I have mixed reviews about Sapporo because there are many things I like about it -- namely, the noodle dishes are tasty! (Skip the green onion pancakes though. They were chewy and undercooked!) There were a lot of customers there and, I believe only 3 workers: front of the restaurant woman who is your hostess, server, "bus boy", and cashier! Then there was the cook and someone in the back. The service was fine overall but Sapporo fell short on cleanliness and food handling safety. My kids and I were STARVING so we had to just look the other way throughout our dinner. You can tell they were working hard so we didn't want to make a fuss but omg... the woman brought our bowls with her THUMB in the bowls! I could see that it went into the soup one time so she moved her thumb (probably bec it was hot) and almost dropped the bowl on the table. Another time she held a piece of paper (I think it was the order) in her hand while also handling our food, so the paper went into 2 out of 4 of our bowls. She had to shake the piece of paper next to me to get the food to fall off. It was so shocking that it was almost funny. Almost. Sapporo is what I'd call a "hole in the wall" establishment like ones I had been to in big cities, and with those places, I think there is a bit of uncleanliness that you just have to expect as long as the food is good. Based on how packed Sapporo is, I think that's what others feel as well. read more

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My friend and I came here craving for ramen. We came on a weekday so no one was inside. We were the only ones around noon. I ordered their tonkatsu ramen and my friend ordered their karaage ramen. food: Broth is super tasty. I like my pork belly. It wasn't too dry and was very easy to chew on. The noodles did get soggy over time. My friend's karaage was pretty good. The only thing we'd complain about is that the egg wasn't half raw as most ramen shops does it. It is very cooked which made it super dry. It seems alot of the yelp reviews were about the egg. I hope with many feedbacks about the egg, the chef could improve it make it half raw like most places. Environment: Inside was clean. Very quiet. It's a pretty small shop so can only fit less than 10 tables. The service was friendly. He was nice. read more

Sapporo Ramen - tonkatsu ramen and karaage ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

Ate here on Friday, January 17th with my parents and Sister. Menu had a variety of options. Parents appeared to be content. Sister sat quietly eating away. All in all a good experience. The waitress was running between our table and answering the the phone in orders. A lot Uber eats delivery people kept coming in for their clients. Directly across from our hotel rooms read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

Love love love love love this place! Such yummy food and friendly service! This is one of those places you miss unless you know it! So for food, it is delicious. Def the best ramen you can get in Santa Cruz, and just yummy ramen overall. Even the soups that aren't spicy, you can spice up with some yummy sambal on the table. So I've gotten the spicy miso ramen twice now and it's simply delicious. I usually do put about a spoon or two or three of sambal in to make it a little spicier, but the soup is yum with or without sambal. The fried chicken leg is so yum, with yummy chicken skin and perfectly cooked chicken. I really enjoy the seaweed and ramen in my broth. The egg is yummy too, but I added a panko egg the first time, and I gotta say, the panko egg is def an addition to the soup...YUM! I tried some of my bf's entree of Ko the first time, and it was yum too. It did need a bit of sambal to make it my flavor of yummy, but still so good. I tried some of my bf's entree of the Kobe beef ramen, and it was also super yummy. Again, some sambal spiced it to my level of yummy haha. This past time we also got some shishito peppers - and OMG I def recommend. Soooooooooo delicious. They're cooked perfectly, plus the tangy japanese bbq sauce is super complimentary to the peppers. I probz could have ate like two servings of those. So yum. And def would lick the plate clean haha. I also get a Sapporo beer (small) when I'm there, which tastes great with my ramen. If you want more beer, I'd recommend going ahead and ordering the large, but the small does it for me. Plus the lady that serves you is sooooooooo nice. She's very friendly taking your order, checks in on you, and is happy to get you whatever you want. She's also very kind in answering questions - my bf is an extrovert and loves asking questions, and she was so kind to him giving him the info he wanted to know. Plus very easy to get a to go cup for your soup if you're full. Just overall a nice intimate little establishment, with friendly service, and yummy comfort food. Lots of parking in the lot too. I'm def gonna be a repeat customer as long as I'm living in Santa Cruz! read more

