away and…read moreimmediately noticed the club-like music which gave the place a modern, upbeat vibe. We placed our orders and the food came reasonably quickly. Unfortunately the food itself was not the best. Although portions were large, the quality was not. The noodles were soggy, like they had been cooked way too long or were sitting in the water instead of being removed right away. The toppings tasted like the canned versions I could've bought myself at the store. I will not be coming back for ramen here. Maybe their other items are better?

You get what you pay for often when you order BOGO delivery sushi, but unfortunately there are…read morebetter options for that in DC. PROS: large quantity, ideal ratio of fish to rice. CONS: bland. I ordered yellowtail and jalepeño and a spicy tuna roll and neither were even slightly spicy. My salmon avocado roll was also overpowered by the taste of avocado. I had to put a ton of the fake wasabi on the sushi just to get the spicy kick I was looking for. Overall, I will likely not be ordering from here again.

Our family enjoyed the ramen and setting. Kids four course meal was awesome deal. Mixed drinks were…read moreinteresting and stronger than expected.

I love JINYA. I never been to the DC location. I always patronize the North Bethesda location…read more Different location but same delicious food. I ordered the spicy pork belly ramen with a boiled egg. It was so flavorful and was very hot. I also order the pork dumpling. You can't go wrong with them. The service was good. Our waiter was friendly but was rushing us to order. The restaurant was going to close in 1.5 hours so I get it to a certain extent. However, it is never a great feeling when you are being rushed. The ambiance was nice. It wasn't too crowded so it was pretty quiet. We were able to watch a basketball game while we were eating our ramen so that was cool. It was a great experience. If you are in the area check it out. Cheers!

A really nice dinner option up Wisconsin a ways from the over-crowded center of Georgetown, they…read moreare a neon oasis. The space is casual, but they nailed the decor. For my order, the starters were the stars for me. The fried kale is exceptionally flavorful for a simple veggie dish. Very tasty. Fried chicken bao and potstickers hit the spot, too, as did the edamame. I did sample one entree, the beef bowl, which I would say is both a bit small for the price and good but not one I will order next time. It seems like ramen is their most popular option, so I can't wait to go try it for myself. If you're nearby, I recommend trying them.

Delicious ramen spot with a great vibe and speedy service!…read more Stopped in with my boyfriend and we both got the staple OKI curry ramen. Did not disappoint!

Went during HH (5-7pm), had the Sake for $20, and then had chicken thigh, fried garlic, fries, and…read morebrussel sprouts with pork! Would definitely fried garlic again, and the brussel sprouts! Fries were filling but nothing massively special. Just a good bang for the buck

We are here for work and one of my colleagues wanted to come here…read more It's located upstairs so remember to take the stairs on the left side. Super cool looking restaurant. As soon as we reached the top of the stairs, to the right is an amazing bar. Darker warm lighting in the whole restaurant. There are a few tables to the left of the bar, that's where we were seated, and more to the right and there's bar seatings as well We shared all the items ordered and enjoyed it all. Gyozas had wasabi on it so be careful but it was amazing with layers of flavors. The rice pot was more than enough for 4ppl to share with tons of meats and seafood inside. Like a paella but Japanese. Meatballs were underestimated but it delivered. Tasted amazing we had to order another one. Most items are one order, one item so ask before ordering. Service was perfect. Waitress always checked on us and food came out very timely.

I finally had the opportunity to try Planta Queen in Dupont and it did not disappoint. I'm not a…read morevegan, but I was genuinely impressed by the food, ambience and drinks. The atmosphere was lively and welcoming, making it a great spot for dinner. We decided to sample a variety of dishes, and everything was deliciously presented. Drinks: Cherry smoke show and Emperor's old-fashioned. Food: We ordered the bang, bang, broccoli, thousand layer crispy potatoes, beef, and broccoli, spicy tuna roll. Sweet ending: The sticky toffee pudding Moriah, our server was friendly and attentive, adding to the overall experience. Definitely a good time.

I gotta go 3.5 stars for this Planta. The one in Bethesda is just better across the board. Food was…read moregreat. Service was meh. Read on. The food is 4 stars, very tasty and well-seasoned. Wild how they make so much tasty vegan stuff. Although, my Korean fried Chick'n sandwich definitely needed more accompanying tater tots ( I had maybe 10). Food came out super fast. Service has to be 3 stars though. Our server said the gochujang mayo wasnt spicy, when gochujang is (it's got a mildly strong kick that quickly evens out/dissipates) so that's just incorrect to tell people who can't handle heat. More importantly, we were all done with desert at roughly 9pm and it wasn't until 9:40, despite multiple moments of eye contact from a few of us, that our server even came to our table to clear our plates. We'd all clearly been done, not even nibbling, for almost that whole time. In that time, other than his regular duties, our server seemed to do other idle things or "end of the evening" tasks, setting up other tables, stacking plates on them, etc. instead of checking on us. Again, a few of us made eye contact a couple times, which can indicate (along with none of us having touched our plates for 5-10 minutes) that we're done. Other plates had been cleared almost right away. We were also all left wanting for water at the end as no other staff came by to see if we needed more. So yeah, not thrilled about that. Also, it was weirdly a smidge too warm in Planta Queen tonight. I suspect the AC just wasn't on as strong because of the AQI in DC (on June 17, 2026) but it was noticeable.