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    Noren Izakaya

    4.1 (342 reviews)
    Closed • 5:00 pm - 10:00 PM
    Updated 1 month ago

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    NOREN IZAKAYA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Trendy
    Intimate

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    Recommended Reviews - Noren Izakaya

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    Bacon Scallop  Shishito Pepper Sake
    Astrid G.

    I adore this place, the vibe is very fun, they have a great happy hour, the staff is super fun and friendly and the Food and sake are soooo good!

    Yakitori
    Mike L.

    We got a reservation on a Saturday night at dinnertime and were really glad to visit Noren during out trip to SF. They have a simple menu that has a selection of small bites, yakitori, and other dishes to enjoy and you basically circle the ones you want and hand it back. Service was fairly quick and attentive, friendly, and helpful with figuring out the ordering. We enjoyed each item, especially the short rib and chicken thighs. ----TL;DR---- Pros: easy to get to location-wise, fast and friendly staff, good selection on menu, fresh and flavorful meats Cons: none Bottom Lind: if you are craving Japanese pub food like Yakitori, come here, it was great. We'd like to go back again

    Tiffany N.

    Great food and love their happy hour where you can get $3 skewers. Service was fast and quick despite it being busy on a weekend. Felt like I was in Japan in shinjuku enjoying skewers at an Izakaya. Perfect place to hang out and get good food and drinks with friends. Their cocktails are delicious and you can even do sake flights. Definitely recommend this place!

    Sarah L.

    The happy hour menu is amazing! All the skewers were really good, we must've ordered at least 2/3 of the options on the menu to try them all. The owner Kristy is very knowledgeable and recommended an amazing sake to go along with the food. The seating is intimate and great place to yap, drink, and eat!

    Indoor
    Victoria Z.

    I'm sad to leave a bad review, especially since I've been excited to try this place but honestly was disappointed by this experience. The food is decent but pretty overpriced. The portion sizes are small too so you won't be full unless you order a ton Warning: they will automatically charge you a "Dine In Service Charge" of 18%. On the receipt, it still asks you for a tip as if there wasn't a service charge already. To me that feels a bit shady/dishonest when it should call out "Additional Tip". Wish I knew and had more transparency before tipping extra on top of it If you do go, I liked their Yuzu Soda, Chicken Oyster, Hiyashi Wakame best. I didnt like their Trumpet mushroom - was a bit too soggy/wet (get the Shiitake instead).

    Linda Y.

    Had passed by this spot so many times but finally got a chance to dine here. It was pretty quiet on Friday night when I went, and the vibes were peaceful with some nice mood lighting / decor. We got a few small dishes to share, including skewers (which were juicy, especially the chicken oyster pieces) and fried chicken (which was a little too heavily breaded / dry) and agedashi tofu (silky with a nice crisp on outside). Service was a bit slow given there was barely anyone there, but is a solid choice if you're in the area and want to come with a date or enjoy the vibes of a chill izakaya spot.

    Pork belly, gizzard, heart, trumpet
    Daniel S.

    Chicken Heart: good nit gamey. Lovely chewiness. Chicken Gizzard: definitely a tough section of the bird. A touch gamey. Trumpet Mushroom: easy to enjoy and buttery. Berkshire Pork Belly: great! And a perfect fail safe. Suntory Draft: classic Can eat again but it's pricey. This is small eats treat territory.

    Beef, shitake and pork skewers
    Priyanka S.

    Neren Izakaya was a cute little Japanese style izakaya located in North Beach that my bf and I decided to check out after attending the Yelp torreni flavored syrup event. The izakaya is on the smaller side inside but is very cozy and dimly lit with tons of dark wood tones. The servers are very friendly and nice and were also able to accommodate my sesame allergy and let me know which skewers and sauces to avoid. We decided to get the beef tongue, the wagu beef, the pork and the shiitake mushroom. All of the skewers were absolutely delicious and buttery but definitely are on the pricy side. My bf and I paid roughy $55 per person for the skewers and still left feeling a bit hungry afterwards so definitely keep that in mind if you are coming are expecting large portions that this is more of tapas style small platters. That being said it is definitely worth checking out and the quality is great!

    Lawrence C.