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Very low key but also love the ko or pork belly ramen's broth! The broth was creamy deliciousness. It does have parking. I thought the pork belly was a bit overcooked. If they master the pork belly and egg, definitely would be 5 star read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

My hubby and I decided to stop in on a chilly day, after reading their raving reviews we had high expectations. I ordered the Ko Ramen. I was expecting a nice runny soft boiled egg you'd expect to see in ramen, in fact it was in the menu description. Egg porn anyone? Unfortunately both my hubby and I received a hard boiled egg in our bowls. The broth is what makes the ramen and I had to season and spice the hell out of it just to add flavor. Don't even get me started on the noodles.. My hubby said he liked his broth and pork belly and we did have a nice server. I've been sitting on this review for awhile since I hate downgrading businesses, but it's an honest 2/5 stars. read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ko Ramen~ Underwhelming and egg is hard boiled, not soft boiled. - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

This is the type of place I really enjoy. Unpretentious, super nice people serving up some yummy food. I got to try a lot of different types of ramen and they were all very good. My favorite was the curry karage. Good portion sizes as well. Keep in mind that it is a small restaurant with limited seating. read more

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Very good ramen! We had the coconut shoyu, Kabocha, and Ko ramen. All were good but the Konwas the favorite. The chicken in the coconut shoyu was overcooked while the brussel sprouts in the Kabocha were undercooked (nearly raw). We also had the Brussel sprouts in curry as an appetizer; it was delicious! The bowls in which the ramen are served are beautiful! That's the highlight for the atmosphere. Otherwise, the interior is relatively simple with a few tables and a row of chairs for people to wait for their to-go orders. The server was kind and kept our water glasses full. read more

Ordered the Ko ramen...If I was rating solely on the broth and noodles, it would be an EASY 5 stars... however the egg and the pork belly brought it down to a 3.5 but I rounded to a 4 First the portion is massive. It's served in what seems like a witches cauldron...and the noodles seem never ending as well as the broth. You can share this if your appetite isn't too big. The broth is sooooo creamy and delicate and delicious....I got to save some of it as leftovers and I'm planning on using it for meal #2 to cook for myself. The noodles they served are bouncy and got a nice chew to it and I loved it The only qualms I have about this place is the egg and the "perfect pork belly". The menu description said soft boiled egg but we clearly got hard boiled and other reviewers say this as well. Kinda disappointed in the egg cuz a soft boiled egg is the cherry on top to a good ramen. The pork belly was kinda hard and dry so I didn't eat it...I was missing the fatty melt in your mouth pieces of pork belly which is what "perfect pork belly" means to me. Overall if you don't care for meat or eggs...the noodles were amazing and the broth was to die for. I would come again just for the broth read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ko - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

We decided to try this ramen place and it was okay. My partner got coconut shoyu ramen and he was slightly disappointed - broth was just okay and the chicken was extremely dry. The biggest perk was that it was a big serving size. I got the Ko Ramen and it was also okay - the broth was good but the pork belly was also pretty dry and the egg was over cooked in both bowls. Large quantity though. read more

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We ordered ko ramen and Ebirah ramen, Ko ramen has a creamy soup that is not too strong. And over empowering. I do think the pork and egg are both overcooked. Ebirah ramen is a seafood ramen (spicy) the flavor is not too strong we didn't touch the mussels as it tasted like it's not fresh. The service and the ambiance is good we went on a weekend but it's not packed. The fried egg is on the house however the egg is overcooked as well. read more

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I would not recommend this restaurant for those who are craving ramen. The location of the restaurant is in a fairly nice spot, open parking spaces, and the decor of the restaurant was very simple. I got the Ko Ramen and the chicken karaage. The chicken karaage was very bland. It tasted almost as if it was in the freezer, came with no sauces or lemon, and had no seasoning. The amount they give you and the juiciness of the chicken was not bad, but it was just very tasteless. The ramen also did not satisfy me as well. It came with egg noodles (pre-packaged), green onions, dried seaweed (the ones you usually see in a little packet), a "soft boiled" egg, and some pork belly. The biggest points I would like to critique on is that the description of the egg was soft boiled, but this egg was very hard boiled and not very appetizing. Additionally, the pork belly was not the worst but would definitely taste better if it was cut into more thin slices. It was very difficult to eat. Also, I wished the seaweed was the actual big cuts of seaweed instead of the prepackaged ones. Lastly, the broth lacked a depth of flavor. It just tasted extremely bland. Compared to any other ramen location I've been to, this place by far did not reach expectations. Service was very friendly though! read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ko Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

