The one star is for the amazing service we had. Other than that no stars. The staff was super friendly and fast. Our food was on the colder side. It was very bland and watered down. Although there were some seasonings provided, the flavor would not improve. It lacked so much flavor, unfortunately the most tasteless ramen I've ever had. read more

Ramen San - Chicken ramen with fried chicken added and a side of spicy kimchi. - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Highly recommend their karage chicken. It was huge and crispy and perfectly seasoned. Visit them during the lucky hour 3-6pm on a weekday to enjoy the karage for $6! They also have limited edition ramen, and it was the smoked brisket ramen, which made me make a trip there. The smoked brisket was smoky and tender. However, the broth could be better as it's a bit too salty with strong soy sauce taste. read more

Ramen San - Karage - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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My favorite ramen in town but, the lychee martini has gone downhill, the doughnuts were mid, and the scratch-off promo lost my $15 credit...

The food was so good. the molten egg in my ramen was amazingly amazing and everything was so flavorful and so very good. I also got the hot donuts and it was so great. The sauce that came with the donuts was pretty good, too. The service was great, everyone was very respectful and quick. The vibe here is great and the decor is good. The lights are more yellow and the walls and floor are wood. The bathroom is nice and this is overall a very nice business place! read more

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Earthy Ramen in Lincoln Park- Chicago. We tried: fried chicken bun, spicy Szechuan wings, chicken pho, tonkotsu, & sumo ramen. Love the exterior of the restaurant, very cozy & great service. Staff are friendly & really helpful. read more

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I love this spot, this is my fourth or fifth time and I will come back again. The service was really fast (almost too fast? it felt like I was being rushed a bit) but very helpful and kind. There is a great vibe in there, not too loud but not too intimate. Now the food has never disappointed me but I wonder if they've changed their noodles because another review mentioned them congealing and I didn't know what they meant until I came this time. Maybe they were overcooked or something, but there were chunks of noodle stuck together which I didn't love. The bun was great and I will still be coming back, but I wonder what has changed. read more

Ramen San - 10 hour tonkotsu* - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Another great location. Excellently decorated and clean atmosphere. Always amazing service and many seating options. The food is really the highlight here. After trying places like "Friend's Ramen" and being extremely disappointed, this place revived my faith in humanity. Perfectly cooked noodles, rich and flavorful broths, decent appetizers and many great sake offerings. read more

lunch special is so worth it! great and quick service. got the miso salmon rice plate + tonkotsu ramen + salad + cucumbers. salmon was okay but good! tonkotsu and pork were SO good - must get. read more

Ramen San - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The ambiance was amazing. Service was great and helpful explaining different items of the menu. Food was amazing, definitely a big portion too. read more

Ramen San - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Our server Jason was amazing, really nice, funny, and very explanative of the menu. The menu had a wide variety of options and for those who don't understand some food options the back of the menu has definitions for some of the items. The food was amazing, I love Oiistar and personally never thought I would find a place on its level or better and this place was it! In all, great food, great music and great service will 100% make this my new ramen stop. read more

I have been to other "Ramen San" locations for various occasions. My partner and I went to "Ramen San" Lincoln Park during the Chicago Restaurant Week. The menu was already posted online (3 courses, $42/person). We went on a Sunday evening and weren't sure how busy the restaurant was going to be. Making a reservation was easy and could be done via OpenTable. They assigned us a high table with benches. Although there was a hook for items underneath the table, my coat was too long so I ended up holding the coat on my lap. On the other hand, for those who sat at the booth against the walls, they were able to put any personal belongings on the side. The "nigiri trio" was visually pleasing, yet it was a bit difficult to grab the entire roll with my chopsticks. The rice and fish pieces were falling off as I was trying to feed it in my mouth. I guess I got semi-annoyed because I preferred to use my hand, yet I felt impolite and chose to keep my frustration in check instead. Nevertheless, it was a refreshing appetizer because I definitely needed it in order to prepare what was to come next. The waygu ramen was seemingly exciting. However, the broth was salty and there should be more variety of veggies to complement the wagyu slices. I wasn't saying this to be ungrateful because I liked the scallions and shaved black truffles. My palate just wasn't ready for a heavy amount of sodium. The dessert course, "Thai tea mini puff," was interesting. The color definitely reflected what it was. I wasn't impressed by the taste, but I needed something sweet to offset the saltiness in my mouth. Service was adequate. The server topped off the water a few times and that was what we needed for the most part. The fine print did mention that 3% hospitality fee would be added to the final check yet removable upon a customer's request. We didn't contest since it was less than $3 on the total bill. Overall, I still enjoyed dining at "Ramen San" and experience this time what I expected. p.s. it would be nice to have a coffee bar onsite. I would love to have a cup of Americano to end my meal here. read more

