Ichimi-An is what we call traditional minimal in interior design , it's authentic in presentation and Ichimi-An is part of the I-Naba group. Many insiders are familiar with the groups like Hakata from Gardena and beyond , I-Naba is another. And these groups are transnational , so generally your walking into a real homeland eatery. I've been to both Inaba on western and Ichimi-An several times thru out decades , many will give I-Naba on Hawthorne blvd the 5 star for its Soba and give Ichimi-An 4 stars. Well, I must say from the reviews I've read , I can see who knows their Soba, Udon , and tempura. Uchimi-An is very good and the service is great. The prices are not cheap and neither is the quality of their menu. I ordered the Ten Kake and Salmon sashimi along with their Tofu salad. It was all excellent. And in time. The tempura was crisp and authentic and my noodles were spot on! It was all excellent. I like the crowd , it ties get busy and for good reason. It's Japanese , it's not " Rock & Sushi." Know the difference and get better Japanese food. Sayo..., read more

Ichimi Ann - When you decide to go with a friend who says , " it's a traditional old school Japanese place, expect simplicity and calm. I love it - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

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Delicious noodles. Soothing broth. No frills. But not needed. Had the Yuzu Oroshi. What an aroma! Husband commented that it would be really good on a hot summer day, to eat in cold broth. I don't like cold noodles, but I have to agree. It was still tasty hot/warm, though. read more

Ichimi Ann - Yuzu Oroshi. - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

One of best soba restaurants in the Southbay. I come here a couple times a month and am never disappointed. I always get the extra large size because it's so good! read more

I like this place like make you feel home and warm Store is Christian store and there are many scriptures for store decoration I highly recommend this place read more

Ichimi Ann - 鮭いくら丼 明太子トロロそば - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

Went here for lunch and ordered tempura bowls which was just warm, not hot like it was sitting under a heat lamp. Wasn't freshly made. We were the first ones in after it opened. Very disappointed. This was our first and last time to come here. There are other better places to go to that are so much better. read more

Yes, I am a fan of the soba here! I remember coming to this location when it used to be Mom's Kitchen way back when, for some good old chicken cutlet combos. So the small size of the restaurant did not surprise me. Ichimi-an now instead, serves up a bunch of different combos that include mostly soba, udon and tempura. The cold soba is really my favorite thing here. The noodles are handmade and the dipping sauce is subtle but flavorful. The tempura bowls are pretty tasty as well, as the tempura is surprisingly light for a place that specializes in noodles. I was rather dissapointed with the chirashi bowl tho. It doesn't come with a lot of fish and the quality does not stand out at all. But overall the combos are portioned well, as long as you are not looking to get stuffed. I actually like the fact that the combos here are somewhat healthy for you and you don't feel like a slob afterwards. But I guess some people are all about getting the most bang for your buck. I kinda wish they would offer more options with their noodle combos instead of mostly tempura. Having different donburi options like Mishima would make me like this place more. But there aren't too many places in Torrance where you can get some good quality soba. So that's pretty much what'll keep me coming back. read more

This place is a perfect lunch spot, especially on a hot summer day. They didn't have the green tea soba noodles when I went, but I was more interested in trying the regular housemade soba noodles anyways. I ordered the chirashi and soba lunch combination. The fish was delicious and the frice was pretty good, too. The soba was good, too. It wasn't as good as I-naba, in my opinion, but it was still yummy, and it was a little bit cheaper and less pretentious as well. The biggest pro for this place is the fact that it's right near my work... perfect for my lunch break! Note: It was kind of difficult finding this place the first time around. It's near the One West Bank, pretty much behind the Trader Joe's. There's also limited parking right in front of the restaurant, so I'd suggest maybe finding parking across the mini-street. read more