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One of the better places to go for ramen here in Santa Cruz- Capitola area. My SO loved the Sapporo wings and the karaage curry ramen. Everything is packed in separate containers so it doesn't get soggy. The owner id very nice and always willing to make suggestions. I didn't get anything this time around but their vegan ramen is tasty. read more

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I'd say that the staff tries hard and it's a needed spot in the area but I would not be back as I am used to a much higher standard of ramen. The broths were just not good and the pork broth is likely milk as there is no way that pork broth comes out that colour. The pork belly was not done well and the chicken miso broth was not good either. They also charge for every topping when the ramen is already very overpriced. 3 dollars extra for bamboo shoots? Wow. Egg was also crazy overcooked. We had the shishito peppers and I think the cook can work a serious wok. It was quite good. I recommend going for the fried foods rather than the ramen. If I were stuck and had to get take out from here, i would try the fried items given the experience. But would avoid if I had a choice. read more

We got take out from here on our beach trip. We stayed at Fairfield inn across the street. I am a ramen snob and I have to say I was really impressed with the ko ramen. This is exactly how I like my ramen - rich and creamy but not salty nor oily - noodle has texture so was super awesome. Both of my kids 9 and 13 ate all of their noodles from their individual orders - pork belly was generous and very tender and tasty - egg was the only thing that was not soft in the center but given the rest, still loved it I was skeptical and worried when I first ordered especially seeing the few bad Yelp reviews. Kids really wanted ramen so we still sweet ahead and our experience was fantastic Also ordered fried oysters which was yummy. Lastly the reason that also pushed it to the 5 stars is I needed having to cancel a few ordered I made like 3 min earlier. They didn't sweat it and was still nice. We had left over soup and made another serving of the ramen next day and kids still enjoyed. Highly recommend. read more

Sapporo Ramen - This is already more than half eaten but so good. Ko ramen. - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

Ramen was excellent. There is only a couple people working. Order an appetizer while you wait. I have been here a few times and the food is always good. read more

Sapporo Ramen - Combo Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

Delicious place , can't get enough from it. I keep coming back for the broth and the pork belly. Oh and those rice cakes in the back are also everything !!!! They tend to be busy so be patient. A small whole in the wall but mighty flavors ! read more

Sapporo Ramen - I had a KO and Rice Cakes - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

The food is great. My absolute favorites are the Garlic Edamame (most amazing edamame I've tried so far) Agedashi Tofu and the Pork Belly Skewers for appetizers. The Ko Ramen was super good. The rest of our party all reported their ramen selections were very good too. The restaurant is small - they have a total of 7 tables that can comfortably seat 26 people. They have a line of about 4 chairs for anyone waiting for takeout orders. The owner is friendly and happy to make recommendations of you ask him. They take walk in orders and phone orders. Parking isn't hard to find. They're in a shopping center with plenty of parking. Getting back into your car after eating however, depends on how much you ate. The parking spaces are in the narrower side but easy to park in. read more

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Easy to order online and pickup, and the food was really good but not great. However, my 4 year old said "someone needs to sneak in there at night and draw a big heart because this is the best chicken ever!" Happy that our picky eater devoured her dinner, so we'll be back. read more

My usual ramen spot was closed, so we decided to try Sapporo. They're located in the New Leaf/Way of Life center. It's simple and clean. Not much for ambiance. Felt more like fast food vibe. The menu includes 10 ramen varieties plus curry dishes and grilled meat/vegetable skewers. Prices are reasonable for portions. For appetizers, we got grilled beef short ribs which was tender and delicious (sorry no pics). Our ramen dishes were Ko and spicy miso ramem. The Ko ramen was delicious and broth was on-point. Chashu was tender. I thought the spicy miso ramen was okay. I didn't care much for the fried chicken leg which was flavorless and underwhelming. Also, the egg on both ramen was hard boil as opposed to soft boil. Quality to detail was lacking. All in all, food is good, but nothing to write about. read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ko Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