You get the Windy City's top ramen with a side of 90s hip hop throughout the restaurant. Even the to-go containers picture retro-style boomboxes on them--it's fantastic! I tried their 10 Hour Tonkatsu: You get that big, ramen bowl you know and love, piled high with noodles and veggies and meat, and it's all bathed in some seriously sumptuous broth. Crank your umami amps to "11" because this broth goes all the way. Wash it all down with one of their house made cocktails or a frosty mug of Asahi on draft. Popular among locals. I do recommend reservations; this place gets busy. Easy to recommend! read more

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I love this spot! Every time Ive gone the servers have been awesome, and the food and drinks are always spot on and tasty. It always comes out so fast too. I love the vibe with the exposed brick and wooden booths. There's always a new ramen on special too so there's always something new to try! I recommend it :) read more

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Well, it's very on brand that I found myself at Ramen San LP for opening night. Ramen San has been my favorite Chicago restaurant since 2018 - it's comfort food, it's good vibes, it's truly That Girl that I'll keep coming back to over and over. When I heard one was opening in Lincoln Park, I was on cloud nine. What used to be a 30 minute trek on the bus was now only a 10 minute walk away. Don't mind me stopping by every weekend. Genuinely when we walked in I did not know it was opening night. We only waited about 20 minutes for a table (I'm sure that'll change soon...), and actually got a nice booth. We had two servers tag teaming so we never went without. I started with the Thank Yuzu plus tequila, and my partner got the yuzu margarita. Looking at the menu, they actually have several things that are new and unique to LP! I'm a Ramen San traditionalist, though, so I got my trusty kimchi fried chicken ramen. Idk if it was the shiny new novelty of the fresh kitchen and all, but it was better than the last 3 times I've had it at the Streeterville location. My partner got the opening night special, which was a BBQ pork and wonton ramen. He said the wontons in it were "outstanding". I'm definitely excited to come back and actually try something new. Ramen San, thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming to Lincoln Park and saving me from trips downtown. I love you forever and always. read more

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10 hour tonkatsu is to die for! And I really love the lunch special where you get a mini bowl of the tonkatsu, a salad, and I think a choice of something but I got the glazed salmon. The interior is adorable and the downstairs event area was fun! The ramen is quite salty/oily though, so it feels heavy! read more

Ramen San - Lunch special - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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We came here cause the pictures looked good. The staff was friendly, nothing to stand out but meets expectations. The inside was a pretty cool vibe. The booths were nice. The food flavors were decent. We ordered a ginger dressing salad, 2 ramens and hot donuts. The salad was good, the donuts were okay (kinda like fair food - not bad) and the ramen broth was amazing. The issue in this lies in the noodles. They use Sun Noodles, I am familiar with the brand, the broth comes out pretty hot but the noodles are so undercooked that they stay congealed together. This picture that was added was at the end of our meal. My partner couldn't finish because it was not great taking bites of chunks like that. And it wasn't a unique problem, this was an issue with my ramen as well. I'm all for al dente but these did not seem cooked. Might try this place again but I'll have to say to cook the noods a bit extra, so for right now I'm giving it a 3/5 Edit: My partner said the noodles may have been like that because they were made earlier (maybe used old noodles) so they stuck together. Either way, broth was great, the noodles were not. read more

Ramen San - Vegetable Ramen - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Ramen-San used to be my go to place for ramen but most recently, it just doesn't taste the same. It's still good, but the flavors aren't what they used to be! I always get the kimchi and fried chicken with chicken broth and extra chili oil & this time I didn't really care to even finish the bowl. I also got the crab Rangoon which is pretty pricey, but I'm assuming it's real crab so the price is justified but again, the flavors were lacking. Service was okay, but I had to ask 4 different people for my bill which was weird and annoying. Pretty busy for a Thursday night but I was quickly seated. read more

Ramen San - Crab Rangoon - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Food is really delicious, but I went with my friends, and it was hard to talk with each other. The music has nothing to do with the environment, it is loud and pretty uncomfortable. We asked the waitress to turned it down a little bit, and she said that she couldn't do anything, that she understood that the vibe was not for everyone. read more

A solid date night spot. My boyfriend and I are both vegetarian so finding ramen spots with *good* ramen is tough but this really hit the spot. The tantan San ramen was just a bit spicy but had great vegetables throughout. Tofu was a little sparse but that's personal preference. I also wish it came out a bit hotter (temp) but we could eat it right away so that was nice. The edamame hummus was surprisingly really good. We kind of just got it on a whim and it was great! Service was friendly and not too much. Great spot. read more