Crazy good cold soba(buckwheat) noodle with a good variety of other Japanese food for a reasonable price. Some call Torrance the 48th prefecture of Japan. Now I know why. This is the fabled house made soba noodle with the milled buckwheat imported from Japan. Came in on a Monday night at 5:30 for dinner. Easy parking. Easy seating. I had the sashimi(6 pieces, super fresh hamachi, tuna, halibut), tempura, and cold soba on zaru(bamboo strainer) w dipping sauce combo for $22. Prices are about 30% less for lunch. I expected the soba, with the very subtle sweetness of the buckwheat, to be superb and it did not disappoint. The tempura was very good though I would rate is slightly below the ultralight batter of sakanaya in Costa Mesa. I got 3 good sized pieces of veggie and two big shrimp in the combo. The sashimi was the surprise...ultra fresh, ultra tasty on par with the best sushi restaurants I've eaten at. Friendly staff. One restroom behind kitchen. Very mom and pop type of feel. #fuck yeah japalicious! *next level would be to grow the buckwheat locally and mill on site to preserve as much flavor as possible *Handels ice cream is not too far away on pch read more

So this is a pricier sister restaurant to the Ichimi-an Bamboo Garden in old Torrance. But the price is warranted. This is now my go to spot when craving Tempura and Udon. The menus are different and your selection here is more varied. Prepare to wait if you go during prime times as the restaurant is very small. (5 small tables and small counter, definitely not ideal for large groups). read more

Pretty good for such a little place! When we walked in I noticed that the sushi bar was empty as were the walls. It was a little odd to me just because I expected more effort put into decorating, but we were there to eat not stare at the walls. I got the shrimp tempura and cold soba noodles. I've never had cold soba noodles, and I was happy to see that they made their noodles fresh daily. I felt like I was going to walk into one of those PBS specials on the art of soba noodle making. The soba noodles were great! I didn't really have a benchmark to compare it to, but when your taste buds are happy, something is right, right? The shrimp tempura left something to be desired. I was ready to get my fried shrimp on, but the shrimp were cold and chewy. I was expecting crispy, but you can't win them all. If they improved on their tempura, it would have made for a stellar meal! Also, the combo came with a bowl of rice. Bowl of rice + soba noodles = Starch overload. read more

Ichimi Ann - Shrimp tempura and cold soba noodles combo - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

I'm always discovering new places around my local area, and it's pretty exciting when I come across a really good place near me! My family and I discovered this restaurant through yelp a few years back (when my dad and I finally started getting the hang of it) and were thoroughly pleased with the food here. Definitely a yelp success story. This place is known for their soba as they actually hand-make the noodles. The noodles are definitely well-made, as they don't have that powder after-taste that often yam or soba noodles have in restaurants or when you make them at home. Their udon noodles are phenomenal as well as they hand-make those too! I would recommend any of the combos as I think it's a pretty nice deal as you get both a noodle dish and a rice bowl. The service is really good, and the atmosphere is pretty quiet as it's not super popular amongst non-Japanese guests. It's a local favorite. Definitely come and try their noodles! You'll get addicted soon. read more

Ichimi Ann - Lunch combo!! Tuna bowl and udon!! Yummy!! - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

I've been loving this place ever since my friend brought me here about three years ago. It's a small place, but it's clean and maintained nicely. This is not a good place for large groups. I usually get their cold soba and tempura bowl combo. It's my favorite. If you don't like cold soba, you can get hot soba or udon instead. For the cold soba, they give you a cold broth in a small cup (separate from the noodles). You take the noodles and dip it into the cup and eat the noodles. The cold soba is their specialty here. If you are going to come here, you should get that. Great service and plenty of parking. This is located in the Rolling Hills Center near Nice Cafe (another favorite of mine). read more

Ichimi Ann - Cold soba and tempura bowl - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

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This is our the go to Soba noodle house. But the Soba noodle tasted different, it was not chewy like used to be. It's soggy+4 on March 22nd at dinner time. Hope the Japanese Chef comes back soon. read more

Delicious food, peaceful atmosphere, and high-quality service! One of the best places in the South Bay to get authentic Japanese food. read more

Ichimi Ann - Unagi set - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

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First time here and I tried Mentai Tororo - mentai tororo: warm brown rice and cold soba, a great combination for a warm day; since it's soba, the flavor is usually light and healthy; decent size, I am at 70% full which is very good; definitely going back there sometimes. This is a very small place with less than 10 table and a bar. I wouldn't even notice this place if I didn't yelp it out. But it's quiet and cozy to have a relaxing lunch even by myself. I'm definitely going back to try other things they offer. Note that they don't have side dishes during lunch. read more