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Friendly staff but food was average. Saw so many great reviews but it turned out food below expectations. The garlic edamame was the best of all, flavorful. Chicken karaage was bland. Ko ramen's pork belly was chewy. Not too bad but probably won't come out of my way to visit here. read more

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Yumm-o! It takes a minuet to get your order, but it's worth it! There were four of us, we all got different dishes, and we were all very pleased with all of them! read more

Sapporo Ramen - Curry with fried chicken - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

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Friendly staff, quality service , excellent food quality. Highly recommend. We will definitely be back read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ebirah - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

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Not closed. Really, really good ramen. And edamame. And wings. And excellent service. I'm so happy this restaurant is still open. One of my favorite ramen restaurants anywhere. read more

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this was one of the worst ramen places I've probably visited in my life I got two Ko ramens to-go. When I got home the soup base tasted so sour. I've tried so many different ramen places and I know ramen soup bases especially tonkotsu pork broth are NEVER SOUR. I called back asking why it was tasting sour and if it was supposed to. The man on the phone sounded very hesitant and kept saying no it's not sour! after talking they told us to come back to the restaurant to get a different ramen. Upon arriving, the guy straight up explains that their soup is delicious and kept denying that it is sour. Then he asked if he could try the soup I brought back. And then he had the nerve to ask "are you healthy" before drinking my soup.... He says that's how it's supposed to taste and I said no that's sour. He goes back to the kitchen and tastes the big pot of soup base in the back and speaks in Chinese to the chef that the soup went bad. Little did he know we understood everything he said and when he came back we confronted him. He was shocked and immediately offered to give me a new soup or a refund. At that moment I just wanted a refund cause I was so fed up. Honesty is so important especially if you're serving your customers food that has gone bad. Please own up to it and not make the customer feel bad..... Just really disappointed with our experience and wanted to let people who got Ko ramen on Father's Day know that you might feel sick tomorrow :( I would avoid coming here at all costs. read more

We stopped by Sapporo Ramen after a day at Capitola Beach, and we were very hungry. My daughter and I both got our own bowls of ramen and an order of gyoza. The gyoza was top tier, very crunchy with a healthy portion of filling, and the sauce complimented them well. When our ramen arrived, we were pleasantly surprised by the size of the bowls and the portions of meat. One bowl had a large fried chicken leg in it, and the other had an abundance of pork belly. It was definitely a unique style! Everything was very fresh and delicious. The broth could've been a little more flavorful for my taste. The spicy miso in particular didn't have any kick to it. Nice little restaurant with a few tables to dine it at. Will definitely come back next time we are in Capitola! read more

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Best ethnic food I've had in Santa Cruz.... Tomato was flavorful and not too heavy. Portions are generous and well prepared. Like stepping into someone's kitchen. read more

I had the curry karage ramen and I was pretty good. Generous portions and a fair price. read more

Sapporo Ramen - Curry karage ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

I love this place! Super delicious gyoza and ramen. I have gone a couple times now and the food is fresh and hot and good flavor. read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

Huge free plaza parking available. Surprisingly, this Japanese spot is Cantonese owned and operated. I was skeptical when I found this out BUT everything we ordered was delicious! The menu has a mix of Korean and Japanese food and even Chinese. So if you're looking for authenticity, with a ramen master chef, this may not be your spot. The owner is super sweet. There are only a handful of tables inside. The decor is not fancy, very practical, low key. No outside dining available. Everything you order seems to be made with love. Food may take a bit if it's busy. Seems like there was only one person working in back and the owner which was serving tables. The ko ramen and karaage ramen were good. The broth were satisfying and seasoned well. Not sure that it's true properly slow cooked broth, as it was very milky. Tasty nevertheless on a cold day when options are limited. The noodles were good. My only gripe was that the egg is not a Japanese style ramen egg, it was simply a boiled egg. That was extremely disappointing . Ramen eggs take a bit longer to prepare. I can make regular well done boiled eggs at home in a sec, so it killed it a bit. The short ribs were very delicious, seasoned perfectly. The agedashi tofu were perfectly chewy on the outside and delicious. The edamame were great. Glad we stopped by here on a whim to try it out! read more