Ramen San - Tantan-San - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Finally brought my fiancé here to try and it didn't disappoint. This is a very good bowl of ramen, simple but flavorful. The noodles are a bit basic but the broth does the heavy lifting. The egg is amazing and the meat is so tender. Atmosphere is fun and I'd like to try the Thai ice tea crème brûlée next time. Def hit the spot and the ramen pepper was really tasty. read more

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I've been to the river north location but I think this spot is way better ..maybe bigger space and service was fast. The food never disappoints of course. My go to is the tan tan men or the tonkatsu based. It's so delicious and of course gotta get that karage..I also think they do the karage way better at the Lincoln park location. Must try if your in the area specifically during the winter. read more

Ramen San - Karaage Chicken Nuggets - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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This place sets the bar not only for a ramen place but as a eatery as a whole. Everything is so flavorful and fresh. You can really tell there is a lot of attention to detail coming from the chefs in the back. I'd give the food 100/100. We are here two nights ago for the first time and are already back for seconds. From the moment you walk in to the money you leave, the staff here makes you feel very welcome, the ambience is just right, it feels like an upscale restaurant and the food is VERY reasonable priced. 10/10 would recommend. read more

Ramen San - Spicy kimchi, the best shiahito peppers ever! Pork belly buns, tuna tartar, crab eangoons... - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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The food is solid, and the staff is very good, the express lunch special is a steal it's $17.95, I can never finish it all, so thanks for the leftovers! read more

Best crab rangoons in the city. Vibes off the wazoo and killer service to boot. Will be coming and not just for the deserts.

Love the decor at this location. My friends and I came on a Friday night. We ordered crab ragoons and chicken kaarage nugs to start. Both delish. The nuggets were very crispy and crunchy. For ramen I ordered the 10 hour tonkotsu with corn and spicy added to it. Pretty solid ramen. Great to pair with a cold beer. Service was excellent and food came out quick. read more

Ramen San - 10 hour tonkotsu - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Not sure what happened but they fell off hard. This was a consistently solid ramen spot for awhile but we just finished eating our takeout and it is terrible. They seem to be using new noodles which have little to no "bounce" the pork chashu is under seasoned and overcooked. Not sure what tare they're using for the broth these days but lacks any substantive flavor. This used to be an every couple of months place for us but I don't think I will ever eat here or order from here again. read more

Food: just okay. Broth had good chicken flavor, but this bowl of ramen did not blow me away. The sesame chili oil is a must to add some flavor. Service: good service! Very friendly and knowledgeable waiter. Timely service. Ambiance: love the vibes of the restaurant. Very trendy and cute interior read more

Ramen San - Chicken Shio - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

let me start off by saying this is by no means a bad option. the restaurant itself has a really nice vibe, warm lighting and cute seating. if you can avoid it i don't recommend sitting at the tall tables if you're short because after ~10 minutes it gets uncomfortable since the food rest is pretty low to the ground. the service was really good, we were well taken care of. they consistently checked in on us and were quite intuitive which was appreciated cause my friend and i are very non-confrontational. now for the food...it was okay. the only thing that stood out to me was the crispy tofu bun. it had a good crunch to balance the softness from the bun and silky tofu texture. the flavor was also quite good and reminded me a lot of phoenix bean's tofu, so i do wonder if that's where they source it from. it had a bit of spice to it so if you don't like spice at all i would probably pick something else. i also had the tantan-san ramen which is their vegetarian option. the broth had a really good flavor, that was definitely the best part about it! the noodles kinda tasted undercooked, like when you cook fresh pasta and it's still a little chewy...but the cold tofu definitely helped between really hot bites so i appreciated that. overall it was okay, if i were to come back i might just order some broth and a ton of the crispy tofu buns. read more

Ramen San - Crispy Mini Tofu Bun - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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This location is really cute inside! I ordered the 10 hour tonkotsu and it was good, but not anything special. I would come back if someone wanted to but I think there are better ramen spots in Chicago read more

Ramen San - The inside is cute - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I love ramen from this place. The tan-tan san ramen is my favorite. Creamy and delicious. Tasteful decor and prompt service. I always keep coming back. read more

Ramen San - Tantan-San - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

First kudos go to them having a vegetarian option both for ramen and Bao. But that sentence has a hint: it's really a fusion place. So be aware. If you are a purist you might find the ramen broth for some dishes a little creamier than you may expect. Don't worry. It's yummy. Bonus points: the music is pleasant rather than drowning out your conversation. The prices are quite competitive. read more

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Great service, great food and great atmosphere!!! If you have food allergies they are very accommodating as well

Food was great, the atmosphere and aesthetic was nice. Everybody was super cool and very helpful, they helped us open our sodas that were very cool. read more