Ichimi Ann - Mentai Tororo - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

Ichimi-an turned out to be a pretty cool place tucked away in rolling hills plaza. The highlight of the menu was the tempura. There are decent tempura combinations for under $10 dollars. It comes with miso soup and salad. Not my usual hangout spot...but maybe I'll give it a try next time I have a urge for tempura. read more

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Love their Japanese cold noodle. Authentic soba noodle is my reason going to this restaurant

Came here on Valentine's day for dinner. It's a very small place, very quiet and intimate. Classical music playing in the background; we came here because we just knew every other place in town would be jam packed on this night. I ordered the spicy tuna rolls, and sushi set, with cold soba noodles and assorted tempura. The spicy tuna was good and fresh. It had more of a spicy kick than I'm used to actually. Very sinus clearing and yummy. The salad the accompanied my sushi set was a bowl of mixed baby greens with a sort of a spicy sesame dressing; good as well. When my entree arrived, it looked delicious. I always eat the tempura first, and it was the best I think I've eaten. And then...the cold soba noodles...blechhh...they were more than al dente...they were very chewy and had no flavor. I guess I really wasn't sure what I ordered first off, and I thought the noodles would have some sort of broth or sauce or something. I'd would probably return for the tempura and rolls, but not the cold soba noodles. read more

Ichimi Ann - Spicy tuna roll with a kick - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

This was such a great lunch! Amazing sushi and light tempura! Delicious cold noodles. And very nice service. Highly recommend. The eel avocado roll was divine. I got the Nigiri Combo with cold noodles. Each sushi was better than the first. And the tempura was so wonderfully battered. Light and delicious. Definitely coming back. Perfect in the age of Covid. Not a lot of outside seating but what they got, they have figured out! read more

This is my new favorite place. I wished I lived closer so I could eat here every day. I've been having the soba with fried mochi. Add fried eggplant. MMMMM read more

I guess this restaurant started a new policy to serve non Japanese customers slowly and provide undercooked meals.

After reading all the positive reviews here on yelp, my husband and I decided to give this place a try since I'm a noodle fanatic. I couldn't wait to try their soba. Upon arriving, we were seated right away since the place wasn't packed. It took a while for the server to bring us water, which I didn't think was a big deal until a few complaints accumulated. We both order combo plates and an additional sushi roll. The problem started once the food arrived. The waitress didn't even supply us with eating utensils. It was one of those wth moments where you realize you have to flag down the waitress in order to be able to eat your food. My biggest complaint of all was the quality of rice. The rice in our bowls and roll were extremely dry that it hurt my teeth. At first I thought I was mistaken, so I tried to pick at different areas of the bowl only to realize the entire bowl of rice was DRY. I really liked the soba noodles, though. However, we came home to an indescribable thirst for water. This made me realize that the restaurant might have gone too far with MSG. I'm really sensitive to MSG, so my body reacts right away. Anyway, I'm saddened since I really wanted to like the place. read more

Located next to the other Japanese stores (i.e. Nijiya, Koraku, Book-Off, etc) in Rolling Hills Plaza, this tiny shop makes AMAZING soba with quality ingredients. In fact, they import the buckwheat to make soba directly from Japan "on K-Line vessels in refrigerated containers to keep them fresh as possible." Though known primarily as a soba shop, they do have other things on the menu. They have many advertisements up for tempura items, none of which I had. Instead, I sampled a mini chirashi don. The fish in the chirashi don were fresh, and the rice was flavorful. I did appreciate that it came with a shiso leaf to wrap my favorite piece of sashimi with. Yum! Lastly, this place does not serve alcohol. However, they do encourage you to BYOB! I'll have to keep that in mind, the next time I come. Cheers! read more