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My 13-year-old son turned us onto this tasty little spot. He dropped in here with friends over a year ago, and it stood out as a place we must try. The kitchen staff are eager to please, very proud of their work, with good reason.Their Garlic Noodle dish is one of the few flavors I actually crave these days. I'm no Ramen expert, but I know what I like, and these dishes taste like family recipes cooked with care and attention. read more

Sapporo Ramen - Worth the trip. - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

Best ramen in town! We had a craving, (one of us was sick,) and it was amazing. We each got two servings out of the bowls we ordered. The flavor and ingredients were spot on! The chicken skewers were delicious! Don't sleep on this place! Can't wait to go back! Only thing I would ask for next time is extra broth! If you can't eat it all at once, definitely worth paying for extra broth!! They also own Poki Sushi on Soquel! The best poke I've found in my area! Amazing customer service at both locations. Also, if you were on DoorDash, you would easily be our go to when we don't want to cook! read more

I ordered the spicy miso ramen. My friend and I came in right when they opened. It was a little slow because they were still setting up. We sat and ordered. The food came in a decent amount of time. The food was good but not spectacular. The boiled egg was cold and my soup was hot. I hoped that it'd be all the same temperature. The water came out half way through our meal. This place seemed like a hole in the wall place with a mediocre vibe in the restaurant. read more

Absolute shithole - honestly do not understand how this place has good reviews. We sat down and waited 15 minutes before anyone even took our order, then another 30 minutes to get water, then another 45 minutes passed and no food. Others in the restaurant who had been there before we arrived also had not received any food. We just left. Kitchen is filthy, bathroom is filthy, place is a dump. Maybe food is decent but we weren't waiting 3 hours to find out. Best of luck read more

Two guys working very hard on Christmas Eve when every other resturant was closed. The restauranteur was very proud of his tonkotsu broth, said it was make from scratch without anything premade. Upon tasting, broth was very good, creamy and tons of Umami. Very generous with the pork belly pieces too, which were cooked expertly. Only complaint is that the egg was hardboiled, I prefer a marinated soft boiled egg in my ramen. Overall excellent experience, great addition to the very limited Santa Cruz lineup, and I hope they get the community support they need to make it through this challenging period. Both chefs were wearing their masks and the kitchen looked very clean read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

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Its a very small place and the inside is a little sad looking but it's was good food and a good price. read more

Sapporo Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

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Delicious!!! My mom and I came to Santa Cruz from Orange County and decided to find some ramen, there weren't many options besides here and we are so glad we decided to try it! We ordered take out over the phone and the man who helped us was so sweet and very helpful with my questions. I got the Ko ramen and my mom got the seafood ramen. The pork belly in my ko ramen was the best pork belly EVER, so good! My mom was obsessed with her seafood ramen. This would definitely be one of my top go-to spots if I lived in the area. Can't wait to come back in the future! read more

Sapporo Ramen - seafood ramen to-go - Ramen Near Me - Capitola, California

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Beware when ordering takeout that they have no clue who you are or what you ordered or if you paid. Every time I do that it's a big hassle. I've eaten in before and that's not a problem. It seems like the menu prices are higher if you do order online so beware. read more

The edamame was amazing. The portion sizes are some of the best. Good experience, we'll be back

I am baffled by the 4 star rating of this place. We were told over the phone our order would take "25 minutes," so we arrived 30 minutes later expecting to pick up the food and leave. When we arrived we were told it would be about 15-20 minutes. We were confused by this so we decided to sit down, kept checking in and were continously told "5 more minutes." We ended up waiting there one more hour. We asked for a refund and he denied it. If the business requires 1.5 hours to prepare ramen, this information needs to be conveyed to the customer in the initial phone order, so customers can decide if the timeframe works for them. If a customer has to wait an entire extra hour, a refund becomes not just fair, but necessary. To make matters worse, our food was burnt. Extremely inappropriate and unprofessional. read more