Ramen San - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Went for dinner and I would definitely recommend a reservation! A friend and I went on a Wednesday and it was packed - had to wait about 45min as a walk in. They do have a digital wait line system so you can keep checking your place in line if you want to leave to do something else. Food was amazing as always with only one exception. We ordered dumplings, crispy tofu bao, pork belly bao, and kimchi & fried chicken ramen with an added molten egg. The dumplings were unfortunately cold and to my eye were overcooked. The flavor was still there though and they were good even though it was cold. Crispy tofu bao was absolutely delicious and I'm glad I tried it. I really liked the flavor combination and the crispiness of the tofu. My friend also enjoyed the pork belly bao. Ramen was delicious and there was a lot of it. The kimchi & fried chicken ramen does come on the spicy side in case you're sensitive - but I like spicy. Plenty of fried chicken and the molten egg was perfect! They have a dessert menu as well but we were too full to partake that night. read more

Ramen San - Kimchi & fried chicken ramen with molten egg - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Finally made it here. Was excellent. Ramen was delicious can't go wrong on the choices. But the star might have been the draft beer in the ice mug!! Really good and perfect pairing. read more

Ramen San - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Went here after they recently opened their Lincoln Park location, and it was delicious! Absolutely recommend. The first thing I want to address is the price. On google maps, this location is listed at $100 per person. That is simply not true! We had 4 drinks and 5 food options, and our total was $120ish. If you pop in just for ramen, it's under $20 a person. So don't shy away from the price - google is wrong! At around 5 on a Friday, they had plenty of room for walk ins, but as 6 pm approached, the place was packed. They are constantly playing 90s/early 2000s hip hop, so definitely a fun atmosphere. Not too loud - I wasn't screaming in order for my date to hear me. We ordered the Salad San, a few Pork Belly Buns, and the Fried Chicken Ramen to eat. Everything was delicious and 10/10 recommend. If you don't like things too spicy, ask for the chili oil on the side and it'll be more mild. I didn't get a picture of the ramen bc it was gone in a flash! We also ended up going for the noodle refill at the end. For $5, we basically got another bowl of ramen to go. Recommend!!! To drink, we got the Asahi cold beer to start - it was a perfect pairing to the spicy ramen. Cold, crisp, and a wonderful light beer. I got the Yuzu Margarita afterwards which was delicious! A perfect Balance of mostly sweet with a tiny dash of sour and bitter at the end. Overall we loved our experience here. The only reason they get a 4 instead of a 5 for me personally is the timing of the service. It was VERY fast - the servers were taking away our plates as soon as we put our chopsticks down. Nice if you're in a hurry, but not so nice if you're not because it feels like they're trying to rush you out. Understandable since they have a busy restaurant, but a bit weird feeling. Besides being speedy, the staff was wonderful; they were all very nice and provided great recommendations. Overall, a wonderful experience. Definitely recommend stopping in! read more

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I had never tried ramen like this before so I was excited to get it from Uber Eats. The donuts and the dip were delicious but the fried chicken ramen was bad. For one thing it was all ice cold which was not the fault of the delivery person as it took 12 mins to get to us. The broth was flavorless, the chicken cold and oily, and someone tossed so much chili in it my mom got choked. Overall it just tasted like everything had been sitting out and they just dumped it in a container and sent it off, we couldn't even eat it. I hate to leave a bad review but if someone is looking to have this delivered I want them to know so they can make an informed decision. It might be fine in the restaurant but their delivery is not great. read more

I was on my way to another restaurant, and I walked by Ramen-San. It looked very warm and inviting, and folks looked to be enjoying their food, so I cheated on the other place I was going. I do not regret this decision at all. Really beautiful place inside, great service, and the food was amazing. I got the traditional Tonkotsu, and it was yummy! Perfect for a cold night, but not so filling that it couldn't be enjoyed tear round. They had an extensive collection of Japanese Whiskey, but as I prefer wine, they had a very nice Cab. Usually I would think it's too heavy, but this one was nicely balanced and didn't overwhelm the meal. I absolutely loved everything about this place and I would recommend without any reservation. read more

Ramen San - Remnants of dinner at the bar. - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I recently came here for dinner after dining here when it was previously Quality Crab and Oyster Bah. I was impressed by the transformation of the space! It is pretty tight inside, but it's cozy. I had the Tokyo takeoff to drink, it was small but very tasty! They were very busy but the service was fast and helpful! I had the tantan-San ramen (the only vegetarian ramen option) and was pleasantly surprised. It was different than other ramen I have had. It was very creamy and had a unique flavour! I will say the music is LOUD which doesn't really match the vibe of the restaurant, but I would certainly return! read more

Ramen San - tantan-san - Whiskey Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Ramen San is good. It isn't knock your socks off good but it's good. Good atmosphere and service. Fun vibe. Great area for walking and hanging out in. Parking can be difficult at times. read more