    My gf and I came here to try it out since we had seen it promoted online and were curious to see what the buzz was about. We came here early in the evening with a reservation, so we were able to be seated right away without any wait. The interior is nicely decorated while also minimalistic, with a good amount of seating inside. For the food we decided to order their skewers, since that was what they were known for. We tried out the beef short rib, the pork belly, and the trumpet mushroom, as well as the crispy chicken skin. The flavors of the skewers were nice and I liked the crispiness of the chicken skin, although I do think the food is pricy for the amount you get. Overall, if you're looking for nice Japanese Izakaya fare then this place is pretty solid.

    Skewers menu
    Lyee C.

    I've been to Noren a few times for drinks after dinner, but it was my first time trying the skewers. Superb! I had a reservation for Saturday evening, but the store was empty and we were seated right away. Interior has quite a few tables, bar seating, bathroom in the back, and has vibes on the darker intimate side. Staff was friendly and gave us recommendations and introduced the various skewers we got when they arrived. Ordering is done by drawing/circling on the paper menus you're given. We got a wagyu gyutan curry which was delicious and rich, though on the smaller side. The mapo tofu udon was just alright, with it just vaguely being spicy and I would likely choose a different side dish when I'm back as so many other things on the menu are good. The real stars of the dinner were the skewers which were all fantastically prepared and flavorful. The bacon mochi was really great in particular, with the crispy bacon and soft mochi contrasting each other while having a sweet savory kick to it. My dining partner got the Nihon Mikerada, which she mentioned was great for the first 75% as it went well with the skewers, but quickly turned undrinkable for the last 25% as all the salt had settled at the bottom. Noren is one of the better locations in SF for Japanese style skewers. I'll definitely be back for more skewers and drinks.

    Garlic Edamame
    May L.

    Came on a Saturday night after 9:30 p.m. with a friend and there were two seats available at the bar so we sat there to interact with the bartender. My friend is a regular and I had heard a lot of good things about this place so I decided to join him after attending an event at Burlingame. Since he knows the menu well, I let him do the ordering. We started off with a beer to celebrate a good Saturday. We ordered the garlic edamame, which was tasty. It had a good balance of garlic and soy sauce flavors and wasn't overly salty. Next, we had the fried oysters, which were delicious. They were crispy, flaky, and creamy. We also ordered an assortment of skewers to share since I had already eaten dinner. The staff were super friendly. Kristy was very generous and treated us to some sake. The place was welcoming and clean. If I remember correctly, there are about 7-8 seats at the bar, along with several tables. A party of 6-8 came in after us and the restaurant was able to accommodate them. Because of that, I think it's a good option for larger groups who want to sit together rather than be split between multiple tables. As a female, I take bathrooms seriously and I can say that their bathroom passed my inspection. Parking can be a challenge since the restaurant is located in a residential area but if you drive around the block, you should be able to find a space. I was lucky enough to find parking right in front of the restaurant. I will definitely come back if I'm in the area to try other items on the menu.

    Top to Bottom: Berkshire Pork Belly skewer, Chicken Heart skewer, Chicken Tail skewer, Beef Short Rib skewer
    Anh T.

    A great place for Japanese skewers any day of the week! Ended up getting my food to-go but I noticed the nice sit down seating along with a bar area. While their menu choice is quite wide, I opted to try solely their skewers. Berkshire Pork Belly: I appreciate how the pork was not too fatty and was well-cut and had the perfect thickness. Chicken Gizzard: chewy and delicious Chicken Heart: slightly less flavor than I had hoped for Beef Short Rib: this was the most refreshing and distinct out of all the skewers I tried. I loved the juiciness of the short rib! Scallop: salty but a strong delicious scallop taste Chicken Tail: flavorful and a good start to all my skewers Excited to try their other dishes in the future, and hopefully some of them will be on the less salty side!

    Ready for our machakorada!
    Rochelle S.

    2 years later, and this place is still my favorite skewer place in the city! You cannot beat the charcoal flavor. I've been to tons of places & I still love this place the most. It gets busy, so service can be slow at times, but overall it's pretty fast. Staff is friendly, and the vibes are cute with lanterns, and old sake labels on the walls. My favorite lately has been the ceviche, bacon wrapped scallop skewers, curry stew over rice, and the wagyu skewers.

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    18% dine in service that they only tell you once the bill comes and false advertising on the happy sign out side smh do better

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    Ask the Community - Noren Izakaya

    Do you use binchotan for skewer?

    Yes!

    Is there outdoor seating? Parklet? There are no pictures yet it states outdoor seating....

    We no longer offer outdoor seating.

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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    Noren Izakaya - izakaya - Updated October 2026

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