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A nice little shop with authentic style cuisine to enjoy. Definitely not your mass produced foods with bottle sauce eats. A handmade noodle/soba...excellent. A handmade noodle is a different world of consistency and texture .You don't get that from the mass packaged market versions. (Same as a handmade pasta...you know it is good stuff.) Quality ingredients, attention to detail and the food preparation is top shelf without the high $. It does draw a constant crowd so obviously peak lunch and dinner times you may have a wait. The cold soba with the marinated tuna is my favorite. When I feel like fried, the tempura bowl is my next pick. Yeah it seems touristy though this it a tasty meal and short of flapping 6K miles to Japan, I feel they do this in Nihon style. Small to modest sized portions here. Now I'm hungry for some...:D Stop in and enjoy. read more

I had the salmon and salmon Roe Rice Bowl. It came with soup and salad I also had some hot green tea all were very good if I didn't have to sit in the parking lot on a slope they probably would have got five stars read more

Best tenzaru soba ( cold buckwheat noodle with tempura) around. Cold or hot Udon is good too. Staff is always friendly. You won't be disappointed. read more

Finally and AUTHENTIC JAPANESE NOODLE AND TEMPURA JOINT! My Japanese friend introduced me to this little spot that easily goes unnoticed. We ordered the lunch bowl special which comes with a tempura bowl AND a noodle dish either soba or udon. I ordered soba and my friend got udon. Honestly, I'm not a big noodle/carb person or a fried food person, however, this was light and so yummy. Soba is homemade and has a nice nutty fragrance. Comes with a refreshing and salty broth. Vegetable tempura is so so yummy, great for vegans like me! Loved the lotus root and eggplant, which is surprising because I usually HATE eggplant. Udon was SO AMAZING. This is how udon should be. I never order udon because it's so thick and starchy, but the udon here is thinner and has a fresh chewiness! The rice flour creates a tapioca consistency that makes it so light and refreshing to eat. Cute small bar with great service. Authentic, affordable, and generous portions. HIDDEN GEM. GO HERE. read more

Cozy restaurant like a hidden location. Taste is good, lunch's price is reasonable. You should try to have them. I like an Udon noodle as well as Soba. They also started Yakitori only for weekend even read more

Friendly service, delicious food, and reasonable prices. Will definitely be going back. Their tempura is the best I've ever had. Not greasy, light, and coveredcrisp coating that doesn't drag off from one bite with fresh veggies inside. Really small space, so I recommend small groups or make reservations for the one large by the window. Big menu to choose from, so be prepared to be overwhelmed in a good way read more

Great udon, with thinner noodles than most. The broth is a little salty, but has a nice simple flavor. The tempura is not very good, as the batter is not light and airy. Sashimi was decent and fresh. It's a good restaurant frequented by Japanese patrons so that's always a plus. read more

The best Soba spot I've tried outside Tokyo. Has that "mom and pop" shop you feel you only get in Japan. Worn walls and floorboards in a charming way. The cold soba, dipping sauce and tempura were great. It's a bit tucked away in a large plaza near a lot of other restaurants. It's across from a Japanese Deli/Market, behind Nike and across from Yamaya. read more

Best Udon in the South Bay. Almost always get hot udon and tempura. Good soba and mochi tempura as well.

I came here with my boyfriend for the first time and the soba is very good. This place is cash only just FYI. The noodles had a very nice texture to chew. It's a small shop but the quality is worth it. I've only had the cold soba with tempura. The tempura was nice and crunchy and they give you a good assortment of the tempura. read more

Solid soba/tempura spot. We came in at 7pm on a saturday, we were greeted and seated right away. I had the special mushroom tempura combo- comes with mushroom tempura over rice, hot or cold soba, house green tea, and small pickled salad. He had tempura combo- same as mine, but with shrimp and veggie tempura. Delicious! The waitress even suggested we try soba broth after we finished our noodles-- you mix soba broth into your leftover dipping sauce for soba and drink--sooooo good! Great service, decent prices, can't wait to come back! read more

Not impressed! Salmon sashimi was not fresh, salmon eggs on rice was so little portion, nothing near the picture shown on the misrepresented menu. I doubt to go back there again. Disappointed! read more

First time here and I was really impressed. I ordered kake soba with ume shiso topping. It was really good and tested just like what I'm use to eating at home. Accept the soba was way better! If you have time and are nearby, I would definitely recommend you stop by this place. The other positive point about this place is the hours of operation durning the day. You usually can't find many Japanese places open for longer periods of time around lunch time. The only reason i did not give it 5 stars is because the sauce used for the tendon was just okay. But the texture and temperature of the shrimp was on point! Hannosuke tendon is way better. But still awesome place especially for the price, service was super friendly, and the soba was awesome. Wish I could give this place a 4 1/2 rating.... read more

Ichimi Ann - Japanese Near Me - Torrance, California

Outside of Tokyo, Ichimi-an is my go to place for soba and a good time. It's a cute tiny restaurant with Japanese as the language of choice and caters to many of south bays Japanese population as well as travelers from abroad. The staff is also very friendly. Because alcohol is not served/sold at Ichimi-an, I suggest you walk over to Nijiya Market for a BYOB experience. Ichimi-an not only allowes this behavior, they highly encourage it. The waitress's are also more than happy to store your extra beer in their fridges. Cheap and soo good! Cold Soba (zaru) is my favorite amongst all japanese noodles (Ramen and Udon). It's a no thrills very simple noodle dish. The temperature is cold (just out of a refrigerator), the texture is chewy (thanks to the buckwheat), and the taste is satisfying. Generally Cold Soba is topped with nori (seaweed flakes), served on zaru (bamboo tray), and accompanied with tsuyu dipping sauce (soy, dashi, and mirin). On my last visit I ordered the Cold Soba combo with deluxe Tempura. The Tsuyu dipping sauce with added scallions and wasabi adds the perfect flavor to accompany the soba noodles. A large Kirin Beer to wash it down makes it that much better. The Deluxe Tempura is also very good and includes large heapings of tempura'd fish. The tempura also comes with a really good sweet sauce. I've heard from Japanese friends in Japan that you should only order the soba at Ichimi-an because it's the best. Everything else, sushi, rice bowls, etc... should be ordered elsewhere. I can attest to this. read more

Great REAL Japanese food! A bit pricey, but food is very good. My favorite is Hotate-Don with hot soba. It even come with Ikura on top of Hotate!! read more

What a fantastic find, this place is true gem. I had the Unagi Bowl with Cold Soba Noodle Kake and it was unbelievably delicious. The meal came with ice tea on the house which our server topped off a couple of times. With tip, my lunch came out to about $24. I will be definitely be back for more! read more

WTF!?!?! Delicious, cheap food Yelpsters? Did you go to Ichimi-an? I came here for dinner, and this was a mind-blowing disappointment. Perhaps, I am used to the places in Gardena with much better food (and frankly nicer interiors and more helpful staff). This place is a DUMP! The tables won't stand straight - you touch it and it rocks (fun with a hot bowl of noodle soup). It smells like it has not been cleaned in some time. The waitress knows absolutely nothing about the menu and what the entrees contain. And, the food is a rip-off. For $27.13 (including tax), we shared: Seaweed Salad ($5) - a 5 inch round bowl has about 1 cup of mixed greens and half a cup of seaweed with a little dressing. Tasty enough. Shrimp Tempura ($5) - two pieces of deep fried shimp that are about 2.5" long and have the diameter of a Sharpie with absolutely ZERO flavor. I mean no seasoning whatsoever. Sweet Potato Tempura ($3) - at $1.50 for each 1" x 2" square of deep fried sweet potato, this should rock. What a disappointment. Flavorless mush. Sansai Tororo Udon (hot - $11.95) - we asked to split it. Of course, they bring one bowl. Really, was it that tough to split it? Yes, it is, because we give you a pathetic 2 tablespoons of the vegetables with 2 cups of noodles that are okay and 2 cups of beef broth. SERIOUSLY? And, don't look at their menu online. They have about 10% of that stuff. No curry. :( Sure, the noodles were tasty, but they weren't $12 tasty. The noodles would have needed something else to be that good. I will NEVER EVER come back - I don't care if you can bring your own wine. Yelp - you led me astray. Big time. :( read more